The Legend of Zelda: Sky Lines
by Light Onthemayo
Summary: One hundred and fifty years after the disaster with the Spirit Tracks, Hyrule has risen to the skies. The people have made a living through the use of airships and the "Sky Lines", trails of intense wind used to aid these airships in their travels. On the eve of a fantastic adventure, a young boy named Link has just been given command of his own airship...
1. The Dream and The Promotion

Chapter 1: The Dream and the Promotion

…

The ship around him rattled violently, its timbers threatening to fall. The splinters of the old helm cut into his bare fingers as he struggled to steer the ship out of its list. But it was no good; the rudder had been destroyed, and with the supplies below throwing off the ship's balance by being on the starboard side, it took all of his strength against the wheel to keep the ship from nose-diving into whatever existed below the clouds.

"Line! Line, where are you!?" he shouted over the weather deck, using his eyes to scan for his friend.

But the only figure he saw was a feminine silhouette tumbling towards the starboard bulwark. She hit the bulwark and immediately grabbed the closest rigging line to stand.

"No, don't!" he shouted to her, catching her attention. Her head snapped in his direction, and a wild mane of blond partially obscured her face. For a moment, he was stunned. But he shook his head and called out, "Keep low! Try to get back below!"

An explosion sounded, cutting through the chaotic winds the ship faced, and he saw the bowsprit shatter to splinters in an instant and disappear somewhere into the turbulent darkness in front of the ship. Fortunately, he did not have to worry about losing the fore-mast yet.

"Line!" he shouted again.

The hatch behind him flew open, and a male figure clad in a blue tunic and black tights pulled himself onto the deck. Their eyes met, both exchanging a mutual fear of the situation. "What's happening?!" Line shouted first, leaping forward and grabbing two available handholds on the helm.

"No, go adjust the ballast!" the one struggling against the wheel told him. "We have to get out of the Sky Line!"

Line nodded, but he lost his footing when another explosion blew apart the fore-mast before both of their eyes. He slid into the bulwark behind the other young man, stopping himself with his feet. Flipping onto his belly, he pressed his palms against the deck and crawled back towards the helm. His fingers wrapped around the bottom of one of the set of levers near the helm, and he used it to pull himself up. Standing again, he then grabbed another by the handle and squeezed the mechanism so it would unlock. Then he threw it forward.

The ship lurched in response, and all three onboard felt themselves grow lighter as the ship descended. Line managed to wrap one arm on the railing in front of the levers.

"Is there any land nearby?!" Line shouted.

"I don't know," the other boy replied, grinding his teeth as he felt his arms weakening. "I need the chart from downstairs! But I don't think there was anything here!"

"What do we do now?"

"Can you get to the signal flags?" Line nodded. "Send up a surrender; we can't take much more of this!"

"Got it!" With that, Line hauled himself over the rail and landed on the weather deck.

Then he felt the jolt of something slamming into the listing side. Pressure lifted from the helm as the ship almost appeared to right itself. The helmsman glanced over towards the source of the sound.

His eyes grew wide at the sight of a jet-black hull scraping against his ship. Lines were already falling from the bulwark of the other vessel, which looked to be five times larger.

The boy heard Line come back onto the deck. There was a pause afterwards.

Then the boy's head hit the helm hard.

He fell to the side, his vision blurring from the strike. Rolling onto his back, he peered up at the vague image of his attacker. He could not make out any details, but he saw a glint of steel approaching his face fast.

"Link…"

The figure stood and walked away.

"LINK!"

…

A book flew over the desk and into someone's chest as Link suddenly sat up straight in the wooden chair, startled into waking by the frustrated calling of his name.

He cast alert eyes around the room, reaffirming his location. He recognized walls of faded red clay, a floor of old wood weathered before being finished again and used for their current purpose, and a pale ceiling with skylights letting in beams of sunlight. His desk, stacked with papers stamped and ready for sorting, had a fresher build to it, only having been his for a few months. Dirt on the surface told him where he had been resting his boots before he woke.

And standing before him was a tall, burly man wearing the red jacket of an airship captain. His face sported a heavy beard, and his thick eyebrows formed a V-shape as he stared down at Link. His bald head shone in the sunlight of the window above. With his hands clasped behind his back, he spoke with an air of respected authority, "Nice to see my apprentice so hard at work."

"S-sorry, Captain Alfonzo," Link replied, using a hand to brush dirt of the edge of the desk. "I-I guess I fell asleep."

Captain Alfonzo held up the book that had struck him. "A completely understandable situation when you've been reading Niko's journals," he said, "but nevertheless, sleeping on the job is sleeping on the job. It's not something I can have a newly-promoted lieutenant do."

Link quickly nodded his head in agreement. "I-I know, sir, and I am…" He trailed off when the entirety of the captain's statement registered. For a moment, he stared at the captain's softening eyes, slack-jawed from shock. "S-sir?"

"You heard me," Alfonzo replied, finally showing the smile he had hidden under his beard. "The fleet captain approved your designation as the skipper of one of the smaller haulers. Now…" Here, he cleared his throat. Then he barked, "LIEUTENANT LINK, I WANNA SEE A SALUTE NOW!"

Link jumped to his feet so fast that the force of his legs against the chair knocked it backwards. He nearly gave himself a concussion slapping the blade of his left hand to his forehead. For a moment, he stood trembling with both excitement and fright, waiting until the captain dismissed the salute. Alfonzo's right hand was calm and steady as it touched his brow and fell back to his side. In response, Link's left hand slapped his thigh hard, forcing him to hold back the urge to yelp in pain.

"As you were, Lieutenant," Alfonzo told him.

But Link could not unfreeze himself from his straight position. "S-sir… I… I don't know…"

Alfonzo held up a hand. "Let me stop you there," he interrupted with a formal tone. "You know the rules for being promoted to a skipper rank. For now, you aren't _officially_ a skipper."

Link gave a sharp nod, cracking his neck in the process. "Y-yes, sir."

"Get your gear together. We're sailing in one hour."

"Yes, sir," Link replied with a salute equally as violent as the first one.

"Dismissed," Alfonzo replied, returning the salute. He spun on one heel and strode for the door with footsteps that made the floor underneath Link's feet bounce.

On his way in, another person suddenly snapped to attention beside the doorframe as Alfonzo exited. He waited for a moment, and then he quickly bounded into the room and right up to Link's desk. Link immediately recognized Line, wearing the blue tunic of a full airman (the same tunic that Link wore) over a black, skin-tight bodysuit. The boy's red hair was disheveled, and his eyes lit like a pair of bonfires as he stared at Link. "Link, I just heard about the promotion," he said in an excited tone.

Link gave a relieved sigh. "He surprised me with it," he confessed. "I didn't even know I was _up_ for promotion."

"Are you kidding?" Line responded, leaning on the desk between them. "You're Captain Alfonzo's _understudy_! What's the point in being that if they're not going to bother promoting you?"

Link's mouth pulled into a stupid grin. "I-I guess you're right," he admitted, scratching the back of his neck.

"Come on now," Line told him. "We need to get your stuff."

"Why all the rush?" Link asked as he rounded the desk.

Almost immediately when Link was in range, Line leaned forward and smacked the back of his head. "Why do you think, stupid? We're going to Castle Island!"

Link gave a nervous laugh, rubbing the spot Line had struck. "Oh," he answered. "Right, I forgot."

"Come on," Line told him, slapping his shoulder. They started walking as he continued, "You know every captain has to be recognized by the royal family before they begin commanding an airship for the realm."

Link, as they stepped into the hallway outside, flashed a surprised look. "You mean we really have to see the royal family before we pilot a ship?"

"Not everything the other airmen tell you is a fib, Link," Line responded. "Of _course_ you have to meet the royal family. And with the king and queen off in Termina for the rest of the year, you know what that means, right?" Along with the change in his tone, Line's eyebrows twitched suggestively.

Link's neck recoiled. "Doesn't that mean I _can't_ be recognized?"

Line smacked the back of his head again, this time eliciting a complaint from him. "Geez, how thick can you be, Link?

"It means you'll get to see the princess! The Princess of Hyrule has to recognize you!"

Link blinked in confusion for a moment. "Hyrule has a princess?"

Line growled at him. "If I hit you again, it won't be as friendly," he threatened him.

"I have a hard time believing that _anytime_ you hit me is friendly," Link replied, rubbing the sore spot on the back of his head.

"We're going to Hyrule Castle, and you don't know a _thing_ about the people who are going to let you command an airship?" Line asked incredulously.

"Well, it's not like I've had the time to get to know other ports," Link confessed as they rounded a corner. "Captain Alfonzo didn't let me leave the ship unless the whole crew was disembarking. And from there, I never got to see much beyond the port. I've had to keep records for the _Grand Sails_; I haven't had the time for anything else."

"Well, you'll have time for it _now_, _Lieutenant_," Line said. "Especially since you'll be commanding the _Island Sonata_."

"The _Island Sonata_?" Link asked. "I thought it was in dry-dock for repairs."

"It was," Line answered, grabbing the back of Link's tunic to keep him from missing the door to their quarters.

Both boys stepped inside. The room had a bunk bed set across from the door, and a pair of dressers on either side along with a small table and chair for each of them. The top bunk, which Line used, already had a bag ready and waiting. Link stepped over to his dresser and pulled an empty travel bag from the top.

Line leaned against the doorframe and watched Link begin to stuff the bag full of clothes. "The _Island Sonata_ was already set out yesterday, full repairs and a new ballast system," he told Link, crossing his arms. "You're telling me that you didn't hear about that?"

Link shrugged. "It's not like anyone tells me anything anyway," he replied over his shoulder, stuffing a clean set of his usual white trousers in the bag. "Is it holding up? The _Island Sonata_?"

Line nodded. "About as much as can be expected," he answered. "I took a look at it before I came looking for you. They left up some of the older rigging lines, and the hull creaks a bit, but it's still in the air."

Link pulled open a lower drawer and found his compass. "Good," he answered as he placed it around his neck.

"'Good'?" Line asked in a mocking tone. "You're going to meet the Princess of Hyrule, and all you can say to it is 'good'? You should be more excited for this!"

"I just don't see what the big deal is," Link replied as he shuffled through the same drawer looking for anything else he might need. "It's not like there's much coming out of being recognized by the royal family. There are plenty of other airships out there who operate just fine without it."

"Yeah, but how many of them get to boast having the approval of _and_ the sanction for working directly with the royal family?" Line pointed out.

"Anyone who lies."

Line gave a sigh and rubbed his forehead. "Yeah, well, it's the truth for the Skyrider Company. But still, Link. You could show a little more excitement. You know Captain Alfonzo's letting you take the _Island Sonata_ in today's convoy, right?"

"Yeah, I know," Link answered, pushing the drawer shut with his foot. "Who's crewing?"

Line held his arms open. "You're talking to it."

Link's face formed a frown as he turned to look at Line. "You're kidding, right?" he asked. "Just two people for the _Island Sonata_?"

"It's not that big," Line pointed out. "As soon as the rigging's back up, all it needs is someone to fire up the propeller, and we're all set. You've got nothing to worry about."

"I'm going to worry no matter what," Link replied as he shouldered the bag. He followed Line with his eyes as the airman crossed to their bunk beds. "Are we hopping ports along the way?"

"Nope," Line replied as he shouldered his own travel bag. "The flight plan's already set.

"We're taking the Sky Lines there."


	2. The Island Sonata

Chapter 2: The _Island __Sonata_

…

The Sky Lines. Far-reaching currents of air which had allowed the sky-borne kingdom of Hyrule to expand tremendously. In fact, the people of Hyrule could not travel between islands without them; to fly between even the closest towns would take a day or so. The Sky Lines were permanent facets of life, and almost everyone had built a living on them. But no one knew much about them. How they were formed, how they manage to stay so permanent, where they eventually went… all of these were speculated on. It was generally accepted that the currents were natural, and that they eventually circled back into themselves, which helped keep them so constant. As for where they went, well… anyone who ever tried to find out was lost forever. Most people believed that they were met with misfortune on the way, while others said that when they found a new land, they never wanted to return.

And some said that the Sky Lines eventually lead to a dark place, the kind of place where only the proud and foolish wander.

Link had heard many stories like this. He doubted them, but he never stopped being afraid of them. It was a fear that every airman and captain held onto.

And now, he was setting out to use those currents on which stories and legends were built.

The _Island__ Sonata_ was a small cargo and passenger, three-masted schooner barely larger than a house built for a family. Her hull, shaped to resemble old craft from the past, had been recently replaced in patches of bright wood when compared to the darker, dirtier brown of the old materials. Three masts decorated the air above her, the two smaller masts fore and aft of the main mast. As he walked up the gangplank behind Line, he peered over to look at the propeller. Unlike the older vessels, his had been fitted with a shorter, thicker propeller which would provide more push for the schooner, making it much faster than the larger craft at full speed. The breeze gave the propeller a slow spin, as if to offer Link a welcoming wave.

As they stepped onto the aftcastle, where the helm wheel and various levers and calling tubes resided, Link could quickly hear what Line had meant earlier; the deck planks beneath him carried the subtle moan of a ship ready to be retired. He hoped that the _Island__ Sonata_ would be willing to at least tolerate him for a few voyages.

"Skipper on deck!" Line suddenly called across the weather deck. The airmen on the weather deck and the forecastle suddenly snapped to attention.

Link's reaction was to snap to attention with them, but when he caught Line's irritated glare out of the corner of his eye, he sighed and said, "Sorry."

"Dammit, Link, focus here," he whispered under his breath, still standing stiff as he tried to address the skipper without lowering his formality. "You're a lieutenant now. Act like it."

Link withheld the urge to laugh. Line was right; he was an officer now. But it also meant that he was in charge of a vessel full of well-meaning souls who looked to him to direct their jobs. The thought made him nervous, especially when his previous experiences had had Captain Alfonzo behind him. He found he had to draw on the captain's usual repertoire of commands in order to settle himself down.

"As you were," he called over the weather deck. The airmen each snapped a salute at him (including those on the masts) before returning to work.

"Try to show a little more confidence, Link," Line told him as Link brushed a hand against the helm. "A skipper has to inspire his men."

Link nodded his understanding and examined the airmen working below. Half of them appeared to be well past his own age while the other half, clambering about the rigging and the masts, were just a bit younger than him. It puzzled him that so many airmen would step into adulthood and never make it past their station while he was being promoted to a lieutenant.

"Relax, Link," Line said, interrupting his thoughts. "It's not like you're sailing with them yet. It'll just be you and me today."

Link glanced over at his best friend. "I think I can see why you haven't made lieutenant yet," he commented with a grin.

Line chuckled. "Are you kidding? I don't want this job. It just means that if Captain Alfonzo finds out something bad happened, he'll be taking it out on your hide instead of the guy who screwed up."

Link stepped over to the railing in front of the helm and rested his arms across it. Then he rested his head on his arms sideways. This gave him a view of the _Grand__ Sails_. Almost five times the size of the _Island__ Sonata_, the _Grand__ Sails_ was not the kind of vessel one could pilot with only two crewmen on board. Five massive sails, including two triangular rigs hanging out at the bow of the ship like a pair of folded wings, ensured that the whole vessel was pulled by the Sky Lines. The hull was painted white with gold trimming along the bulwark and the windows. Her stern sported five large, skinny propellers which would push the ship along in regular air. Airmen reduced to the size of tiny blue sticks scrambled about the vessel as they made to depart.

"Don't you have anything better to do right now?" Link asked Line as he stared up at the galleon before him.

"I'm Chief of the Deck," Line replied, leaning his back against the rail and looking out at the _Grand__ Sails_ with him. "I don't have to do _anything_ until we set off."

"Airman Line," another airman asked, climbing the steps to the aftcastle out of Link's vision. "Ship's ready to make way. All's sound, and your supplies are loaded."

"Thank you, Airman," Line replied, dismissing the older man's salute with his own.

"Permission for the rest of the crew to disembark, skipper?" the airman asked as Link picked his head up.

Link found that the airman was already holding a hand to his forehead in salute. "Granted," he replied, returning the salute.

But the man did not budge from his position. Line nudged Link and whispered, "Wrong hand. The senior officers use the right hand, remember?"

Link gave Line an irritated groan before turning completely to the man and saluting with the right hand. "Permission granted, airman," he said as he dropped the hand.

"Yes, sir," the airman replied with a grin on his face.

"Looks like the _Grand__ Sails_ is ready to set off, too," Line commented as the other airmen walked past the two on their way off via the gangplank. "They're already dropping their mooring lines now."

"How should we handle this with only two people on board?" Link asked.

Line waited for the last airman to make it half-way down the gangplank before slapping Link's shoulder. "Just worry about the helm; I'll put up the moorings."

"Okay," Link agreed as he stepped behind the helm.

The airmen on the dock pulled the gangplank away from the schooner, and Line closed and locked the gate in the bulwark. The mooring lines were untied, and Line started gathering one up as Link gripped one of the long levers and, squeezing the locking mechanism, pushed it forward.

The airship around them growled in response, and, after a minute (during which Line had started working on the second mooring rope), the vents in the rear of the ship spouted off jets of steam. Churning sounded through the deck boards, and the propeller on the back began spinning faster. Link grabbed another lever and gently edged it forward. The propeller spun faster until the airship finally edged away from the docks.

"Hey, Link!" Line, having ran down to the weather deck to check the stays, called up from the port bulwark. He pointed to the _Grand __Sails_ next to them. "Captain Alfonzo's sending up the convoy arrangement!"

Link glanced down at the helm's hub, where the ship's unique emblem would be. He found a pan flute positioned above the outline of an island. "Got it," he called back, now looking over to the _Grand__ Sails_. A line of flags climbed up a rope towards the main mast, and Link looked for the _Island__ Sonata_'s banner among them. After figuring out the _Island__ Sonata_'s position, he pushed the throttle lever forward more and reached to another lever. This one he also eased, pulling it back, so that the ship would gain altitude gradually; otherwise, he and Line would be on the deck in the next instant. He checked around and found five other ships pulling away from the massive port area in the same way.

Line disappeared into the cabin below Link for a moment, and then he returned to hoist a yellow confirmation flag up the side of the main mast. Link watched the other vessels around him do the same as they rose to follow the _Grand__ Sails_.

Line then climbed the steps to the aftcastle and pointed across the helm. "Hey, Link, check it out," he said. "The _Moon__'__s__ Shadow_'s taking off with us."

Link glanced past the red-hulled brigantine beside them to the black-clad barquentine pulling out of the port with them. The _Moon__'__s __Shadow_ had the reputation of being a bad ship to come across, and with good reason. She was the fastest ship in the Skyrider Company and well-armed in comparison with even the massive _Grand__ Sails_. She was one of only five ships fitted with cannons and frequently sailed with convoys in order to protect them. Link turned back to check the _Grand __Sails_' formation banners and saw that they would be following off of the _Moon__'__s__ Shadow_'s stern at port. Watching the galleon rising faster than the schooner, Link added more to the altitude control. Then he pushed the throttle to full and eased the ship to port as it gained speed.

Further above, and slightly off to starboard as the _Island__ Sonata_ turned, was the blue stream of the nearest Sky Line to Skyrider Port. Even set next to a sky, the Sky Line shown a more brilliant hue, with small jets of white shooting through the incredible winds that formed these important means of travel.

The other convoy ships, all of them larger than the _Island__ Sonata_, rose faster and took up their positions on either side of the _Grand__ Sails_. Link, however, continued to toy with the altitude control as he tried to keep track of the ships above him.

His concentration faltered when Line's hand met the back of his head a few seconds later. "Stop messing around; we're going to get left behind," Line complained.

"I was looking out for the other ships," Link replied over one shoulder.

"You're taking too long to match altitude," Line told him. "Hurry up. The _Island__ Sonata_'s fast enough to catch up to the convoy at full throttle."

Glancing back up at the ships overhead, Link took a moment to decide his course. When he finally made up his mind, he threw the helm hard to starboard and put more power into the ballast. The ship lurched and groaned in response, but it held up as it suddenly pushed both boys harder into the deck. The _Island__ Sonata_ gained altitude so fast that airmen on the nearby _Moon__'__s__ Shadow_ and a small junk glanced up in surprise at the mass of wood that had just sailed by. The crew of the junk was particularly alarmed, as the displacement of air off the _Island __Sonata_ rocked and rattled their ship violently.

Line, having run to the edge of the ship when he realized that the junk was nearby, turned back to Link laughing. "That was _awesome_!" he cried, only moments away from hysterics.

"Too fast, though," Link replied as he jerked back on the altitude adjusting lever. The sudden settling of the ship made a great number of things below-deck jump up and produce a number of heavy thuds after falling against the deck. Line, a surprised look on his face, met Link's bashful grin. "Whoops," Link remarked, trying not to laugh.

Line could only chuckle at his friend. "Let's get out of here before that junk starts throwing junk at us."

Link double-checked that the propeller throttle was at full again, then he adjusted the altitude control before turning into the breeze, which was the same direction that the convoy was moving in. The turn was not as violent as the first one had been, and he had Line warn him if he was coming too close to the junk again.

"You know what Captain Alfonzo's probably thinking about now?" Line asked as Link steered the _Island__ Sonata_ into position behind the _Moon__'__s__ Shadow_ and pulled back the throttle slightly.

"You mean if he's paying attention to us?" Link asked in turn, edging the ship towards the port side of the _Moon__'__s__ Shadow_.

"I can just hear him now," Line chuckled as he held his hands up to imitate the captain's beard. "'I don't think it was a good idea to leave those two boys alone with a ship'." Link started laughing hysterically, almost not noticing the ship getting too close to the _Moon__'__s__ Shadow_ and pulled back the throttle a little more. "See?" Line told him. "You're loosening up."

Link took a moment to think as he double-checked his position to the barquentine ahead of him. "Yeah, I guess you're right," he agreed, edging the _Island__ Sonata_ along as the convoy steered towards the Sky Line. Both boys looked up as the Sky Line settled over their heads, the strong winds inside adding a deep whistle to the air around them. One by one, the ships ahead of them hit the Sky Line. It was quite scary to behold, as the sails of each ship suddenly catching powerful winds caused the ship's bow to nose down for a moment. But once successfully in, the sudden force propelled the ship fast.

"Go open up the other jib just in case we have to catch up," Link told Line as the _Moon__'__s__ Shadow_ finally entered. After Line nodded and dashed off towards the bow, Link steeled himself up and cut power to the propeller. His fingers danced around the altitude controls for a moment, uncertain if he should pull into the Sky Line now or wait a minute. Knowing that the sails' current configuration would keep them up to speed with the convoy, he decided to just do it and pulled on the control with a little more vigor than he had intended.

The _Island__ Sonata_ jumped into the Sky Line and was hit hard from behind, throwing Link onto his back with equal force. For a moment, the deep whistling of the Sky Line dulled until it had disappeared. Thankful for the high bulwark behind him protecting him from the great winds, Link got back to his feet and grabbed the helm to keep it from spilling the _Island__ Sonata_ outside. He had to fight for a moment, and then he managed to put the airship back into its proper heading. The gaff rigged sails became solid, and Link could feel the ship calm as it settled comfortably into the winds. After adjusting so that the ship was level with the rest of the convoy, he signaled Line (who stepped around the fore-mast to give Link a wide-armed, "what the hell" gesture) with a finger pointed forward, indicating that he should put up the jib as he had said. Not that was needed; he had no trouble making out the _Grand__ Sails_ and the _Moon__'__s__ Shadow_ from where they were at now. He just wanted to make sure he could keep up with them.

He looked over his shoulder, but even without the bulwark in the way, he knew that Skyrider Port would have been reduced to a nondescript spot in the sky.


	3. Skipper's Log

Chapter 3: Skipper's Log

…

Link stood at the helm, eyes glazed over as he thought. The full effect of being promoted hit him shortly after entering the Sky Line and stabilizing his formation behind the _Moon__'__s__ Shadow_. He had spent only a year and a half as Captain Alfonzo's understudy, giving orders to airmen who often looked more inclined to tie him up and toss his scrawny hide overboard. Some have even told him so. And some had even gone as far as to try loading him into a cannon while he was asleep. As far as he knew, he had not developed the steel spine that his captain had to deal with such men. Other than Line, Link did not have many friends among the _Grand__ Sails_' crew. He wondered what kind of people the captain would provide for his crew. _If_ he would provide a crew, Link corrected himself. For all he knew, he would be working strictly with Line for a long time.

Link knew how Skyriders found their airmen. Sailors signed up to work with one of the three airship companies that traveled about the world at any of the convenient ports where their airships docked.

He also knew that he had been more or less born an airman.

Not much really remained of Link's past anymore. For most of his life, all he knew were airships and the Skyriders. Everything before then was a vague recollection that he had every now and then. A strange face here, a building he had never seen before there… None of them made sense anymore, so he never bothered asking anyone.

A loud clap startled him out of his thoughts, and he looked over his shoulder at Line. "Link, are you okay?" Line asked. "I've been trying to get your attention for a few minutes."

Link shook his head. "Sorry," he answered. "I was just a little lost in thought."

"Don't get too lost," Line told him, "or else we might bounce of another ship."

Link, turning his head back, sighed and looked up at the aft-mast in front of him. The boom above his head gave a few shakes in response to the helm movements as he tried to keep the ship inside the Sky Line behind the _Moon__'__s_ _Shadow_. With the gaffs of the main sail and the aft sail set just slightly to port and starboard respectively, Link was able to keep a mostly steady course in this intense wind.

Mostly, he realized after he leaned to one side to look at the main mast, because the markings at the top of the sails above the throat halyard holders showed the aft gaff had been set off-center by a slightly larger degree than the main gaff.

"Line, how come you set the aft gaff off more than the main gaff?" he asked. "It's giving us a slight list."

"A trick one of the other airmen showed me," Line replied. "You offset one gaff in case we need to get out of the Sky Line as fast as possible."

Link frowned and glanced to both port and starboard. "The closest edge of the Sky Line is on our port side," he pointed out.

"Yeah, I know," Line nodded.

Link looked over his shoulder at his friend. "But with this setup, you've given us a stronger turn to starboard."

Line tilted his head in confusion. "I did?"

"More wind is getting into the aft sail. It's offset to port, which means that the ship will turn starboard at rest. If we want to get out of the Sky Line as fast as possible, it's the _starboard_-set sail we need at a larger angle."

"Oh," Line uttered, scratching his head. "Damn, I didn't even notice. Want me to correct it?"

Link shook his head and looked back out to the _Moon__'__s_ _Shadow_ in front of him. "No. That would require us to get out of the Sky Line and then have to catch up to the convoy as soon as we got back in. I can live with the list, but don't offset the sails like that anymore; it's not very efficient for travel like this."

"Aye, sir," Line replied.

Link glanced back at him to find his friend wearing an irate expression. He felt bad and started to say, "No, look, Line, it's just—"

Line held up a hand to stop him. "No, no, Link," he interrupted. "A skipper doesn't explain his orders. The crew has to trust a skipper's orders won't lead them to disaster. If you don't want me to offset the sails like that, then I won't."

But the tone with which Line had delivered the last statement still had a defiant ring to it. "I'm just trying to—" Link started again.

"Link," Line interrupted with a harsher tone. "I'll live with it."

Link pulled back one corner of his mouth and turned to look out across the weather deck again. "Right." Feeling a little uncomfortable knowing that Line was staring at his back, he added over his shoulder, "Why don't you take lookout? There's a port coming up soon, and one of the ships ahead of us might be descending."

"Aye, sir," Line replied with an exhausted tone. Link glanced to the side to watch his friend descend from the bridge and cross the weather deck bound for the ship's bow.

A few minutes later, after Line had disappeared onto the forecastle, the airman came back onto the weather deck and signaled Link with a level hand pointed to port, two fist pumps, and a finger pointing down at the deck. Link responded by giving his head a single pat, acknowledging that the _Moon__'__s_ _Shadow_ was about to descend. He reached over to the altitude controls and gave the _Island_ _Sonata_ a little more lift so that the descending _Moon__'__s_ _Shadow_ would not drive her sails into their hull when the descent slowed her. Line crossed to the port bulwark and leaned on it to look over the edge. Ahead of them, Link watched the black ship's sails descend until the bow obstructed his view. After a few moments of hoping that he did just as was expected of him, Line stood up straight and traced a circle in the air with his whole arm. The skipper answered with a finger pointed forward, telling Line to put up the second jib.

The _Island_ _Sonata_ pulled forward in the convoy until Link had a view of both the next ship in the convoy (the name of which escaped him; it was a brig which he had only noticed a couple of times in the convoy) and the _Grand_ _Sails_' port-aft quarter. When Line came into view again with his fists put together to show that they were back in formation, Link jerked his thumb over his shoulder to tell him to take the jib down again. That was one of the benefits of jibs, being able to adjust a ship's speed inside a fierce wind without having reset the primary sails.

Line reappeared again after a few minutes and half-jogged back to the bridge. As he reached the top of the steps, he said to Link, "We'll be descending next with the _Grand_ _Sails_, but it won't be for another half-hour. Why don't I take the helm so you can rest?"

"Do you think I'll need it?" Link asked as he read the signal flags trailing the _Grand_ _Sails_' aft-most mast.

Line reached forward and tugged the strap of Link's bag. "I think you'll need to relax. We've been sailing for nearly an hour, and that bag must be getting uncomfortable. Besides, you've been wearing those clothes for the past two days. Go change into a set of fresh ones and get something to eat. Maybe read a few pages while you're at it."

"Will you be okay for a bit?"

Line bumped his shoulder against Link's as if to push him out of the spot. "We're just cruising right now, Link. Besides, if anything changes, I have a good view of the captain's ship from here."

Link mulled it over for a bit before removing a hand from the wheel and stepping aside. "Then man the helm, Line," he said. "I'll be just in my cabin."

"Got it," Line answered as he took the helm, tapping on a call tube labeled "Skipper" in a less-than-professional etch.

Link nodded and descended from the bridge onto the weather deck below. For a moment, he scanned the clouds off to port, watching as they lofted by despite the _Island_ _Sonata_'s incredible speed. A few patches of cumulus clouds hovered about, but other than the regular haze beneath the Sky Line and the Sky Line itself, there did not appear to be much in the air. He turned and went through the door under the stairs into the aftcastle.

On the other side of the door, waiting for him, was a particularly comfortable-looking room. He had seen quite a bit of time in both his office quarters and the barracks of the _Grand_ _Sails_, so it was interesting to walk into a skipper's cabin with the knowledge that it now belonged to him. The whole room took up the portside of the aftcastle just under the bridge, so it was a decent size. A table anchored to the starboard bulkhead on his left held a number of tools used for navigating the Sky Lines and the air in general, which included the map which was attached to the table itself. The tools had been spilled onto the table from the small basket sitting tipped over on top of the map, likely a result of his ungraceful entrance into the Sky Line earlier. Along that same wall were the calling tubes used to shout messages across the ship, each one labeled with a hastily-scribbled scrap of paper. Where the bulkhead met the interior surface of the hull was a small wine cabinet, bare for now and probably for a while until Link would decide to keep some form of spirits onboard. Frosted windows decorated the aft wall all the way around the port side until meeting the corner. A work desk, of a larger size and more magnificent design than the one Link regularly used in the office, took up the space in the corner across from the door, its surface decorated with pens (including an old-fashioned quill used for traditional documentation), a writing pad, three inkwells (which would be of different colors), and a series of stamps which bore the ship's emblem (all to be used for different occasions). Despite being an older vessel, someone had gone to the trouble of replacing the decking in here (which would not have been as weather-worn as the ship's exterior) and furnished the center of the room with a fine, woven rug depicting a floating island with a castle doubling its overall height.

Glancing around the short partition next to the door, Link found a hammock hanging from the wall and threw his bag onto it. He took out a clean set of trousers and a lime-green, full-body undersuit and changed into them, discarding the clothes under the hammock. Line had been right; the new clothes made him relax as he walked across the room in his stocking feet and settled into the velvet-covered chair behind the desk. He felt himself ready to drift asleep just like that in a matter of seconds.

In spite of the temptation, he avoided it and started searching through the desk. In two drawers, he found extra pieces of navigating equipment which looked like they had never been used. In another, a couple bundles of parchment.

But in the bottom drawer, he found a book. More specifically, he realized as he pulled the large tome out of the drawer, the skipper's log book, made obvious by the pan-flute-and-island emblem on the cover. He slouched in the chair, feet on the top of the desk, and opened the log book in his lap. And he quickly discovered how horrible the previous skipper's handwriting had been. The same messy scrawl that labeled the calling tubes across from him covered half of the pages he skimmed through. The other half of the book would have almost looked like another man's handwriting if not for the signature at the bottom of each page revealing otherwise. He flipped to the front cover page and found that the same man had appeared to command the _Island_ _Sonata_ ever since it had been put together, as the entry in the book not only bore his signature but contained the skipper's declaration of command, as far as Link could decipher.

He decided that he ought to put his own declaration of command in the log book as well, since he was technically the new skipper. Setting his feet back on the floor, he put the log book on the desktop and sat up in the chair. Then he realized that he had to stand in order to reach across the large desk to pick up a pen and dip it into the black inkwell. And it already annoyed him that he had to do so while standing since both the inkwells and the pen holder had been welded to metal plates which, in turn, had been nailed to the desktop. Turning to a blank page at about the middle of the book, he wrote the date on the top line and declared in an almost childish scrawl:

_"I, Lieutenant Link, do hereby declare this ship, the _Island Sonata_, to be under my command as skipper on the above date as a fleet vessel of the Skyrider Company."_

When he finished, he gave the pen an annoyed look when he realized that he should have used the quill to write in the log book. He switched to the quill and turned the page after he was sure the ink was dry. Then he dipped the pen and began writing out his first log in the style Captain Alfonzo had shown.

_"Set out from Skyrider Port after repairs and refit were completed with only one airman aboard, destination Castle Island, purpose recognition ceremony."_

He considered his log entry for a moment. Feeling that it lacked the personality Captain Alfonzo encouraged Link to write with, he continued.

_"This has been a rather worrisome day for me. Not only was I promoted to lieutenant when I didn't realize that promotion was possible, but I've been given command of the Island Sonata against all expectations. Just an hour into my command, and I feel that I've already experienced conflict with Line, my only crewman. I consider Line to be one of my best friends, and I shudder to think of what kind of problems I may have with even a small crew. I can't help feeling that this is some kind of mistake, but I don't want to tell anyone else right now. Maybe if…"_

Link stopped to think. Maybe if what? The first thought on his mind was to just screw up and get demoted back to an airman. But what kind of reflection would that be on Captain Alfonzo? On the company? He shook the thought out of his head and continued.

_"… I just run with it for now, something interesting might happen."_

He had just finished putting down his signature when the calling tubes across from him shouted in Line's voice, "Land ho, Link! We're nearly there!"


	4. Pep Talk

Chapter 4: Pep Talk

…

The _Island_ _Sonata_ shuddered as it dropped out of the Sky Line, forcing Link to wrap his arms around the banister to the steps leading up to the bridge. Then he climbed up and said to Line, "I'll take the helm. Set the braces."

"Aye, sir," Line replied with a nod. As he stepped away, he added, "Keep an eye out for the _Sailwind_; they dropped a little close to us."

As Link took the helm, he looked around until he saw the _Sailwind_, a three-masted schooner similar to the _Island_ _Sonata_, higher up on the stern and slightly off to starboard. After surveying the air off to port, he double-checked that the engine throttle was up to full and steered to port to give the _Sailwind_ more room. He saw the _Grand_ _Sails_ hovering about the bow as he turned, but it only flew one signal flag telling both schooners to dock. From there, Link knew that he had free reign over what the _Island_ _Sonata_ did, and he had to admit to the temptation of sailing about Castle Island for a few minutes before docking. But then he remembered Captain Alfonzo telling him that he was not technically a recognized skipper yet, and he thought it might not be a good idea. So he steered towards the island and kept a steady course as Line bustled about the weather deck in front of him.

Castle Island was the most massive of the known islands. The _Grand_ _Sails_ appeared massive compared to the _Island_ _Sonata_, but the island could easily bear five hundred _Grand_ _Sails_. The wharf area on the edge of the island that they approached docked over twenty ships on a regular day, which was not even half of the "shoreline" that the island sported when the floating docks were taken into account. Warehouses divided the wharf from the rest of the city, which consisted mostly of one- or two-story houses and shops dotting an incredible network of stone streets large enough for carriage travel. Mixed with the small buildings were patches of natural green, trees and grass areas that had been brought from different areas of Hyrule and planted in Castle Town for those who missed their homelands.

But perhaps the most remarkable part of Castle Town was the towering structure on the very heart of the island that was Hyrule Castle. A five-story wall surrounded the castle, each guard station aiming a fifteen-foot cannon aimed over the town with the idea of sinking airships in mind. The castle itself stood six times higher than the wall with a pair of smaller towers behind the central tower. From Link's perspective, the whole castle appeared to be made of large slabs of white stone polished into a glassy surface, casting a white shadow on the town. From here, he could see panes of stained glass, although he could not quite make out the shapes they depicted. He could feel his heart racing, almost as if he had been awakened to the fact that he would be crossing the threshold of that very castle in only a few moments.

He had to shake himself out of his stunned gaze and adjusted the _Island_ _Sonata_'s altitude so that he was level with the docks. The _Grand_ _Sails_ had not hoisted anymore signal flags, so Link steered the ship towards the closest dock and brought down the engine's throttle. Parking an airship was difficult, as one had to know exactly how long his vessel was. Link began to realize the amount of confidence Captain Alfonzo must have had in him as he found himself a little panicked by the sudden bustle of control pulls and minor corrections he had to make in order to dock. Docking a ship at Skyrider Port was a simple task of pulling the ship above an open space, cutting the engine, stowing the sails, and lowering altitude just enough for an airman to throw the rear mooring lines at the dock. But the wharf at Castle Island was trickier since the wind favored blowing away from the port, making the schooner sail plan of the _Island_ _Sonata_ somewhat awkward if the sails were still open. And indeed, Line had not been able to close the sails yet, instead standing on the port side with a mooring line in his arms. Link would have to steer the ship as close to the dock as he could without smashing into it so that Line could toss the rope to a docker waiting near one of the anchoring spurs. Line would have to throw a lot of rope, and the docker would need to be very swift tying the mooring or else the wind would push the _Island_ _Sonata_ out of reach.

As the ship came closer to the dock, Link was suddenly struck with an idea. He cut the engine and spun the helm hard to port. The booms on all three masts swung to starboard with surprising force, rocking the ship. Link knew that with the engine cut after the ship had already been slowed, the _Island_ _Sonata_ would fall into a drift with what was left of the push delivered by the engine, which would eventually disappear because of the braking ability of the single jib still open at the front of the ship. The bow spun towards the dock, and Line quickly hauled the mooring rope further towards the front. The docker chased Line and had to reach out for the mooring line to catch it. He ran to the nearest spur and wrapped the mooring around it as fast as he could. He knotted it, but the mooring took longer to tighten than expected. Line ran back towards the rear of the ship and threw another mooring to the same docker. He nearly missed the dock, but the docker grabbed it and got it around another spur. The wind started pushing the ship away, but the mooring lines held it in place.

Link spun the wheel back to center so the booms were parallel with the gaffs again. Then he grabbed a control lever and pulled it back to lock the helm in place. The ship tilted slightly, but the breeze was not strong enough to capsize the ship.

He was walking down the stairs as Line removed a section of the bulwark. "Nice idea, Link," Line told him, setting the piece next to the hole. "But next time, make sure you warn me."

Link grinned at him and scanned the ships in front of them. "I'll try," he answered when he found the _Grand_ _Sails_ further ahead of them. "I'm going to see if Captain Alfonzo needs me to make any preparations before going to the castle."

"Hey, Link," Line quickly called as Link prepared to step onto the gangplank being slid into the opening in the bulwark. He stopped and turned to Line, who had begun to untie the throat halyard of the main sail. "You have to tell me about her when you get back."

Link blinked at his friend for a moment. "Who?" he asked.

The rope Line was untying nearly slipped out of his hands when he unwound it. "Who do you think?" Line snapped at him, using his weight to keep the sail from collapsing too fast. "The princess!"

"Oh, right," Link replied as a couple of airmen from the _Grand_ _Sails_ crossed the gangplank.

The airman at the head of the line stopped short of stepping onto the deck and saluted Link. "Permission to come aboard, skipper," he said.

Link almost saluted with the wrong hand again and quickly corrected himself as he answered, "Permission granted, airman." He stood aside as the airmen boarded and bustled about, helping Line lower the sails. Link nodded to himself and stepped onto the gangplank.

He crossed the gangplank onto the dock and gave the docker a right-handed salute as he walked by. Link's feet fell into a leisurely stroll as he walked past the few ships docked between the _Island_ _Sonata_ and the _Grand_ _Sails_. He took up an attentive stance next to the gangplank and saluted with his left hand when Captain Alfonzo stepped onto the gangplank.

For a moment, however, Link had to stare at the captain just to make sure it was him. Captain Alfonzo had always been known among the company skippers as the big guy wearing a blood-red longcoat and a whip where his tongue should be. But as he stepped down the gangplank, Link saw that the captain's usual outfit had changed significantly. He still wore the white trousers, but he had switched the longcoat for a faded, green tunic held tight against his waist by a leather belt with an anchor-shaped buckle. And it looked like he had washed his beard and brushed it.

The captain's meaty paw tapped his forehead as he addressed Link, "At ease, Lieutenant."

"Aye, sir," Link replied, although his only movement was dropping his salute.

Captain Alfonzo's eyes combed over Link's messy, blond hair for a moment. He licked a couple of his fingers and pulled down on a stray lock sticking up from Link's head. "That's a little more presentable," he remarked. Then his hand tugged the shoulder of Link's blue tunic. "You'll have to take this off."

Link blinked at Captain Alfonzo. "Here? Now?" he asked.

"No need to be shy, Link," Alfonzo replied. "You have an undersuit on, right?"

Link nodded and leaned forward to pull the tunic off. He felt a little strange wearing only his trousers over his wool undersuit. Draping the tunic over one arm, he pushed down his hair.

Captain Alfonzo clapped a hand on Link's shoulder. "Let's go then," he said, pushing Link along as he started across the dock.

Link shivered a few times as they walked. With such high altitude, people often had to wear an additional layer or two as they walked in open air. And Link's small body did not have the same amount of natural protection as his captain had. He covered both arms with his tunic and shrugged his shoulders against the cold he felt.

When they reached a major road, Captain Alfonzo hailed a horse-drawn carriage. After dropping a handful of blue rupees into the driver's hand and giving a destination, he opened the door and ushered Link inside. Captain Alfonzo sat in the rear seat with his arms stretched across the back, his legs crossed to give him an air of comfort and relaxation which Link had only ever seen when the captain was in his cabin. Somehow, this made Link nervous, sitting straight up in the rear-facing front seat with his eyes on the boot Captain Alfonzo pushed against the wood panel under the seat. The carriage bounced and rocked as it moved, and, for a moment, only the sound of hooves clapping against the stone road dominated the inside of the carriage.

"Is there a scuff down there, Lieutenant?" Captain Alfonzo finally asked.

Link's glance snapped up to look at the captain. "Sir?" he asked in a confounded tone.

"You're staring at my boots," Alfonzo answered, looking down at the boot and twisting it to look for the focus of Link's eyes. "Makes me think that shiner boy missed something this morning."

Link shook his head, still looking confused. "No, sir."

Alfonzo gave the boot a deeper frown. "Oh." Silence followed for another moment, in which Link's glance fell on the dirty window of the carriage. So the captain crossed his arms and casually said, "If you don't tell me what's on your mind, I'm gonna beat it out of you."

Link stiffened as he looked back at the captain. "S-sorry, sir," he replied. "I… I just…"

"You've got the words, boy," Captain Alfonzo demanded in a loud tone, "use them."

Link jumped in response and spoke in an alarmed tone. "Y-yes, sir. I-I was just…" He sighed and calmed himself down. "I'm a little worried about… being promoted."

Captain Alfonzo's body jerked when a measure of amusement touched him. "That's not much of an issue," he replied. "But if you have a fear of success, I'm afraid that I'll have to tell you to grow up, Lieutenant."

"Yes, sir," Link nodded. "But I'm worried that I might not have the ability to command people."

"Why? You've successfully commanded people on the _Grand_ _Sails_ many times." Then, something occurred to the captain that made him turn and frown at the carriage door. "Although you _did_ have that problem with the men stuffing you in a cannon…"

Link swallowed hard. "I-I had almost forgotten about that, sir…"

Captain Alfonzo shook his head. "Link. You know how to be a skipper. I've seen you for the past few years. You have the stuff to lead people."

"Captain, I got in a fight with Line," Link confessed.

"You did?" Alfonzo asked. "Who won?"

Link gave the captain a confused look, unsure if he had seriously asked the question. "Captain?"

"Who won the fight?" Captain Alfonzo repeated, arms still crossed and a blank expression.

Link reached around and scratched the back of his head. "I-I think I won, sir."

"What was the fight about?"

The young man sighed. "He offset the main and aft gaffs so that we could pull out of the Sky Line faster if we needed to. I told him he set the gaffs wrong if that was his intention, and he asked if he should correct it. I said not to worry about it and… might've off-handedly told him not to do it anymore. It made him mad, and I tried to explain why I told him that, but he wouldn't hear it."

"Did you tell him, or did you _order_ him?" Captain Alfonzo asked, eyes closed as he listened.

"Well… I-I guess I ordered him," Link replied. "I guess. But it wa—"

"Good."

Link blinked in confusion at the captain. "Huh?"

"Being a former airman, Link, you should understand Line's place," Alfonzo explained. "You give orders, Line takes them. He's very good at following orders to the letter."

Link's eyes drifted down to his lap. "I guess. But he just sounded so angry."

"Maybe, but that's how some airmen react. Either in sincerity or through accident, any command given by a skipper is to be followed. That's how we run things, Link. He might not have liked to hear you tell him not to do it anymore, but he's to live with that order no matter what. Your words are law to your crew, just as mine have always been to you."

Link sighed and clasped his hands together. "Still, captain, I feel kind of bad for giving an order to Line."

"You have yet more orders to give, Link. Are you going to regret every order you give when your airmen are consigned to something they don't like?" Link did not answer, so Captain Alfonzo leaned forward and snapped in his blank stare. Link started out of it. Captain Alfonzo gave him a deep scowl. "That's the nature of the beast, Link. What good will it do you or your crew if you have to regret every time you upset one of them?"

"Do you have any commands _you_ regret, Captain?" Link asked in return.

The captain huffed and fell against the seat back so hard that the driver felt himself lifted from the seat for a split-second. "More than I care to," he admitted with some hesitation. Then he continued in a louder voice, "I'm not telling you that making decisions for your crew gets any easier, boy! Someday, you might even have to order an airman to his death for the sake of the crew." Link released an audible gulp. Captain Alfonzo nodded in agreement, his voice calmer as he said, "It's a possibility none of us like. But if we can't get over making decisions that no one likes, there isn't a point sailing through the clouds, is there?"

"I guess not, sir," Link replied, eyes on the upholstery of the seat next to him.

Captain Alfonzo leaned forward again and planted a hand on Link's blond mane. "You have the potential for great things, Link," he said in a fatherly tone that caught Link by surprise. "I see it in the way you behave. Would I have so easily put in your commission if you would break under the pressure of leadership?"

Link shook his head. "No… I-I don't _believe_ so, sir."

"Good," Alfonzo replied with a smile, playfully pushing his head to one side in order to draw out a smile from Link. He continued as he sat up straight again, "Because I don't. And I don't like to be proven wrong, either. If an airman accepts an order, drop the situation. If an airman doesn't accept, make it very clear that you intend for that order to be carried out. I've a feeling you'll have to deal with worse than Line, Link. _You_ are the sole skipper. Let them know it."

Link nodded, feeling his spirit rise. "Okay."

But Alfonzo frowned at him. "Lieutenant Link, I just gave you an order."

Link panicked and quickly rose to his feet. Thankfully, he was short enough that his hair just barely brushed the top of the carriage. His left hand thumped against his forehead. "Aye, sir!"

Captain Alfonzo let out an incredible belly laugh as he returned the salute. "That's more like it!"


	5. Where Legends Begin

Chapter 5: Where Legends Begin

…

The carriage pulled to a stop, and both occupants stepped out. Link's nose was assailed with the smell of far too many perfumes and an open meat market somewhere nearby.

Then he turned and found himself staring at the towering wall of the castle. Somehow, it has seemed so smaller from a distance, but now that he was looking at it, he saw that it was much higher. The wooden doors near them must have been at least as tall and wide as the _Island_ _Sonata_. Its composition was white brick which looked to have taken decades to put together, each individual brick larger than even the captain beside him. At this angle, he could not even see the tallest tower of the castle. The cannons at the top protruded like the loading arms of a dock, but with a thickness rivaling an airship's width. He imagined that firing one would entail removing half of the town around it. Hyrule Castle bore no history of ever being attacked, this he knew, and it was easy to understand why at such a close distance. Any ship crazy enough to put itself on hostile terms with the royal family would certainly deserve being blown out of the clouds.

A hand touched his chin and pushed his jaw shut. "Come on, Link," Captain Alfonzo told him, a slight chuckle in his voice in response to the boy's shock. He used a hand to urge Link forward with a gentle smack between the shoulder blades. Gentle, but Link still had to catch himself.

Link's eyes finally fell to the doors before them. At first, the sight of smaller doors within the larger doors confused Link until he realized that opening a whole door must have entailed the use of either a steam engine or an airship's worth of workers. He watched Captain Alfonzo knock on the smaller door with the force of a battering ram.

A metal plate in the door slid up. "Who goes there?" a male voice from the other side asked.

Alfonzo put his face to the slot. "Hey there, Gil," the captain replied. "Piss off your captain again?"

"Al?" the voice asked. "Is that really you?"

"Bet your left eye," Alfonzo replied.

"Not without more cards of a kind," the other man chuckled. "What the hell're you doin' here?"

"Taking care of a bit of business. I should be on the list."

"Hang on." The plate slid shut. For a moment, Link wondered if they were going to be allowed inside. Then a metal clank sounded from the other side, and the door pulled back with a heavy groan.

Link found himself looking at a man standing as tall as Alfonzo, although not with the same amount of meat. This person had a slender structure underneath a green tunic. It took Link a moment to realize that, other than the spiral belt buckle and the helmet bearing a triangle-within-triangle crest on the forehead, both men were dressed in the same clothing.

"What brings ya here?" the guard asked.

In response, Captain Alfonzo slapped a hand on Link's back. "This is Link," he explained. "The company just decided to make him a skipper."

The other man gave Link a nod. "Nice ta meet ya, Link," he said. "The name's Gilliam."

"Nice to meet you, too," Link replied.

Gilliam looked down at a sheet of parchment in his hand. "Says here ya got an audience with the princess," he remarked. He gave Link a somewhat questionable grin. "Lucky guy. She should be in the throne room right now."

"Can we go in?" Captain Alfonzo asked.

Gilliam tugged on the front of his tunic. "You're fine as long as you're wearin' this."

Alfonzo looked himself over. "I used to get escorted otherwise."

Gilliam nodded. "Saves us the trouble," he replied as he stepped to the other side of the dark alcove and pushed open another door.

Link was blinded by sunlight for a moment, forcing him to put up one hand to protect his eyes while they adjusted. When everything came into view again, he saw the great figure of Hyrule Castle standing in the brilliant glow in front of them. A small, brick walkway lead in between a pair of branching wings of the lower part of the building, the area around that covered with grass and bushes trimmed to look like the guards that appeared to explore the area. Like Gilliam, these men wore green tunics, white trousers, and helmets with the triangular crest, but they bore swords hanging from their belts and spears immediately in-hand. He saw stained glass in some of the windows on this level and in the air above, although he still could not tell the image that they bore. The area between the wall and the castle was large, and Link noticed as Alfonzo ushered him on that there were small junks settled on wooden platforms here and there in the massive yard, although he was not sure of their purpose.

"Have fun, kid!" Gilliam cackled. Link looked over his shoulder as Gilliam pulled the door shut.

Link looked forward, taking notice of the guards again. "Captain," he spoke up. "How come you have a tunic like everyone here?"

"The green tunic is a symbol of direct service to the royal family," Captain Alfonzo replied. "Anyone who acts in service to the royal family has to wear one."

"What about when you're not wearing it?"

Alfonzo chuckled. "Well, when I'm not wearing it, I'm not in service to the royal family. I only save my other outfits for when I'm working for the Skyriders' interests. But all of our skippers has a green tunic like this, all of them given to them by a member of the royal family. You'll be getting one, too."

Link grimaced and looked around, trying to imagine himself wearing the same tunics as these people. "I don't think I like the color green anymore," he replied in a hesitant tone.

"I hate the color myself," Alfonzo admitted. "But it's not like you _have_ to wear the same tunic every day. And I hope you don't try it, either."

"Yes, sir," Link answered with a relieved tone.

Upon reaching the door, Captain Alfonzo opened it and stepped in, telling Link to close it behind him. From there, they followed a burgundy carpet past the foyer and up a short flight of stairs onto a dais overlooking the foyer and providing access to more rooms deeper into the castle. Captain Alfonzo selected the center door of three and opened it. He indicated that Link should go in first.

Link's eyes registered a large bird as he stepped in. At least, that was what he thought it was at first, before a double-take revealed that it appeared more as a large half-circle bearing spurs in a way that made it look like a pair of wings. These bore the same triangle-within-triangle crest that the guards were wearing on their helmets. The reason for his attention to it came from a beam of light cast over this gold symbol from a window somewhere above him. The reflection of this light in turn cast the spacious room in a brilliant glow. The room had a high ceiling of some kind of burgundy wood. The walls bore the same white material of the castle's outer walls, and full suits of armor (unarmed, however) stood at permanent attention to the center of the room. The floor sported rugs of different weaves, all of them a royal purple. The burgundy carpet which they had followed divided the room in half as it stepped up to another dais opposite the door.

Movement caught Link's eye, and he looked at the figure standing underneath the large emblem. He was surprised to see someone so richly clothed: she wore a dress mixing panels of a pastel pink over violet, the neckline decorated in a pale blue. Atop a river of blond sat a gold circlet sporting a few jewels of differing colors.

She held out a hand gloved in white as far as her elbow. "Welcome back, Captain Alfonzo," she spoke in a soft tone, her words carried well by the room.

Link heard a rustle from behind him and glanced over one shoulder at his captain. "Thank you," he responded.

"Princess Zelda."

Link was not sure which of the two actions had set his heart into a fit of panic, if indeed it had been just one that started it. The revelation of this girl, who, from this distance, could not be any older than him if height was any indication, as the Princess of Hyrule was quite startling. And equal to that was the salute that Captain Alfonzo gave this girl, one in which the captain, whom Link had never seen around superiors before, used his left hand. Surprised, Link quickly turned his head and launched the blade of his left hand into his forehead so hard that he reeled for a moment before his eyes refocused.

"At ease, sirs," Princess Zelda replied, a smile in her voice. Link took five heartbeats longer to lower his hand. She beamed for a moment, then said, "Is this the new captain you wish me to recognize?"

Captain Alfonzo took a step up and placed a fatherly hand on Link's shoulder. "His name is Link, Your Highness," he responded in a formal tone, the likes of which Link had never heard before. "We of the Skyriders Company would like him to join the ranks of an airship captain."

"Please," the princess said with the inviting wave of one hand, "step up to the dais."

A finger touched Link's chin and pushed his jaw shut. "Make sure it stays shut unless she asks you a question," Alfonzo told him before pushing him forward.

Link could feel his nerves shivering. Somehow, the realization of being in the presence of such authority as to make Captain Alfonzo salute to a superior had taken a long time to set in. His head buzzed, but he could not be sure what he was thinking. Before he knew it, he stood at the base of the dais and abruptly planted his boots into the carpet to keep him from advancing.

"Shall I replace the stool, Your Highness?" came a male's question from Link's right. His eyes wandered towards the direction of the voice. That was when he realized that one of the suits of armor was not actually a suit of armor. Instead, it was a tall, lanky man dressed in a white, uniform-like suit. He held a small stepping stool in his hands, made of wood painted red with a velvet cushion decorating the top. And his tone, to Link, felt like he meant the question as an insult to him.

Link's eyes quickly wandered back to the princess. She, however, put a half-smile, half-irritated look on her face as she looked over at the man and said, "Yes, I think it will not be needed today, Jordan."

"Of course, Your Highness," Jordan replied with a bow. He turned and took the stool with him through a door near to him.

Then, the princess stepped forward, giving Link a clear view of a pair of sky-blue eyes. Her smile returned as she said, "Do not pay him any attention. He has a rather surly side to his nature."

"Y-yes, Your Highness," Link replied with a nod, having taken the cue from Captain Alfonzo.

Princess Zelda looked to her left, holding up a hand to invite what Link had mistaken for another suit of armor. "Governor Lore, if you would please," she said.

"Yes, Your Highness," said another voice, this time that of a grown woman. Link caught a large movement of green out of the left corner of his eye and dared a glance in that direction. Like the guards and the captain, this tall, red-haired woman wore a green tunic. The belt she wore to keep it tight against her curvy frame, decorated with a buckle shaped like a book. She walked up to Princess Zelda's side and offered her a green bundle.

Zelda took this bundle and unfolded it into a green tunic. "This tunic is the symbol of a hero who has saved this kingdom time and time again," she explained to him as she bundled it up in her hands. "It is our hope that, with the advent of new danger to Hyrule, that hero, whoever he may be, will already be clad in his traditional garb for the fight he may have on his hands."

The woman, Governor Lore, stepped off the dais and offered a hand out. "If I may take that, captain," she said.

"Oh, yes," Link said, remembering that he still held his airman's tunic in his arms. He passed it into her arms. "Thank you."

"Hold your arms up," Princess Zelda told him as the governor stepped back onto the dais. Link did as he was told, and she stepped closer and held the tunic above her head. He could smell a sweet and subtle perfume on her person, and he felt his cheeks turn red as she took a step closer. She fit the sleeves of the tunic over his arms and pulled down until his head popped out through the neck. She tugged down until the tunic sat comfortably on his shoulders. As she turned back to Governor Lore, he reached down and flattened the tunic against his legs so he could examine it. Link had to admit that he was impressed; while his airman's tunics had to be trimmed to fit his short stature, this green tunic looked to have been made especially for him.

Lore handed Zelda a belt, which she passed to Link. He accepted it and looked at the buckle, a pewter anchor within a circular field just like Captain Alfonzo. He examined the tunic again and found that there were no loops for the belt. So he pulled the bare leather end around his back and fit it into the slot on the back of the buckle. Then he tightened it until he was sure it would not move and pushed the peg on the back of the buckle into a hole in the leather. The princess then stepped forward and straightened out the number of folds which had formed in this process.

Then, to his surprise, she leaned forward and whispered into his ear. "I don't remember the words, but I need you to say 'I will, Your Highness'."

For a moment, the proximity to her, the scent of her perfume, and the tickle of her breath on his ear left Link stunned as she took two steps back. He gulped and nearly started when he remembered what those whispered words had been. "I-I will, Your Highness," he said, unconsciously adding a nod to the statement.

"Thank you, Captain Link," she answered. Then she asked, "What is the name of your ship?"

"The…" For a moment, Link's mind blanked. He pressed his eyes shut and opened them again, renewing his thought processes. "The _Island_ _Sonata_, Your Highness."

She nodded at him. "I shall look for your sails in the sky."

Governor Lore stepped back down off the dais and returned Link's airman's tunic. Then she hooked one hand on his far shoulder and carefully turned him. The same hand pressed into his back, and he started walking with this woman beside him. As they walked, he felt her press something between his belt and tunic. Just as he was about to look at it, she cleared her throat. He looked up into a pair of hazel eyes, and she gave her head a slight shake.

They reached the door, and it felt as if Link was being passed off to Captain Alfonzo, who opened the door and led him out.

As they crossed the foyer, Captain Alfonzo whispered to Link, "Keep your arms to your sides and walk normally."

"Yes, sir," Link replied in the same voice. He was not certain what Lore had just given him, but he began to grow worried from not knowing.


	6. Royal Cargo

Chapter 6: Royal Cargo

…

Not a word passed between Link and Captain Alfonzo as they crossed the courtyard of the castle. Through the gate, the captain gave his friend Gilliam a look that said that they were in a hurry and that he should keep his mouth shut for now, which Gilliam acknowledged with a nod and lips pursed as if to prevent himself from speaking a word. With haste, he threw open the door for Link and Captain Alfonzo and then slammed it shut after they had stepped back into the city. Captain Alfonzo hailed a carriage and, after dropping a few more blue rupees into the driver's hand and telling him to take them back to the port, shoved Link into the back as fast as possible. Link sat in the forward-facing seat, and Captain Alfonzo had taken the rear-facing seat close to the door. He held the door unlatched for a moment as the carriage traveled down the main road through Castle Town again, his eyes focused on the street outside.

Then the captain latched the door and relaxed against the seat with a sigh. Then he indicated to Link, "You've got mail."

Up until now, Link had avoided looking down at the item Governor Lore had shoved into his belt. His hand wandered to it, and his fingers met a paper envelope. He pulled it out and found a woman's scrawl on the exterior, a fancy hand which he could not read. When he flipped it over, he found the familiar three-turret-castle wax stamp that he knew as the emblem of Castle Town's gubernatorial office.

Captain Alfonzo used a hand to raise the face of the letter so that he could read the scrawl. "It's made out to you, Lieutenant," he remarked.

"Should I open it, sir?" Link asked as he ran a finger along the opening on the back.

The captain shrugged. "It has your name on it," he pointed out.

Link nodded in agreement and used his thumb to pop the wax loose from the body of the envelope. Inside, he found two sheets of folded paper. He set the smaller of the two and the envelope on the seat next to him and unfolded a sheet of parchment dyed pastel green. The content was a cleaner scrawl of blue ink mixed with iron filings which made the script gleam in the meager light of the dirty window behind him. He had never seen such a beautiful letter before, and he had to take a moment to admire it prior to reading it.

—Dear Skipper,

—Congratulations on your promotion and commission of officer of the Skyrider Company. I am sure that your performance in the company up to this point has been exemplary and fitting of your promotion.

—I know that this might come as a surprise, but I find myself in need of your assistance. Two cargo crates of royal origin need to be shipped along the northeast Sky Line to Forelight Island. Although the island is uninhabited and currently has no known population, it is of great importance that this cargo reaches the island and be left there unopened and in perfect condition. I am aware that Forelight Island is forbidden by law of the kingdom for any airship to embark for this particular destination. Please note that this letter has been marked with the Seal of the Office of the Governor of Castle Town and, as such, provides a mark of exception to this law (Sky Traffic and Transport Section 14, Sub-section 27, Paragraph 6) for whoever bears this letter.

—Included in this letter is a receipt of shipping which you must provide to the shipping clerk at the port. The details concerning the location of the cargo can be found on the receipt. I ask that you wait about an hour after reading this letter to find and load the cargo onto your vessel. I also ask that you do not volunteer your destination to others outside your command. Your service is greatly appreciated. Upon your return to Castle Town, you are to report to my office as confirmation of your success. You shall receive payment then, a sum which I hope is appropriate for your troubles.

—Sincerely,

Following the line was a wild scrawl which looked like the same handwriting as on the envelope. After that was:

—Lore, Governor of Castle Town

Link found the seal embossed in the bottom corner, decorated in bright red. He reread it, and then he looked up at Captain Alfonzo. "It's a job," he said.

"Really?" the captain replied, offering out one hand. Link passed him the letter, and he took a minute to read it. "Well how about that. Looks like you're already booked for the next couple days."

"But is this _okay_, Captain?" Link asked as he unfolded the receipt. "There's a reason that Forelight Island is forbidden."

"I'm aware of the Undying Storm, Lieutenant," the captain replied, giving Link half of an amused grin. "But you should be aware of the gravity which falls on someone who has _royalty_ ask him to lay down his life for this kind of opportunity. This isn't a very light request, Link."

"It doesn't sound like a good idea, sir," Link pointed out.

Captain Alfonzo raised an eyebrow. "Would you prefer that _I_ take the job for you?"

Link opened his mouth to answer in the affirmative, but the glare that Captain Alfonzo had switched to made him rethink his words. He glanced down at the receipt in his hand and considered the opportunity. One thing Link was not known for was ambition, and he did not want to participate in a task which could easily end in disaster. But then, for the past couple of hours, he had gained a new understanding of the kind of trust that Captain Alfonzo had shown just by promoting him to skipper of the _Island_ _Sonata_. How would refusing a job reflect on the man who put him in the position? And what about the company?

Link's respect for the captain took him over, and he shot to his feet and nearly clobbered himself again with a salute. "No, sir," he answered. "The _Island_ _Sonata_ will sail in order to accomplish this task."

Alfonzo grinned at him. "That's the kind of thing I like to hear, Lieutenant."

From there, the issue of taking or leaving the job was no longer discussed. Captain Alfonzo pointed out that when Link sailed through the Undying Storm, he would need some airmen to help maintain the rigging in case they met some serious problems along the way. These would be assigned to him from the _Grand_ _Sails_ (mostly because the ship could spare the men), along with a few more emergency supplies in case repairs were necessary. The captain surmised that the additional supplies, along with the cargo, would put weight on the hull and help them hold a steadier course, albeit at the cost of the _Island_ _Sonata_'s regular cruise speed. He suggested that Link go to the port archives and pull whatever charts he could on the northwest area of Hyrule, a necessity since the northwest area of the kingdom was desolate of inhabitable islands and Skyrider vessels did not regularly venture towards that area.

Link did this and returned to the _Island_ _Sonata_ with a few map rolls under one arm.

When he stepped onto the deck of the airship, he found the earlier airmen huddled in front of the main mast.

"What's going on, guys?"

One of them looked up. In the next second, Link swore that they went from huddled to standing as straight and solid as mooring spurs when he blinked. He gave the gangplank a confounded glance, wondering if someone else had followed him up.

After a few minutes, Line, standing in front of the mast with two taller men next to him, reached around one and smacked the first guy to stand on the back of the head. "Thanks a ton, Blake," he said to the short, plump man. "Next time, you'd better see a fire and jump ship."

One of the taller men elbowed Line while the other asked Link, "What can we do for you, Skipper?"

Link paused for a deep breath. "We need to make ready for sail in about half an hour," he told them. "We've been given a job."

"Taking on anything, skipper?" Line asked.

Link nodded. "Two crates and a few more emergency supplies, so the cargo holds need to be opened. Line, I need you to take a look at the course charts with me."

"Got it, skipper," Line replied. He jabbed a thumb at the rigging over his shoulder, signaling the other airmen to start working on the sails, and followed Link into his cabin. He closed the door as Link was replacing all of the tools that had been scattered across the main map table. "So, where're we going, Link?" he asked, approaching the table.

"You're not going to believe this," Link answered over his shoulder as he flattened one of the rolled charts across the table and used the tool basket to hold down one corner. "We're going to Forelight Island."

Line's initial silence prompted Link to turn to look at his airman. Upon seeing Link's face, Line's shocked stare melted into a forced smile. "Yeah, good one," he replied with a nervous laugh. "You—you almost had me there."

But Link frowned, calling Line's shock back to the surface. "I really wish I was, Line," he confessed. "But I'm serious; we're delivering cargo to Forelight Island."

Line immediately cried out in a high pitch, "Whose stupid idea was _that_?"

"Easy, Line," Link replied, taking a step back against the table.

"No, _seriously_, whose stupid idea _is_ this?" Line told him. He smacked his right fist into his other hand. "Because I wanna _kill_ them!"

Link managed a half-grin when he said, "That would require getting past the royal guards."

"Huh?" Line asked, forgetting his anger for a moment.

"The job came from Princess Zelda."

Line's jaw hung open for a moment, a line of drool falling from his lower lip. "Are—are—are… are you serious?" Link nodded. Line immediately shouldered him out of the way in order to flatten out the rolled-up map again. "Well, why didn't you say so?"

"I was waiting for you to kill me first," Link replied, placing a hand on the upper corner of the map. "Do you know how to get there?"

"Well, following this…" Line started, looking across the open map. He flipped to the table map a couple of times while he thought. Finally, he started running a finger across the map of the northwest territory. "We can take the Northwest Line to Turtle Island, and then shift to the Dawn Line for the rest of the trip. If I'm reading this right, the Dawn Line goes right into the Undying Storm."

"You sure seem more comfortable with this than when _I_ first found out," Link commented as he peered through one rolled map at the windows in an attempt to identify the contents. Then he slipped off the metal binding ring and unrolled it in front of Line. "What about getting out? Can we follow another Sky Line?"

Line scanned the new map and pointed at the area south of the grey cloud representing the storm. "It doesn't run parallel like other returns, but this Sky Line looks like it leads towards Autumn Island. From there, we should be able to take the Central Line back here."

"How long?" Link asked.

"Well, we can get to Turtle Island in an hour, figure about fifteen minutes to switch Sky Lines, and probably get to Forelight Island in about an hour and a half. Are we convoying there?"

Link shook his head. "This is a solo flight. I was going to put us under full sail all the way."

Line nodded. "That should take off a few minutes of flight time. Any idea how we're getting _through_ the storm?"

Link shrugged. "Just brave it, I guess. Captain Alfonzo's sending us a few more airmen to perform repairs as they're needed. We'll also be receiving a few more supplies than we need, so we might be weighted down a bit."

"That'll cancel out our speed bonus." Line shrugged. "Oh well."

A knock sounded from the cabin door. "Lieutenant Link, some of Captain Alfonzo's men are here with supplies."

Link exchanged looks with Line. "Thank you, airman. I'll be out there in a moment."

"So, how lucky do you feel?" Line asked him.

Link took in a large breath and sighed it out. "Not very lucky," he admitted. Tugging down the front of his new tunic, he stepped towards the door.

"Hey, Link," Line spoke up as he followed, his voice holding Link at the door. "When all else fails, just flow with it."

Link grinned at him. "One day, those words just might get me into trouble."

Line shrugged. "We're sailing into the Undying Storm," he pointed out. "We couldn't possibly get into worse trouble into that."

Link nodded and opened the door. Stepping out onto the deck, they found that some more of Captain Alfonzo's airmen were hauling supplies onto the _Island_ _Sonata_. Among the bundles of rope and spare halyard fixtures, Link saw that there were two crates branded on the sides with the wings-and-triangle emblem he had noticed in the audience chamber of the castle.

One airman, a thickly built man who looked as if he could bench press Link and Line at the same time, stepped up and saluted Link. "Airman Flower from the _Grand_ _Sails_, skipper," he introduced himself, causing Line to snort at the sound of his name. Link returned his salute, and he dropped his hand and continued speaking, "Captain Alfonzo has assigned three of us to the _Island_ _Sonata_ for repair work as needed while en-route." Link leaned over to look past the large man and found two other men still hauling supplies up the gangplank, both about as large as Flower. Flower glanced over his shoulder and introduced them, "The shorter one is Airman Leonard, and the tan one is Airman Albert."

Link swallowed and said, "Thank you, Airman Flower."

"You're welcome, Skipper," Flower replied, holding out a thick hand with Governor Lore's letter gingerly clenched between two fingers.

Link took and looked at the envelope for a moment. "Did Captain Alfonzo inform you of our job?" Link asked, attempting to keep a formal tone.

"Aye, sir."

Link nodded. "Good," he commented. "We should be leaving shortly. Please stow the cargo in the hold."

"Aye, sir," Flower saluted. Link returned the salute.

As Flower returned to work, Line stepped up behind Link and commented, "I think Captain Alfonzo gave us a little more weight than we thought."

Link nodded. "How about you take a good look at the deck supports?" he suggested. "Make sure they don't lump everything onto a weak spot; the last thing we need is to suddenly have a hole in the hull."

Line grinned. "Are you _that_ unsure about the refit?"

"Just trying to cover potential problems. Something Captain Alfonzo told me to think about."

Line saluted. "Aye, Skipper."

A heavy grunt and some stumbling attracted Link's attention to Flower and Albert as their boots pounded against the deck, both men attempting to maintain their balance. He immediately asked, "You guys okay?"

"We're fine, Skipper," Flower replied with a grumble. "Just lost our legs for a moment. Whatever's inside this crate isn't very secure."

"Be careful with it," Link cautioned them. "This is cargo we're transporting for the royal family."

"Got it, Skipper," Albert groaned as he readjusted his hold on the crate.

Link watched them carry the crate to the open hatch between the fore and main masts, looking particularly unbalanced because of how much the crate wobbled in their hands. He decided to follow them down into the hold to make sure they did not need any help.

They had to take two flights of stairs into the hold, Flower walking backwards the whole time. The hold was a long room which stretched the length of the ship. Without any other cargo, it looked quite desolate, the whole deck only broken up by the stairs just forward of its center. Link could see the slight curve upwards towards the stern.

He glanced over one shoulder as Line came up from the deck below. "Well, the hold is sound, but I'd set everything center so we don't list," he said. He sniffed and added, "By the way, the galley looks like it's taken a heavy beating with a battleaxe. If we want to eat, I would suggest the cabins."

"Do we have anyone onboard who cooks?" Link asked him.

"Got you covered, Skipper," Albert said as they put the crate down in the middle of the deck. They hustled past Link and Line and up the stairs.

"Do we have supplies in case we're gone for a few days?" Link asked.

"Yep," Line replied. "In fact, we've got supplies to spare."

"Good," Link nodded. "It'll come in handy if we get lost."

Line smacked Link's shoulder. "Don't worry about it. We can do this."

"Tools in case we need to replace a mast?" Link asked.

"Would you _relax_?" Line responded in an exhausted tone. "We've got this covered."

"I'm making sure, Line. Are those guys upstairs finished preparing us for departure."

Line glanced up at the deckhead while Albert and Flower brought down the second crate. "They should be by now."

"Let them know they can depart after they've finished."

"Aye, sir," Line saluted. Then he took the stairs back up to the weather deck.

After the second crate dropped on the deck (the sound causing Link to jump), Flower and Albert saluted Link. "Sir, where should we store the spare supplies?"

Link's brow furrowed as he tried to think. He could not be sure where the emergency supplies were stored. Then he had an idea and told them, "Find your berths first, then store the rest of the supplies in the empty berths."

"Aye, sir," they both chimed before stepping past him and walking up the stairs.

But Link lingered for a moment, looking at the crates. For a moment, he found himself doubting the reality before him and looked down at the envelope still in his hands. He ran a finger across the wax stamp, feeling the edges of the castle shape in the middle of the round lump. Then he turned to approach the stairs.

And he froze in place. Sound hit his ears, something mixed in with the general creaking of the ship's timbers around him. He first thought he heard rats, but then movement sounded from inside the crates over his shoulder.

Then the first crate's top burst open, and a tall creature covered in feathers stretched out and gave a sigh of relief. "Bwah!" it called out in a feminine voice. "I can't _breathe_ in this thing!"

The second crate's lid squeaked open, and this second occupant stunned Link into a statue-like silence. "Please keep quiet, Rireen," the girl cautioned the feathered creature. "You could attract…"

The girl trailed off when she realized that her taller friend was staring past her and turned around.

Then Princess Zelda started slowly closing the lid on herself.


	7. Departure From Reality

Chapter 7: Departure From Reality

…

"P-p-p… Princess _Zelda_?!" Link cried in alarm.

Upon recognizing the voice, Zelda pushed open the crate lid again and hissed at him. "Please, Captain Link," she pleaded. "No one is supposed to know that we are onboard."

"But—but _why_?!" Link asked, his voice lower but nonetheless panicked.

"Well, you have to understand, Captain," Zelda replied, shoving the lid so that it fell off the edge of the crate. "We could not exactly parade ourselves across Castle Town, board a vessel, and tell the captain to steer us into the Undying Storm. It would not be well looked-upon."

"And this was _better_?!" Link blurted.

Although only a little light filtered in from the staircase behind Link, he could still make out Princess Zelda's offended frown. "I happen to believe that this was quite ingenious, actually," she told him in an insulted tone.

"Skipperrrrr!" Line's voice called down into the hold. "We're ready to go whenever you arrrrrrre!"

Link scrambled to the base of the stairs and hollered back, "I'll be up in a moment!"

"Captain," Princess Zelda said. "We cannot allow ourselves to be seen until we leave."

"Okay, okay," Link replied, holding up his hands in surrender. "Just… just wait in those boxes until I come find you."

"Aye aye, sir!" Princess Zelda (and perhaps her companion a couple seconds later; she was further into the dark) saluted with her right hand. Then both of them ducked back into their crates, neglecting the lids they had thrown off. Link shook his head and hustled up the steps, now holding more troubles on his shoulders than he had expected.

He met Line as he came out of the hatch. "Set to sail, Skipper," Line told him as he used a rope to pull forward the wooden grate over the stairs after Link stepped onto the weather deck. He secured the grate rope and made to grab the rope to the cover hatch.

But Link grabbed him by his forearm and pulled him along as he walked towards the aftcastle. "Leave it, Line," he said.

"You got it, Skipper," Line replied in a confused and somewhat irked tone. "What's up?"

"You know our course, right?" Link confirmed, releasing Line's arm so the airman could walk beside him.

"Yeah."

"Take the helm."

Line gave him a worried look for a moment. Then he grinned. "Wow, I'm surprised, Link," he said. "You've really got charge of this whole thing, don't you?"

"I'm trying," Link told him. "On the wheel."

"Aye, sir!" Line replied with a salute that Link quickly returned. Then he jogged ahead while Link remained at the foot of the aft mast.

Flower was double-checking a control stay for the main gaff on the starboard bulwark. Link called to him, "Airman Flower!"

Flower immediately spun around, arms locked at his sides. "Skipper!" he replied.

Link jerked his head to the port side behind him. "On the moorings."

"Aye, sir!" Flower saluted. Link returned the salute, and Flower jogged across the deck to man the moorings.

Then Link spun towards the bow when he heard a door slam from that direction. For a moment, he thought that someone had gone down into the hold or closed the cover hatch over the stairs. However, it turned out to be Airmen Albert and Leonard exiting the crew cabins in the ship's forecastle. He glanced at the spot where the spare supplies had been left on the deck and found that they had disappeared. He walked quickly to them and called out, "Airmen!"

Both immediately stopped in their tracks, standing stiff as Flower had the previous moment. "Skipper!" they both replied in unison.

"Did you stow the additional supplies?" Link asked.

"Yes, sir," they answered.

Link nodded. "Okay. Uh… Albert, I want you on the moorings with Flower. Leonard, forward lookout."

Both saluted with, "Aye, sir!" and quickly carried out their orders.

Link took a moment and glanced across the deck out at Hyrule Castle. He still had time to inform someone that he was carrying Princess Zelda with the hope that someone would board and convince her that it was too dangerous for her to ride with them out to Forelight Island. And he realized that without her, there would be no cargo and no need for the _Island_ _Sonata_ to sail for such perilous winds. The thought only lasted for a moment, and it had sickened him to have even had it. It felt disrespectful to "tattle" on the princess, for that would simply be the action which was necessary to remove her both from his ship and potential harm. And how would she respond knowing that something she had carried out in secret had been thwarted by someone acting on a childish impulse of self-centered preservation? At the same time, for what must have been the fifth time that day, he felt the responsibilities of a skipper bring themselves to the surface again. What kind of officer would embarrass himself by going back on his duty of accepting commands from a higher authority for bare-faced cowardice? He was in a precarious place having been only recently promoted, and any mistake in his judgment would surely find him lower than a Captain's aid and perhaps even the airman who cleaned out the waste bilge. To be sure, he had seen Captain Alfonzo do it to a few skippers who had upset him amazingly, and _those_ commanders had had _years_ of service to the company before they had been thrown onto the nearest shore. Of course, there was also a question of how ousting the princess would reflect on the Skyriders. Link had respect for the company, having been raised by airmen and skippers most of his life. A disaster with the royal family would surely end the support the company received.

These thoughts took a minute or two to make their messages clear to Link before allowing him to return back to reality. He took in a deep breath of cool air, let it out, and walked across the deck, ensuring that his boots made a clear sound on the deck boards. "All hands, ready for sail!" he shouted in a mild imitation of Captain Alfonzo's command style. Fortunately, for the _Island_ _Sonata_, the checklist for departure was much smaller than a full galleon. He had stepped in front of the aftcastle on the port side so Flower, Albert, and Line could hear his orders. "Clear all moorings! Standby engines! Increase ballast for one half-minute and hold! Let's go, men!"

"Clear moorings!" Flower shouted at the wharf. Dockers quickly ran out to the mooring spurs and untied the lines holding the _Island_ _Sonata_ to shore. They did not dare attempt to throw the lines back to the _Island_ _Sonata_ since one false step could quickly result in a very long fall. Instead, Flower and Albert hauled the moorings in as quickly as possible, wrapping them around a brass mount on the inside of the bulwark. The dockers then pulled the gangplank away, and, after he had finished securing the mooring, Albert rushed to the open door in the bulwark and closed it.

The ship began rising. Link knew that there was a breeze coming from the island, so he shouted with his hands cupped around his mouth, "Forward! Lower the jib!" Then he looked over to find Flower and Albert standing about a foot away from the bulwark, indicating that they were idle. "Standby the gaffs!" he hollered to them. They did not acknowledge the order this time, knowing that the flow of ship operations had to work quickly. They merely gave a salute and rushed towards their self-determined positions, Flower remaining at port so that he could adjust the port control stay of the main gaff and Albert crossing to the starboard control stay of the same gaff. Link noted this and wondered how Line had adjusted the gaffs on his own earlier.

But he shook himself of the note and called, "Forward! Report!" while he walked towards the bow. By now, the _Island_ _Sonata_ should have been above the town and needed to start forward movement so that the ship could maneuver.

Leonard jogged up to the railing at the rear of the forecastle and hollered, "All clear forward, Skipper!"

Link replied with a thumbs-up and hustled back towards the bridge. He called up to Line, "Half engines ahead!"

"Half engines ahead!" Line confirmed. "Aye, sir!"

Being on the weather deck with the engine room directly below him, Link could feel the heavy components of the _Island_ _Sonata_'s steam engine stir and clunk against one another through the deck boards and his boots. He knew that, as a tension spring set a belt into motion, coal from the stores at the front of the ship moved to the boiler somewhere behind the main mast. There, mechanical power generated by the boiler turned a shaft and stored that power in a large coil at the rear of the ship directly under the aftcastle. The coil would take this power, plus whatever bleed was produced when the ship shut down the boiler to dock, and channel it into the propeller which moved the ship. It seemed like a long process when he thought about it, especially since he was not entirely clear on some of the engine's operation, but the _Island_ _Sonata_ had started moving only half a minute after Line had confirmed the order.

He waited until he could see the sails above him begin significantly fluttering before hollering up to Line, "Fifty degrees port!"

"Aye, sir, fifty degrees port!"

The booms above Link shifted to port, and the bow tilted slightly in that direction as the ship turned. Link walked to the edge of the ship and leaned his elbows on the bulwark so that he could look down on Castle Town as the _Island_ _Sonata_ sailed above it. When the booms centered again, placing the airship on a course straight ahead, he looked up at Hyrule Castle off the port bow. Feeling particularly excited, he contemplated going back into the hold and bringing Princess Zelda to the deck so that she might see the castle as they sailed past. However, he nixed the idea when the concern of her appearing on the _Island_ _Sonata_ while it was leaving potentially causing the guards to panic and chase after them. It was not an underhanded idea, hardly Link's intention to make trouble for her; it was just stupid.

He turned back to the aftcastle. "Full ahead and stagger to starboard!" he ordered. He wanted the ship to slowly drift to starboard so that there was as much space as possible between them and the castle.

"Full ahead and stagger to starboard!" Line replied. "Aye, sir!"

Link glanced at the town over the bulwark for just another moment, and then he climbed the steps to the bridge. "How does she feel, Line?" he asked.

"Like a dream, Link," came the response. The young man's head was tilted back so that the breeze generated by the airship's movement blew through his thick, red locks. "I could do this all day. Hell, all _week_ if I had to. Though I have to admit I'm kinda surprised _you_ didn't take the helm."

Link nodded with a slight frown tingeing his features. "I probably would have," he admitted. "But, in this case, I felt a little more comfortable giving orders and supervising the ship's activity."

Line raised an eyebrow at his best friend. "Is that so? I'd've bet you couldn't spout orders like that for a few more days and maybe with a few more bodies. And _look_ at you! You've _really_ stepped into the skipper's boots. And to think you were tripping all over yourself this morning…"

"I wasn't tripping over myself," Link defended, turning to watch the booms ahead of him shift left and right at Line's command. "I just needed some time to accept my new responsibilities. Being responsible for a crew isn't a very light thing, Line."

"We're all responsible for the crew no matter _who_ we are," Line retorted with a level tone. "Any single airman making a mistake could be disastrous to an entire crew. You know this."

"Yeah, but now I _have_ a crew. And just them following my orders is scary in itself. If _I_ screw up…" Link did not want to finish the thought, instead pretending to have lost himself in the blue beyond the _Island_ _Sonata_'s white sails.

Line read the discomfort in Link's expression and changed the subject. "So, any idea what the cargo is?" he asked. "Or why it's going to Forelight Island?"

"I can't quite fathom _why_ yet," Link remarked. "But as for _what_… well, I have more of an idea than you'd know."

"Really?" Line asked with excitement edging his voice. "You know what the cargo is? Can you tell me?"

"I want to. But…" Link's face formed a half grin on the side not visible to Line. "You… you wouldn't believe me."

"What, can't you tell me?"

Link took in a deep breath. "I think you'll find out soon enough," he said with a nod to himself. "Yeah, I think this is one surprise you'll have to see to believe."

Line let out a wail like someone had dumped a cup of water down the back of his tunic. "C'mon, Link, you're getting me excited! We're going to one of the most dangerous places in Hyrule, and I can't even begin to guess what kind of cargo we could possibly be dropping off at Forelight Island! Are you doing this on purpose?"

"Not particularly. I think _I'm_ still trying to figure it all out. It's like you said; there's no real logic to what's going on right now."

Line let out a groan. "I'm beginning to think the princess might be messing with us."

Link could not hide his bemused face as he turned to look at his friend. "Why's that?"

"Well, for all we know, the moment we stop by Turtle Island, we're going to get a letter saying, 'Okay, guys, the joke's over. You can come back now and kiss my royal hands that you didn't have to sail into the Undying Storm just to deliver two boxes of cuckoo feathers'. Nothing against the princess, mind you, but people can get some pretty crude ideas at times."

"I'd agree with you there if it wasn't for one thing."

"Yeah, what's that?"

"It isn't the princess who's sending us on this trip."

Line gave him a stumped look. "But you said—" he started.

Link nodded. "I know what I said, and it wasn't exactly what I'd meant. The cargo came from the castle, but it's not the princess sending us to Forelight Island. It's Governor Lore."

When Line turned to look at Link, it was with a look of surprise similar to the one given when Link first told him about the job request. "Governor Lore?" he asked. "Hotter-than-a-steam-engine Governor Lore? More-powerful-than-a-speeding-cannonball Governor Lore? Able-to-leap-the-tallest-order-in-a-single-word Governor Lore? _That_ Governor Lore?!"

Link scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "Where do you _hear_ these things?" he chuckled.

"Link, this is a _lot_ more serious than the princess giving us a job!" Line told him. "This is _Governor_ _Lore_! The only difference between her and the freaking _King_ _of_ _Hyrule_ is how she pays her bill! It'll be like—like… like winning a lottery! Except with _rupees_ and not souvenirs that you try to hide from your shipmates!"

"Keep staggering," Link told him, having noted that the booms ahead of them had stopped moving.

Then he glanced at the castle tower as they sailed by. With a sigh, he realized that he should probably check on the passengers in the hold. "Line, you have the deck," he said. "Get us into the Northwest Line and on course for Turtle Island. I'll be below with the cargo for a moment."

As he stepped down from the bridge, Link could not help feeling a little ashamed for referring to Princess Zelda as "cargo" in his strange need to maintain the contents of the crate a secret. He would have to watch what he said.


	8. Zelda's Task

Chapter 8: Zelda's Task

…

Link did not go to the hold right away; in all of the excitement of the afternoon, he had to make a quick stop to the drop box in the starboard compartment of the aftcastle to relieve himself. When he stepped back outside, the airship was still slowly crossing over the backside of Castle Island. He walked to the port side and saw Hyrule Castle slowly disappearing around the stern, so he called up to Line, "Helm, hold steady!"

"Aye, sir, holding steady!" Line called back.

Link crossed the deck to the hatch and untied the rope to the grate. After pulling the rope to open the grate, he secured it again and stepped down the two flights of stairs into the hold. He paused on the last step to take a breath and try to determine his next few actions. He found his choices very limited, so he decided to at least take them to his cabin so that they could talk comfortably.

Both crates sat in the exact same place as they had before, but neither stowaway had bothered to put their tops back on. He sighed and asked, "Uh… Princess Zelda?"

The owner of the name immediately stood up in her crate so that her head protruded from the top. "Yes, Captain?" she asked.

Link swallowed hard. "Could—could you just call me 'Link'?" he requested. Zelda tilted her head in confusion, and he explained, "Uh, technically, I'm a _skipper_ and a _lieutenant_, not a _captain_."

She nodded. "Okay."

Link took a quick look over his shoulder and up the stairs before continuing, "We should be entering the Northwest Line any moment," he explained to them. "I thought you might be more comfortable in my cabin for the duration."

"Would we _ever_!" came a female exclamation that startled both Link and Zelda. Zelda's companion (Link thought he had heard the princess call her Rireen) stood up and stretched out, her incredible height offering her a chance to touch the deckhead above her if she would stand straight. "_Anything_ to get out of this box."

"Do you need help getting out?" Link asked Zelda.

"Nope," Rireen replied. Link stepped to one side to watch the curious creature get out of the crate. She slung a leg onto the edge, and then she used the leg to pull her body up and out. She stepped up beside Zelda's crate and spread her arms out in a display of her solo accomplishment.

The first thing that stood out about Rireen were the white feathers. They hung draped from her thin arms as if they were sleeves, and what Link had first took to be hair on her head was actually a smooth mane of brilliant, crimson plumage. Strangely enough, though, she also had bare skin. Her face, arms, and feet sported milky-white flesh. She had no ears, at least none that Link could make out thanks to the plumage which formed her "hair" being so thick. As she turned to help Zelda out of her crate, she revealed that her red feathers stopped at about her shoulders. From there, the white feathers covered her whole back in a flat mat (with exceptions; a few feathers here and there looked to have been a tad ruffled from travel) and extended down her arms and, from what Link could tell, her legs. She wore a small, teal top which was tied around her neck, stretched across her chest, and wrapped around her waist and a pair of white breeches buttoned at her ankles with a blue, t-shaped skirt draped over the front. Her eyes were quite large and gleamed amber when angled with the sparse light just right. Her face sported very little nose, and her upper lip overlapped her lower lip with a point in the middle like a bird's beak. Link found himself taken aback by this creature and started wondering where she had come from.

When Zelda touched the floor, it was with a pair of heavy-looking boots. She had traded her dress for a pastel blue undersuit with a pink tunic, a belt with a circular buckle, a knee-length skirt, and a blue apron bearing the same triangle-and-wings ensemble he had seen around Hyrule Castle. Her long, blond hair had been tied back and decorated with what appeared to be a couple of Rireen's white feathers, and two gold pins, each decorated with a single ruby, held back the golden strands which dangled in front of her ears. Link was quite surprised by her appearance; although a little more practical and perhaps not as formal as her previous attire, he had nonetheless expected her to still be wearing the dress she had worn almost two hours ago. Somehow, it felt like a break in tradition, although he could not be sure of _what_ tradition.

Link turned to leave, but quickly halted himself when he saw Rireen pull herself onto the edge of Zelda's crate and balanced herself on her stomach so that she could reach inside. Then she jumped out with a blue lacquer box, long and slender, with a pair of silver spirals on the top. She offered this to Zelda, who took it and cradled it in one arm.

Zelda then turned to Link and said, "Lead on, if you will."

Link nodded and said, "This way, Your Highness." He started up the stairs and heard both of them fall into step behind him, although he could not be sure of Rireen. Only the soft rustle of feathers told that she followed.

At the top of the stairs, Link held up a hand to them. "Wait here for a moment," he told them as he stepped onto the deck. Flower and Albert were setting the gaffs for the sails, and he looked over his shoulder towards the bow to find that they were close to the Sky Line north of Castle Island. They had not fallen directly underneath it yet, but from their current position, he could just make out the deep whistle of the Sky Line now that the deck was not in his way.

Flower looked down and spotted Link. "Skipper on deck!" he bellowed. However, he continued to tug on the control stay instead of drop his work to salute, something which an airman was expected to do when handling a ship's rigging.

Link nodded an acknowledgement to Flower and turned to the bow. "Airman Leonard!" he called.

Leonard, who had been lying in the netting on the bowsprit, immediately flipped over and sat up. He scrambled to his feet and ran to the railing of the forecastle as Link motioned for Zelda and Rireen to step up to the deck. "Skipper!" he responded, standing stiff.

"Prepare to deploy both jibs when we're directly under the Sky Line," Link ordered in an even voice. But he immediately saw that Leonard had not paid attention. He glanced to the side to follow Leonard's gaze and noticed that he appeared to be staring at their new passengers. "Airman Leonard!"

The older man jumped and nearly clobbered himself with a salute. "Aye, sir!" he replied in a crisp tone. Link dismissed his salute, but Leonard lingered for a second or two before turning to carry out the order.

"Oh, Wind, my friend!" Rireen declared, raising her arms again.

Link jumped in surprise when Rireen's arms did something he had not expected. It looked as if blades of a sort sprang out of her forearms and extended their overall length. Her feathers looked as if they had unfurled themselves like a sail being set at high speed. They were not regular arms anymore, or even to begin with for that matter. They were a pair of wings which spanned almost twice her head height.

"Ho, _shit_," Albert, still on the starboard side with the control stay in his hands, declared.

"Hey, hey!" Flower shouted at him, jerking hard on his side of the stay. The pull heaved hard on Albert's arms, and his shoulder whacked his ear. "Pay attention, you idiot! Ogle later!"

Link gave a relieved nod in Flower's direction and addressed Zelda. "Your Highness," he said, "my cabin is over here."

"A moment please," she requested, her brilliant sapphires glittering with the blue-and-white jets of wind skirting the edges of the Sky Line as she stared at it in awe. "I would like to witness our entrance into it."

Link glanced up at the Sky Line, then back to Zelda. "Yes, Your Highness," he replied with a nod.

She smiled, but did not turn away from the Sky Line. "You might find it more convenient to simply call me 'Zelda'," she commented. "If we disembark, referring to me by title may be somewhat problematic."

Link attempted to swallow the rock in his throat. "Y-yes, Your Highness," he answered.

At this, she gave him a quick look. "You do not have to at the present, but you may want to start practicing." Then she started forward, allowing distance so that Link could give an exhausted sigh and an expression that said "oh, boy" with a weak grin. He glanced over to find that Rireen was following her, so he busied himself closing the hatch.

After he had finished, the ship had stopped directly under the Sky Line. "Secure for travel, Chief!" Albert called up to the bridge.

"Brace for entry!" Line cried across the deck.

Link looked forward and saw that Princess Zelda had wrapped her arms around the banister at the foot of the forecastle, although it seemed more like she was bracing herself against excitement rather than the potential for kissing the deck boards. Rireen did not appear worried at all, giving the Sky Line a particularly curious look. Link himself was not concerned with the havoc of entering a Sky Line. Like his crew around him, he had practice at standing still while—

WHAM!

Link was seeing stars for a moment after his legs suddenly cut from underneath him and his head slammed into the deck. He had only been given a split second to acknowledge the approach of the planks he had been standing on, and it had not been enough time for him to catch himself. Standing, he wondered what he had done wrong to earn the intense pain all over the left side of his face; he normally could take the force dealt to a ship entering a Sky Line. He came up with two reasons. Number one: the _Island_ _Sonata_ was smaller than the _Grand_ _Sails_, where he had usually sailed and where the Sky Line was less prone to shoving the stern up when its winds hit the sails. Number two: he probably should not have been showing so much concern for the princess. Glancing around to see if anyone had noticed, he dusted himself off. In the process, he discovered that the deck was particularly dirty and confirmed it by sweeping his foot before him, forming a clean line with his boot.

"Airman Flower, sweep down the deck!" he shouted as the airman stepped away from the bulwark. Then he saw Albert and ordered, "Airman Albert, relieve Leonard at lookout in half an hour."

"Aye, sir!" both of them replied, saluting. Link returned it, and they set to work.

"Truly astounding," Zelda commented as she approached Link, her eyes scanning the sails above. "I am glad to be aboard, Link."

She smiled at him, and his face became hot. "Th-th-the pleasure is ours, Your Highness," he stuttered. He cleared his throat and indicated the door to his cabin with a hand. "This way, please."

He led them across the deck and opened the cabin door for them. After they entered, he glanced around the deck for a moment before closing the door behind him. Rireen fell into his hammock and reclined with her arms and legs dangling over the sides in what appeared to be a very uncomfortable position. Zelda stepped over to the frosted windows and leaned close to one pane, trying to look outside. Link tugged the collar of his undersuit, stepping over to his desk.

Zelda turned to him after he settled into the chair. "I suppose that you are curious as to why we have plotted this elaborate setup," she commented.

Link shrugged at her. "It _has_ crossed my mind a few times," he admitted, giving her a helpless frown.

She nodded. "You must understand that leaving the castle also means neglecting my duties as the temporary leader of the kingdom. It would not reflect too well if I simply walked out the door and boarded the first ship I saw. Especially with _our_ intended destination."

"I understood that much," Link replied. "But I can't help wondering why you chose _my_ ship."

"It was rather arbitrary," she admitted. "The decision fell mostly to Governor Lore. She is the only other person who is aware that I have left. The rest of the staff believes that I have fallen ill."

"Don't worry, Cap'n," Rireen spoke up. "I told her she could've found a less suspicious excuse. Like she had accidentally swallowed a sword and had to be locked in her room in case she spat it out." Link attempted to chuckle, but it came out as a weak croak.

"I want to assure you that we are not simply traveling on a whim, Link," Zelda told him, turning so she could lean on the rear wall. "There is indeed a purpose for this… task."

"I had no doubt of that," Link assured her. "But I _am_ somewhat concerned."

"If it's the storm, I've got that one taken care of," Rireen said, indicating the lacquer box Zelda had placed on the map table.

"Our task is to take Rireen to Forelight Island," Zelda told him.

Link leaned on one armrest with his thumb and forefinger hooked to his chin. "Is that so?" Link asked, his voice betraying curiosity.

Zelda nodded. "Rireen is a member of the Sorians, a race of creatures which formerly lived among these islands.

"Over two hundred years ago, there was a war between the Demon King Malladus and the spirits of good who resided in the young lands of Hyrule. The Demon King was sealed beneath what our history calls the Tower of the Spirits, bound by the power of the Spirit Tracks. But no one knows that, while the lands below were being conquered by Malladus, his close friend, a demonic general known as Cunimincus, waged war with the Sorians as they retreated into the skies with their lands. He followed them and broke apart their lands into the islands as we now know them. When the fighting ceased, the remnants of the Sorians retreated to Forelight Island and used their magic talents to protect themselves from danger.

"Rireen is one of a few who remained to warn the Sorians if danger ever returned. Since her parents' deaths, she has been all alone here. She has been in my parents' care for some time, and I promised to return her to Forelight Island when my parents went to the new islands calling themselves Termina. I am afraid that it has taken me this long to fulfill my promise."

Link, who had fallen silent with his jaw drooped open, sat up straight and asked, "So, if you are taking her to Forelight Island, does it mean that Hyrule is in danger?"

Zelda quickly shook her head. "No, not at all," she replied in a reassuring tone. "Rireen is lonely without others like her. Taking her back to the Sorians is merely for her sake."

Link gave a relieved sigh. "I suppose that's reasonable enough," he said. Then he looked over at Rireen. "But how do you intend to clear our way through the Undying Storm?"

"Eeeeh, I can't talk about it," she replied, using the wall next to her to start rocking. "My parents swore me to secrecy of our existence before they died. Only the royal family is supposed to know."

"What about the governor?" Link asked.

"Governor Lore will be managing my appointments in my absence," Zelda answered. She gave a helpless look and shrugged a shoulder. "I will probably be very busy when I return."

"The life of a celebrity," Rireen sighed, although Link was unsure of the sentiment she was attempting to comment on.

"So, our course then," Zelda said. "How long until we arrive?"

"About two hours," Link answered. "We have to switch to the Dawn Line once we reach Turtle Island. When we depart from Forelight Island, it may be about a day to return to Castle Island."

Zelda nodded. "I had suspected as much. In fact, I told Governor Lore to not expect me for perhaps two or three days." She gave a slight bow. "We leave our care to you."

Link nodded his head in response. Then, as she turned to examine the map table, he slouched in his chair and covered his face with a hand.


	9. What Defines a Princess

Chapter 9: What Defines a "Princess"

…

—Took on two passengers from Castle Island for transport to Forelight Island: Princess Zelda of the Hyrule royal family and a Sorian girl called Rireen. Course laid out along the Northwest Sky Line, transfer at Turtle Island, and resuming passage along the Dawn Sky Line.

—I've only been in command for a matter of hours, and I feel like I've already lost my mind. I can only imagine the trouble I can get into for ferrying the princess to what has to be the most dangerous place in the sky, so I rest assured that I might be killed as we cross through the Undying Storm. I don't know if I can even tell Captain Alfonzo about all of this. I just hope that I can get Princess Zelda and Rireen to Forelight Island safely. After that, I should be able to relax.

—As for the princess and my crew, no one appears to have caught on to who she is. It's actually a bit of a surprise; even Line doesn't seem to have realized it, and I expected him to pummel me into the deck boards for not cluing him in on her presence earlier. This may have something to do with Rireen being on board; she seems to be far more interesting.

…

A shadow blocked out the afternoon sun for barely a second as a large, bird-like form sailed overhead. Link, as well as the three airmen immediately within his scope of vision, could not help but look up at the sails to watch the brilliant performance the Sorian girl put on with her aerial acrobatics. The fact that she flew was amazing in itself; being the same height as Flowers had led Link to believe that she weighed maybe about a quarter of the airman, accounting for the fact that she was a girl and amazingly slender. But after a swan-dive over the bulwark followed by an immediate loop underneath the airship and landing on the bridge directly behind Line, it clearly was not the case. Her entire body acted like one, large wing, allowing her to simply loft herself onto the air like a pillow and thrust herself forward with each beat of her arms. Her greatest talent appeared to be weaving through the sails and the rigging, as she liked coming dangerously close to being hooked by the various ropes supporting the masts and their components. After a while, Link was sure his idle airmen were taking bets on if the lines would drop her to the deck.

Except for Line, Link did not mind the crew being idle, especially since they had to take some time to get to the next Sky Line. His current pilot had to revise his estimation to the Dawn Sky Line due to a mild headwind. He told this to Link what must have been fifteen minutes ago; now, the _Island_ _Sonata_ looked to him to be only about halfway between the two Sky Lines. On the bright side, the headwind seemed to have provided Rireen the freedom she needed to take to the sky. It also gave Flower and Leonard the opportunity to relax a bit from the hard work they had been performing all day.

Link, sitting on the hatch cover going into the ship, glanced out to port. Turtle Island was not far away, a relatively large island of wilderness compared to the large hub of Castle Island. Understandably enough, the name came from its general shape. A large dome of a mountain formed the center of the island and bore five, flat, peninsula-like structures. Three of them resided on the side of the island visible to the _Island_ _Sonata_ with the other two attached to the far side. The small port which serviced the island sat on the "head", and Link could see the cloud of mail gliders in that particular area, so small compared to the island that they looked like gnats. Link had only been to the island three or four times, often when some of the stronger wind currents in the area prevented the mailmen from carrying their loads to the main office elsewhere.

He sighed, smashing his cheek into his palm while the corresponding elbow rested on his knee. Despite knowing that he sailed into a potential disaster, somehow his spirits had been alleviated by the sight of the island and Rireen's feats. It felt owed to him, especially since he still had no knowledge of how Rireen was supposed to guide them safely through the Undying Storm. Only a minute before, he had told himself Line's words from earlier that day, something about "going with the flow". Well, he had no choice in the matter, not anymore. It was the final conclusion he could come to as he watched Rireen speed by the side of the ship, shooting him a wink in the half-second that she was there. He had consigned himself to simply sitting there for the duration.

Then he heard the notes floating down from the bow.

The sound of a singing voice lulled him into a temporary stupidity as he listened, having been freed of his thoughts. Then, with somewhat of a start, he realized that he was about to slide off the curved hatch and firmly planted his boot into the deck to stop himself. He glanced around for a moment, looking for the source. It could not have been Rireen; she still flew about the sails, whereas the voice came from the same direction. And it sure could not have been any of his airmen; the voice was female. So he slid off the hatch and looked towards the bow.

He tried to keep a calm air about him as he speed-walked to the forecastle and climbed the steps. Inside, though, his heart felt like it resonated throughout his whole body. He crossed the forecastle to the bowsprit and stood almost on the end of the prow just where the safety net began. He did not dare advance further.

Because if he startled Princess Zelda, she could easily fall overboard. She stood with one foot on the bowsprit and the other on a knot in the safety net surrounding the lower half of the bowsprit. One of her hands held a jib line, but Link could see her peaceful features gazing at some distant wonder off the bow. Link immediately found himself choking back his intended warning, mesmerized not just by her voice, but by the magnificence she gave off, the perfect, fearless, commanding way in which she simply _existed_ in that moment. And with each vocalization (she did not sing with words, only allowed her voice to express itself without the seemingly vulgar complexities of language), Link thought he could see some kind of shimmer in the air just in front of her lips.

Still. He had to say something to express his concerns for the position she had chosen.

"You have a beautiful voice, Princess."

He did not succeed.

Her voice softly disappeared, and her lips remained open for a moment. She cast whatever she looked at a lingering stare of want, then she switched the hand holding the jib line so that she could turn back to Link. "Thank you, Skipper," she replied, the playful smile on her face teasing him for using her title.

Link shook his head and grabbed the forestay next to him. "No," he said. "Tha-that's not what I meant to say."

She continued to smile. "Nevertheless, I hope that you meant it."

"No, no, I—I mean…" Link trailed off to furiously scratch at his thick, blond hair. What was it that he _meant_ to say? "Well, _yes_, I—I meant to say that, but… I—I didn't _want_ to say it!"

Her face molded into a curious look. "Why would you not want to say such a thing?" she asked as she delicately stepped closer to the deck.

"No! I mean I—I _might_ have wanted to say it, but—but that wasn't what I _needed_ to say," Link said, dropping his glance to his boots with his eyes closed. He growled and finally spat out, "I—I just want you off the bow!"

"But I _am_ off the bow." He looked up and found that she, indeed, had stepped down from the bowsprit and stood directly on the deck beneath the safety net, one hand holding the opposite forestay from him.

Link let out an exhausted sigh. "Yes… yes, you are."

"You were concerned for me?"

He nodded, his face growing a little warm. "Y-yeah."

She addressed him with a gentle smile. "Thank you, Link. I am glad to know that you are taking my care seriously."

Link then realized something and glanced across the forecastle again. "Where's Albert?"

"Do you mean the airman that was up here?" Link nodded. "I relieved him."

He blinked in confusion. "Y-you what?" he asked.

"I asked him if he would not mind that I took his position for a moment," Zelda explained as she took a few more steps away from the bow. She leaned her back on the bulwark and stretched her arms along its surface, one hand feeling the nearby forestay. "He seems to have mistaken me for a fellow airman."

Link slapped a hand on his forehead. "Oh, no, no, no," he said to himself. "Why would you _do_ that?"

"Was that wrong?"

"He _deserted_ his _post_," Link answered. "Princess, you're not supposed to be a lookout; you're a _passenger_!"

"Is that so?" Zelda's voice oozed challenge, and he looked up to find that she had crossed her arms. "As a passenger, am I therefore incapable of holding such a simple position such as a lookout?"

Link felt a little off-balance. "W… well, no," he admitted.

"So is his post considered deserted when someone qualified for the post dismisses him?" she pressed.

"T-that's not the _point_!" Link declared in a louder voice than he had intended. "He left without orders! Where did he _go_?"

"I believe he mentioned his berth." Link turned and started across the deck. "Wait a moment. Where are you going?"

"To put him back on duty."

Zelda pushed away from the bulwark and stood firm. "I do not believe that we are done with our discussion, _Skipper_."

Her tone seethed calm outrage despite how even her words flowed, and Link, almost on impulse, swung around and planted his boots in the deck in a manner befitting someone ready to bolt. "W-what?" he asked.

"As a member of the royal family, I find myself rather insulted by your attempt to deflect our disagreement," she replied, her face now showing a tinge of anger. "I demand an answer to my question. Is this post deserted when someone else, who is just as capable of looking out at the skies for potential danger, dismisses him?"

"N-no…" Then Link quickly realized his mistake and corrected himself with equal haste, "I—I mean yes! Yes, because you're not a part of my crew."

"Okay, then." She stepped forward until she was almost breathing in his face. Her stride and distance gave Link the impression that she might slap him, causing his arm to tense itself in case his face needed protection. "Make me a member of your crew."

For a moment, Link could only blink. "Huh?"

"I wish to be a member of your crew."

"I—I can't do that!"

Her expression grew inquisitive. "Why not? I was assured that you are commanding this vessel."

"I am!" Link defended.

"And you hire the new crew?"

"Uh huh."

"So why can you not hire me?"

Link's immediate response was wordlessly gesturing at her as if it served as an explanation. She did not seem to make the connection (or did not _want_ to, simply to force the words out of his mouth), so he told her, "Because you're a member of the royal family!"

"So I am disqualified from serving on your ship, then?"

"No, I just—"

Link felt the blade of logic penetrate his stomach when she interrupted him. "So I am allowed to serve, then."

He realized his mistake and smacked himself in the head. "Please? I… I really don't want this to become any more problematic…"

"Then will you allow me to serve as a lookout while being a passenger?"

Link hung his head in defeat. "Yes. Just… please make sure that there is an airman with you."

Zelda leaned to one side so she could look at his face. "Aye, skipper."

Although those last words were intended as an apology of sorts, it did not alleviate Link's feelings of demise. In the following silence, Link could now hear the low whistle of the nearby Sky Line and looked up. Then he slowly walked across the deck on his way back to his cabin.

…

—I tried to have a personal conversation with Princess Zelda this afternoon. I must be some kind of idiot.


	10. Into the Storm

Chapter 10: Into the Storm

…

—Supplemental.

—We've been traveling the Dawn Line for a little over two hours. I guess the maps I brought from the branch office in Castle Town weren't very accurate, but who can expect accuracy when Forelight Island is the last place anyone wants to go. Life on the deck has quieted down. It leaves an almost grim atmosphere as each one of us slowly comes to what may be the conclusion of the _Island_ _Sonata_'s days as well as our own. The Sorian Rireen still hasn't revealed this secret which will prevent us from being torn apart in the Undying Storm. At this point, I find myself hoping that it's at least some kind of charm that might protect us from being struck by lightning.

—We need all the help we can get.

…

"Bridge to Skipper." Link finished with his quill and placed it in the holder just as Line's voice addressed him from the calling tubes. He stood up, leaving the log book open so that the ink could dry, and rounded the desk to the tubes.

He identified the one labeled "Bridge" and replied, "Go ahead, Line."

"Flower's sighted the storm. We're still about half an hour out."

Link took a moment to reign in his thoughts. "Understood. Are the passengers on the deck?"

"Yes, sir."

"Thank you." Link stood up straight and glanced at the frosted windows. Blue shadows obscured them, looking as if night was already setting. It gave him an ominous feel, and he turned away. With a sigh, he walked to the door and stepped out onto the deck.

The sky before the ship had formed a malevolent eye and turned it upon the little schooner. The clouds of the Undying Storm had been dyed purple from the setting sun behind the storm. That, in addition to the oblong shape of the storm and the flashes of ghostly blue light of lightning beyond, felt like a large, angry being stared down upon them with a warning of destruction that any sane man would heed without a second thought. The sky behind them had fallen into a premature evening blue, making the storm all the more brilliant and terrifying. Link stared at the sight for a moment, wondering if they might be struck out of the skies before they could cross into the storm.

He rounded to the stairs and climbed onto the bridge. "What do you think?" he asked Line.

"I think we need a bigger boat," Line replied, expression blank as he stared ahead. "I'm getting conflicting crosswinds."

Link noted the helm jerking back and forth in Line's hands and frowned. "_Inside_ the Sky Line?"

"I know; it's weird. It doesn't make _sense_. They keep hitting from port and starboard. I'm beginning to think it might not be _wind_."

"Can you hold it?"

Line nodded. "I think so. But I'm getting the impression that we might make toothpicks out of the gaffs once we hit the storm." Then he shrugged. "Or rather, when the storm hits _us_."

"Where are the passengers?"

Line jerked his chin forward. "They're on the bow with Flower. Albert and Leonard are hanging by the stays just in case."

Link nodded and patted Line's shoulder. "Try to keep her steady."

"Got it."

Link walked back down the stairs and crossed the weather deck. He caught the looks on Albert's and Leonard's faces as he moved, noticing the iron resolve both men had put on. Albert, though, had clenched his fists until his knuckles glowed white in the shadow created by the aftcastle behind them. They looked ready for action, making Link wonder if the airmen on an armed ship looked the same way. It made sense; the next thousand moments just might be a fight for their lives.

Zelda, Rireen, and Flower stood on the port side of the bow, all of them leaning on the bulwark with their backs turned to him. They seemed to be mesmerized by the evil eye ahead of them. He stepped up beside Flower at the head of the prow. "Airman Flower," he said in an even voice. "Have you sighted anything?"

"_Clouds_, sir," Flower said with a blank face but a tone of spite. Link could hardly blame him. Flower, as a more seasoned airman, probably hated the idea of having to enter a storm when it could just as easily be avoided.

Link decided to skip clarifying that he was asking Flower if he saw any sort of break which the _Island_ _Sonata_ could sail through. Instead, he ordered, "Set up the prow lights; it's going to be dark once we go inside."

Flower turned a glare down on Link, as if asking the skipper if he was really out of his mind. "Aye, sir," he responded, turning and disappearing somewhere behind them. He called out as he descended onto the weather deck, "Albert, gimme a hand with the lanterns!"

Link sighed and turned to the girls. "Whatever you plan to do, you may want to do it soon."

"Got it, Cap'n," Rireen replied, immediately turning and jogging toward the skipper's cabin.

Link stared out at the storm again, feeling much more dread now that he did not have to look beyond the sails to see the whole body of clouds telling them to turn back. He heard boots softly crossing the deck and saw out of the corner of his eye Princess Zelda step up next to him. For only a minute, which felt more like an eternity to him, they stood side by side, staring at the awaiting danger.

"There is something inside the storm," Zelda spoke up, breaking up the soft whistle of the Sky Line around them.

Link glanced at her for a moment, wondering what she had meant. "You mean Forelight Island, right?" he asked.

She shook her head. "No, not beyond the storm," she explained. "_Inside_ the storm. I have a feeling that something very terrible awaits us besides the lightning."

"Like what?" Link asked, looking back at the storm to see if he might spot what she was referring to.

"I cannot be specific," she told him with a shake of her head. "It is a very vague intuition, but… I feel something bad in that storm. Almost evil."

Link held back the urge to visibly grimace. "Let's hope it is just the air around here," he said.

She took a half-step back. "I wish it were so easy to believe," she confessed.

They heard boots across the forecastle behind them and turned to watch Albert and Flower set up lit lanterns on the holders attached to the outside of the bulwark. "That was quick," Link remarked to them.

"We moved the lanterns and some of the oil into the cabin with us," Albert replied as he used his fist to pound a stubborn lantern into its holder. "We couldn't find a tool chest, so we just stowed them in the flammables box on the engine deck."

Link wrinkled his forehead. "You couldn't put the tools in the cabin?"

"We like to read when we're not on duty," Flower replied. Link accepted the explanation with a shrug, knowing that their cabin probably did not have any other form of light.

He looked back out at the storm and commented, "It's too bad we couldn't find a shorter way."

"Why is that, Link?" Zelda asked.

He paused for a moment and glanced at her. She was staring at him with an inquisitive look, and he could not help swallowing hard. "W-well, as we are now, the Sky Line is the fastest way in," he explained. "Moving under our own power would take too long and leave us much more vulnerable to being torn apart."

"Could we enter from above?" she suggested.

Link shook his head. "The Sky Lines are all at about the same altitude. Our ships are capable of ascending only to a certain level above the Sky Lines. This storm is much too high for us to enter it from above."

"What if we were to ascend into the storm?" she asked. She used her hand to illustrate as she explained further, "We could lower our altitude and come through the storm from underneath. Surely this storm might be thinner there."

Link frowned and looked at the storm. It seemed like a good idea, but he finally explained to her, "No ship is designed to ascend quickly for a long period of time; we would probably spend more time trying to ascend than try going through the storm on our own power. And an added problem we would have would be control. We would be more at the storm's whims if we tried to ascend because the ship's hull would still be hit by wind, maybe even with much more effect since we would have to leave the ship unpowered while it rose." Zelda nodded her understanding and slowly looked back to the storm. Link felt a little bad for rejecting her ideas and added in a lower voice, "I am very sorry, Princess, but the _Island_ _Sonata_ is made to move forward. The Sky Line really _is_ the fastest way through the danger."

She nodded. "I understand," she replied. She took a deep breath and sighed it out. "Perhaps it is my own hesitation. I have never felt so concerned before, and I find myself rather lethargic when it comes to making any sort of decision at this moment. I know that I should, but I cannot simply defer to your judgment. There is no doubt that you are a fine commander, so do not misunderstand me. I am used to some things being in my own control."

Link smiled at her. "If you decide to leave it to us, then perhaps you still _are_ in control," he commented. She looked back to him with a weak smile of her own. He took in a deep breath and cast his eyes across the storm. "Besides, the only one really in control right now is Airman Line. He could just as easily steer us out of the storm. And I do not think I would stop him."

"Nor I," she admitted.

"Found it," Rireen interrupted, causing both to jump in surprise. "Oh, sorry. I thought you might've seen me walk up."

"It is all right, Rireen," Zelda replied as she accepted the lacquer case the Sorian had brought. "Are you ready?"

One corner of Rireen's mouth drew back. "About as much as I can be," she answered in a concerned tone. "I just hope this works like we think it will."

Zelda nodded and pressed her fingertips into the lid as best as she could. She pulled the box open. At first, Link was confused. The item, sitting in a velvet mat fitted around its form, looked to be a dagger. But it was far too thin and fragile-looking. It was a thin rod of white metal, the right length to be a dagger but with a rounded tip. The swirl markings on the outside of the box were reflected in the cross-guard-like protrusions on the thicker end of the rod. The thicker end curled in on itself. Rireen took this item into her right hand, her fingers wrapped gently around the handle, and stepped backwards. Her eyes stared intently at the object.

"Wha-what is that?" Link asked Zelda, keeping his voice low because Rireen appeared to be concentrating very hard.

She answered, "It is an artifact which has been carried by the royal family since Hyrule was reestablished on the surface. It was once in possession of the Hero of Winds.

"It is known as the Wind Waker."

Link's glance returned to the strange item. He asked, "What is it? What does it do?"

"Have you never attended a musical performance, Link?"

He shook his head. "I never have the time for it."

"I see," she replied with a nod. "Then I shall explain. In order to ensure that the various instrument players play in harmony with each other, a conductor stands before them and directs them with a baton. The Wind Waker is a magical baton, and it was used to control the winds so that the Hero of Winds could protect the realm. In short, Link, it _conducts_ the winds."

Link scratched his head. "I still don't think I understand," he said, "but I'll just go with the flow."

"I got it!" Rireen declared.

Link started. "What? What?"

But instead of replying, Rireen moved to the middle of the forecastle. "I need something to tap on," she said, looking around. "Something small. Something significant."

Link and Zelda exchanged glances. "Will this do?" Zelda asked, holding out the case to her.

"No, it's not significant enough," Rireen replied. "I-I need… Direction!"

Flower, who had been mounting a light to the deck rail, glanced over at her and said in a voice expressing confusion and doubt in a person's sanity, "What!?"

"I need something that indicates direction," she replied. "A map or—or a sun finder or…"

Link started, realizing something. He tugged open the collar of his undersuit and reached for the lump in the center of his chest. Then pulled out his hand and showed the contents to Rireen. "Will a compass work?" he asked.

Rireen spun to him and squinted at the device for a moment. Then she declared, "Yes! Yes, _perfect_! Bring it here!"

Link stepped closer to her, removing the compass from around his neck. He held it out to Rireen, showing her a blue interior face marked by three silver triangles and one gold triangle on the edge with a swiveling diamond painted red on one half hovering above. The exterior case was painted blue, chipped and scratched in a few places which revealed the case to be made of bronze. Rireen held out the hand bearing the Wind Waker and tapped the tip against the glass a few times, producing an audible sound.

Everything around them suddenly fell silent, a haunting silence which caused everyone on the forecastle to look around in confusion. Link scrunched his face, trying hard to hear anything at all. But the silence had even drowned out the radiant howl of the Sky Line around them and the creaking of the _Island_ _Sonata_'s timbers, sounds which had been so constant until now. The storm beyond continued to flash, and he expected to hear thunder at any time. But for a few moments, all that was audible was his own breathing.

Then Rireen raised her hand, pointing the Wind Waker to the sky above. The wind picked up sound again, but it wasn't the Sky Line's usual tone. Instead, the wind carried the sound of voices in a small variety of ranges. Rireen's movements carried a delicate flow as she swung the end of the Wind Waker in Link's direction, to which he responded by backing up so the baton did not stab his eye. The voices altered their range with the movement, and then again when she turned to her left with the Wind Waker nearly touching the shoulder on that side. Then she returned to the top of the motion and repeated it. Link looked about, trying to find the source of the voices. But Albert and Flower, still on the forecastle, stared in silence at the conductor. Zelda stood with a hand over her mouth, perhaps gazing in a stronger awe than the airmen. Link returned to watching Rireen, but his attention fell more on the voices around him. As she repeated the pattern (Link lost track of how many times she had), the voices continued to alter themselves with each swing. The notes did not repeat themselves as he had expected; instead, the song only appeared to keep time with her movements and changed notes to something separate from what Link could see. The song had a haunting air about it not just created by the half-dozen disembodied voices singing around them. Somehow, Link could not help feel that the song was changing something around them.

Rireen finished the final swing of the Wind Waker and allowed her posture to slouch a bit with exhaustion. The sounds of the ship and the Sky Line picked up again. For a moment, Link stood looking between her and Zelda, trying to find a purpose behind the whole display. He admitted to himself that the whole ritual looked very stunning and the music was lovely, but he grew concerned that the ultimate result was simply that.

"Skipper, look!" Albert, standing at the back of the forecastle, shouted in alarm. Link's line of sight jerked in his direction. He pointed out to the storm ahead, and Link followed the gesture with his eyes.

The storm was much closer than Link recalled seeing before Rireen's mysterious song had begun, so close that he could see the swirl of the storm clouds. Faint though it was, he could hear thunder loft its way through the Sky Line to meet his ears.

And around the Sky Line ahead of them, the clouds curled back into the storm, forming a dark hole. Link stared for a moment, calm and completely at a loss for words. He remained that way until an equally-stunned Flower stepped up beside him and asked, "Orders, Skipper?"

Link's eyes never strayed from the sight as he said, "Tell Line to hold his course. And set up the running lights. Get the other two to help you."

"Aye, sir." Neither was focused enough on the usual sailing practice to salute. Flower simply walked away with the orders in his mind.

Link, along with Zelda and Rireen, stared at the hole in the storm while the _Island_ _Sonata_ sailed closer. Finally, Link had to ask, "How did you do that?"

"That is the power of the Wind Waker," Zelda said. "Rireen can see the magical workings of the Wind Waker depending on what she wants to do with it. This was how we felt we could take her past the Undying Storm." She stepped closer to Rireen and put a hand on her shoulder. "Are you all right?"

"I'm okay," Rireen nodded. "That took a lot out of me."

"If you need to rest," Link said, "you can use my cabin." Rireen nodded and wandered towards the stern in a slow slump.

Link looked back out at the hole in the storm. They were close enough to see that the opening was as large as the ship. "That's amazing," he told Zelda. But she did not respond, and he glanced at her. "Are you okay?"

She shook her head. "That feeling has become stronger. There is something very wrong with this storm."

"You mean other than the fact that it's been here for years?" Link blurted out. Although she did not react to the statement, he immediately regretted it and added after a brief thought, "Sorry."

But she shook her head. "No, you are correct," she assured him. "Perhaps it is simply that fact which has been triggering this feeling."

"Skipper." Link and Zelda turned around as Flower approached them. "Chief Line reports the helm steady now. Also, all of the running lanterns are on."

"Thank you," Link replied. He took a moment to think and then told him, "I want all three of you on the deck in case we run into trouble. Break out lanterns for yourselves and keep an eye on the stays above all."

"Aye, sir," Flower saluted. After Link dismissed him, he immediately walked over to Albert and Leonard to relay the orders.

A deeper darkness fell over the ship, and Link looked up as the storm passed over him. In a matter of seconds, the whole ship had been cast in a darkness only relieved by the faint lanterns mounted to the bulwark. Link became conscious of the princess stepping closer to him and looked down at her. He met a calm set of eyes illuminated by a lantern somewhere past his arm. They exchanged a silent agreement and started towards the stern as Flower took up position at the bow.


	11. Through the Storm

Chapter 11: Through the Storm

…

The ship itself felt tense as it sailed through the storm. The airmen made their rounds over the weather deck and up onto the forecastle. Link stood atop the bridge just in front of the port side stairs, watching as Albert, Flower, and Leonard walked circles with their lamps swinging in an attempt to keep their paths lit. It was difficult; the oil-based flames had a hard time maintaining themselves because of the constant flow of air all over the ship. Every few minutes, one might go out, and a nearby airman would have to stop and relight it. It was as much for being seen as it was for seeing, but Link doubted there was anyone else about trying to navigate through the storm.

The lamps cast a soft orange glow against the ship and melded with the blue light of the Sky Line to put some definition to the storm clouds about them. As scary as it had been outside, with the setting sun adding malice to an already frightening situation, being able to see bare lightning skirting the perimeter of the Dawn Line caused the crew to jump every now and then. Every strike created the fear that half of the _Island_ _Sonata_ would be blown to pieces. What was unseen by one person was heard by all as thunder rattled the airship's already frail hull. Still, with Rireen having cleared their path, Line was able to keep a straight course, possibly the straightest he has ever been able to sail.

Rireen remained in Link's cabin. Standing almost directly above it, he heard the door squeal open and shut before the top of Princess Zelda's head came into view. She exchanged a silent greeting with Flower as he walked by, turned, and walked up the stairs.

Link stepped aside as she reached the top. "How is she?" he asked in a concerned voice.

"She is taking a nap right now," she replied. "We suspected that using the Wind Waker might leave her fatigued. Thank you again for the use of your cabin…" She noted Line standing at the helm, listening. "Skipper."

Link nodded. "It's no trouble. Will she recover soon?"

She nodded and said, "Within the hour, I suspect. The first time she attempted to use it, she had passed out for an hour. She appears to have been more prepared for this attempt if she was able to walk back to your cabin."

"Someday, you'll have to explain just what the hell happened," Line remarked. "Much as I like having a clear path, it's a tad unnerving when a _person_ _makes_ _it_."

"Perhaps," Zelda nodded to him. She turned towards the bow. "It is amazing how deep the storm is."

"Unfortunately, we don't know _how_ thick it is," Line said. "We're just lucky to know that there's an island _at_ _all_ in the middle of this mess."

"I must admit some ignorance of Forelight Island," Zelda told them. "I know only of the storm and that the island is where the rest of the Sorians reside."

"Sorians?" Line asked Link.

"The other girl," Link replied. "That's… what she is."

Line opened his eyes wider. "Wow. I thought it was just a one-time deal. Aerial acrobatics on the job. It was a first for me. Think we'll meet more?"

"Possibly," Zelda nodded.

Link nodded in agreement and looked out towards the bow. The bow seemed to be the stopping point of all light; everything beyond was simply a dark hole. Only the lightning ahead of them gave indication of the tunnel still ahead. What little the lightning revealed was a slow funnel of cloud spiraling into abyss.

Despite the dreadful look of the path ahead, Link found himself a little surprised by how calm he felt. Somewhere inside, he simply _knew_, without any other indications on the route they traveled, that they would reach a place of rest. He wondered if this was the intuition that skippers eventually developed. If so, it seemed somewhat rushed, although he appreciated having it at all at a relatively unnerving moment in his life.

He could hear himself breathing, and this stirred him from his thoughts so that he could ask a question. "Hey, Line?"

"Yeah?"

He nodded out at the storm. "Assuming that Forelight Island is at the center of the storm, and assuming that the Sky Line emerges close to it, how long do you figure until we find it?"

In the scant light cast by the lantern resting on the deck rail in front of the helm, Link watched Line's face scrunch as he thought. He used one hand seemingly to trace in the air before him the map which they had checked their course on. "Well," he finally answered with a hesitant drone in that first word, "if the charts are to be believed, it should be about a half-hour to the center of the storm from the periphery."

"There is cause to doubt the charts?" Zelda asked.

"No one in years has been crazy enough to get _near_ this stupid storm, let alone sail into it," Line explained in a voice leaking a few drops of contempt.

Zelda glanced away from him, prompting Link to give a rather gentle scold, "Line." But Line replied with a glance indicating that Link should be thinking the same thing.

"No, it is all right, Skipper," Zelda replied, holding up a hand. "To hope that an airman would abandon the justification of a bitter attitude asks far too much." She stepped closer to the helm. "I apologize for my ignorance concerning this matter, Airman Line. I hope that you will forgive me."

Line sighed and stared at her for a moment with a touch of irritation coloring his expression. "Aaah, don't worry about it," he told her in a dismissive tone as he returned his focus on the sky before him. "I suppose I'm just a little cranky right now. You know, piloting a ship through uncharted clouds and such."

Link grinned as a thought occurred to him. "You know, Line," he said, "this little venture _does_ offer bragging rights. How many pilots do you know that can say they've sailed through the Undying Storm with such ease as you are now?"

Line offered himself a small smirk. "Yeah, I can see your point there, Skipper."

"I assure you that your reputation will be well-spread, Line," Zelda added.

"Well, you start saying _that_ sort of thing, and you're gonna make me blush," Line laughed.

Link, a smile still decorating his face, glanced towards the darkness off the stern, somewhere in the clouds above. Lightning flashed.

And in that instant of lightning, Link saw something that turned his calm into a flicker of almost pure terror, almost as if something had punched his chest from the inside. He stood stunned in the second after, but try as he might, the object of his horror had already escaped his recollection of that second. What had it been? Some kind of figure in the clouds outside of the Sky Line, as far as he could tell. Something made his whole body run colder than the usual air around him. The chill ran up and down his spine, sending with it signal flags to all parts of his body that now was not the time to keep warm. A ghost, perhaps? A kind of haunting apparition which airmen loved to speak about in a dark cabin to make sure the younger crew did not sleep at all? He felt his thoughts collect themselves. Maybe it was simply a trick of his imagination. Or perhaps a sympathetic reaction to Princess Zelda's earlier fears. Yes, let it be such and be dismissed just as quickly as it occurred, he thought.

"Skipper?"

Link shook his head and glanced over at Zelda. "Yes?"

He met a worried face, Zelda leaning her head as if to peer past his eyes and up into his mind. "Are you well?" she asked.

"Yeah, I…" Link started, glancing up at the spot where the lightning struck. But whatever had inspired his moment of terror had already disappeared into the darkness. He could not even recall what the shape had been, only that it had given him reason to fear. So he sighed and said, "Just thought I saw something. That's all."

"You're not getting worried, too, are you?" Line asked.

"I've been worried since we left port this morning," Link replied with a grin. "Remember?"

Line tapped Zelda's shoulder with a free hand to get her attention. "You wouldn't believe the look on this guy's face when the Captain promoted him," he told her. "Stiff as a plank and prime for use in a ship's hull."

"Line…" Link warned him.

"Every time he saluted, he'd leave a mark on his forehead," Line continued, demonstrating with a free hand. "We took off from Skyrider Port, and he nearly rammed into a junk getting the ship moving."

"A junk?" Zelda asked.

"Small three-masters," Line explained. "We use them to port cargo across the island."

"Line?" Link asked. "Would you keep your mind on the air so we don't fall out of the Sky Line?"

Line opened his mouth, his mind already weaponizing a comeback which any other skipper would throw him overboard for.

"Signal ahead!"

The cry came from the bow, startling Link and Line from their conversation. Link stepped past a confused Zelda and put a hand on the deck rail as he called out, "Report!"

Flower, just rounding the deck between the aftcastle and the aft mast, immediately charged towards the bow. Albert ran down from the forecastle and into shouting range just short of the aft mast. "Lights ahead, skipper!" he reported over the wind. "Two sources. Stagger to starboard and up-altitude."

"Lieutenant!" Leonard, who had been watching the commotion from the port bulwark, ran up beside Albert. "We're exiting the storm!"

"Line, hold to the wind," Link said as he stepped past Zelda to descend to the weather deck. At the bottom, he rounded to his cabin and went inside. He left the door open to provide a bit of illumination to the dark room so that he could search around. He immediately found a telescope in a desk drawer and charged back out onto the deck. As he crossed to the forecastle, he saw that the lights along the deck no longer showed the storm clouds so close to them. The lightning strikes had distanced themselves from the schooner, no longer rattling the ship with each blast of thunder.

Link reached the forecastle and immediately located the lights Albert reported. He focused the telescope on it, but he found that the Sky Line's unusual light interfered with his ability to see. What he could make out, to his astonishment, was the rest of the Sky Line they traveled. He remembered that the ship's exit would be to the south towards Autumn Island, not on a return Sky Line back to Turtle Island. What so astonished him was the revelation that the Dawn Line actually _turned_, forming the Sky Line that led south. Furthermore, the Sky Line traveled very close to Forelight Island (assuming, of course, that the two lights in the distance were indeed their destination), the closest Link had ever seen any come to an island.

Link passed the telescope to Flower, telling him, "Keep an eye on those lights and tell me when you can see the island itself."

"Aye, sir," Flower replied with a salute. He looked out at the sky as Link descended to the weather deck.

"Albert, Leonard, keep up the rounds," he addressed the airmen still standing before the aftcastle. "Flower is on lookout for now."

"Aye, sir," they chimed.

Link returned their salutes and climbed to the bridge. "Line," he said, "you won't believe this. This Sky Line is the same as the one leading south."

Line's eyes went wide for a moment. "Are you sure?" he asked. Link nodded, and he continued, "So that means that the Sky Lines really _do_ loop back eventually."

"Is this significant?" Zelda asked.

"Oh, yeah!" Line replied. "This whole Sky Line does a complete loop around the outside of the kingdom. A _complete_ _loop_!" He drummed his hands on the helm in excitement. "Wait until the captain hears about this!"

Link could not help grinning at his enthusiasm. "Let's get this job done first," he said. "We can brag to other vessels later."

"Oh, this is not mere _bragging_, Skipper," Line told him. "This is a find of a _lifetime_! We can definitely give the _Island_ _Sonata_ some well-deserved prestige with this."

Zelda gave Link a bright smile. "He is quite engaged, isn't he, Skipper?"

Link replied with a helpless shrug, "I'd be worried if he _wasn't_."

"Stop talking about me behind my back," Line told them. Then he quickly added, "Sir."

Link stepped around him. He could barely make out the two points of light from the bridge. "Prepare to exit in a few minutes; let's see how close we can get to this thing."


	12. I Can Only Take So Much Damage

Chapter 12: I Can Only Take So Much Damage

…

The crew, after ten more minutes of travel, realized that they had to pull the _Island_ _Sonata_ out of the Sky Line some time before reaching the island. The ship had to resort to sailing under its own power for a while.

Because the Sky Line flowed _through_ the island. As the Sky Line turned to the south, Link ordered the ship out when he saw that the two lights hovered over their flight path. He ordered Line to increase their altitude so that they sailed on an altitude in between the two beacons, expecting them to be some kind of guide. The sky, due to the storm and possibly the night outside, made seeing the island itself difficult.

Until something large broadsided the schooner. The _Island_ _Sonata_ listed to port as the offending unknown scratched along the starboard hull. All three airmen on the weather deck were knocked onto their stomachs and pressed their fingers into the space between the deck planks to keep from sliding. Link, still standing on the bridge, lost his footing and collided with the port bulwark. He only had a few seconds to realize that Princess Zelda, who had been standing starboard of Line, was barreling right at him. He caught her, losing the wind from his lungs when the princess's elbow jabbed him hard in the gut. Line managed to hold the wheel.

"Hhhhhh… hhhhhhhhh…" Link wheezed, unable to recover his breath.

"Skipper, are you all right?" Zelda asked, pushing away from him.

Link turned his head to keep from coughing in her face. "Hard… to port…" he managed.

"What'd he say?" Line called, trying to keep the wheel centered.

"Hard—hard to port?" Zelda asked Link. Link nodded. She immediately hollered over her shoulder, "Hard to port!"

"Got it!" Line replied as he planted his feet firmly into the deck. He had to pull counter-clockwise on the helm against the force both the list and gravity put on the booms. Fortunately, with the list, Line had some extra pulling power. He straightened the booms, and then he pulled the ship to port. The ship corrected itself with a brief rock, and the retreating helm clocked Line's chin from underneath. Line barked with pain, but he put himself behind the helm again and straightened the ship.

The rock also threw Link off the bulwark. His arms flailed and wrapped themselves around the first thing they could reach. However, Zelda was not any steadier, and the skipper accidentally tackled the princess to the deck with a surprised scream escaping both of them.

Link took a moment to realize who was underneath him and quickly pushed himself up. "I-I-I-I-I'm sorry!" he said. "A-are you okay?"

One hand holding the side of her head, she nodded and replied, "I will be fine."

"Skipper, we—" Flower started to say as he reached the bridge, but he quickly stopped himself upon seeing Link and Zelda against the deck. His face formed a silly grin. "Uh… if you'll forgive the liberty, Lieutenant, this isn't the best of time for _that_ sort of thing."

Link's face formed a scowl, and he was on his feet in the next moment. "That's not funny!" he shouted at Flower, standing in a pose of childish indignity with his fists clenched.

Flower snapped to attention, but his face cracked with the urge to laugh. "No, sir, not funny at all!" he agreed.

"Line, stop the boat and find the wind!" Link snapped. Line, attempting to hide his own amusement, did not reply as he brought the throttle for the steam engine to a stop. Link offered his hand out to the princess as he asked, "What did we hit, Airman?"

"Not sure yet, sir," Flower replied. "I didn't see it until it already hit us, and I didn't get a good look at it."

"Here, let me help you," Link said when the princess stood and started dusting herself off. He started brushing her back.

His hand went lower than he meant, and in the next instant, the princess whirled on him. Link hit the deck hard, his left cheek stinging where the princess's sharp backhand had struck. His head reeled for a moment before he pushed himself to his feet again.

"Perhaps it would be best to keep your hands to yourself, _Skipper_," Zelda told him with a harsh tone, rubbing the pain out of her hand.

Link stretched out his jaw. "Noted," he replied, rubbing the sore cheek. He heard snickering and glanced over to find Line and Flower attempting to hide their laughter. He scowled at them. "Airman Flower, go find out what we hit."

Flower saluted. "Aye, s-sir," he answered, unable to maintain a straight face. Link's answering salute was sharp, and Flower quickly bounded down to the weather deck.

"Shut up, Line," Link groaned at the airman as he dusted himself off. "What about the wind?"

"Uh…" Line droned for a bit. He licked his forefinger and held it up. "I can't find it. I'm not sure if we have any."

Link looked up at the sails. With the ship stopped, the sails would want to drift in the direction the wind blew. But they simply swayed back and forth with the subtle listing of the ship. If there was a breeze coming off the bow, it was far too weak for Link to feel.

"Well, _this_ is definitely odd." Line's words interrupted Link's search. "The whole place is dead."

"I prefer the term 'quiet'," Link replied. "We'll hold the ship here for now. Go below and see if we have any damage." Line nodded, locked the helm, and went down the stairs.

"Skipper, you've gotta see this," Flower called up to the bridge, his tone sounding tentative. Link made for the stairs, and then he stopped and looked around the bridge, surprised to find that he was the only one left.

When Link reached the weather deck, Flower called to him from the starboard side, "Over here, Skipper."

"What is it?" Link asked as he stepped up beside the airman.

"See for yourself, sir," Flower replied, holding up a shaded lamp. The beam of light joined two others as they brushed over the starboard edge.

They revealed a tree. This alone would have been surprising enough; with no inkling of the direction they needed to go, it was perfectly plausible for the ship to hit a tree if one was large enough. But as the beams crossed foliage almost as large as Link himself, he saw that the green mass of the tree stretched across a wider area than the _Island_ _Sonata_ occupied. The taller of the beacons they had seen came from some kind of point at the top of the tree, too far above and distant for the crew to see or their lamplight to reach.

"That's not all, either, Skipper," Albert, standing closer to the bulwark, spoke up. He beckoned Link to the edge and aimed his lamp down. It shone on a large branch hiding behind the massive leaves. The branch was bare. It was also flat along the top, wide, and sported two large knots in the end.

"A boarding plank?" Link asked Albert.

"Or a giant spoon, sir," Albert replied with a smirk on his face.

"No damage be—holy _shit_!" Line suddenly hollered as he jogged up behind Albert. "Is _that_ what we ran into!"

Link hissed at him. "Keep it down, Line."

"Sorry," Line replied, scratching the back of his head. He looked up at the tree. "But still. That's gotta be the biggest tree _I_'ve seen."

"You're not alone in that area," Albert agreed.

"Line, go let up on the ballast a bit," Link told him. "We're going to try docking."

Line's brow furrowed, and he stepped up next to Link. "Where at? It's a _tree_!"

Link pointed. "Look at that branch. I think we can step off down there."

"Are you sure it's safe?"

Link's face scrunched as he thought. Then he looked over at Leonard. "Find some scrap we can spare and put it in a bag. Bring it up here."

"Yes, sir," Leonard replied, saluting and nearly clocking himself with his lamp.

"Line, at the helm," Link continued. "Hold on until someone tells you to drop; we'll test it first."

"Got it," Line saluted.

"Skipper," Flower spoke up. "If I can find a light rope, I might be able to lasso one of those knots."

"What about the mooring line?" Link asked.

Flower shook his head. "Too heavy. But if we can get one rope on it, I might be able to make a mooring line if we pull it in."

"You good at tossing rope?" Albert asked him.

Flower shrugged. "Spent enough time to roping and tying my little sister up."

Link gave it a moment of thought. "That sounds good enough to me," he agreed. "See what you can find."

"Shouldn't be too hard; we've still got those emergency supplies Captain Alfonzo gave us."

"Go," Link said. Flower saluted and left. "Albert, see if you can find something we can use as a plank. If we disembark, we'll need one."

"Got it, sir."

As Albert jogged off, Zelda emerged from Link's cabin. She spotted him from across the deck and approached him. "Link?"

"Something I can help you with?"

She nodded. "It's Rireen. She's awake, but she is in dire need of food."

Link looked around for a moment, then he grabbed one of the lamps hanging over the edge of the bulwark. "We have some dry rations in the galley. Will that work?"

Zelda nodded. "She'll eat anything."

"Come with me," he told her. They crossed to the hatch and started down the steps. "I'm sorry that we didn't have any meals planned earlier."

"No apology necessary, Skipper," Zelda answered. "Considering the great task which I have placed in your capable hands, it should be expected that some needs might be neglected."

"Well, maybe," Link admitted. "And my crew is limited to four airmen. Only one of them knows how to prepare food, and I can't seem to remember who it is." He sighed and added, "I'll have to hire a crew once we return to Castle Island."

"In regards to having no meal, perhaps I will partake of these rations as well."

Link shrugged. "If you want to, but I can't guarantee that they taste good."

"You may find this hard to believe, Link, but I _have_ had my own share of horrible meals."

Stepping onto the floor of the galley just under the hold, Link found the luxury to glance over his shoulder at the princess. "Really?"

She gave him a smile. "Some cooks have significantly strange tastes in flavor. I remember one dish which none of my family could eat because it was too spicy."

Link's face formed an inquisitive look. "Huh. I guess I'd never considered it." He opened the door to the galley and found piles of storage sacks scattered across the floor. "Uh oh," he moaned as he placed the lamp on a nearby hook. "It looks like our listing made a mess after all."

"Is anything ruined?" Zelda asked as he picked up a package.

"No, I doubt it," he answered. "These packages might be a little dirty, but it's not the packages you'll be eating."

"What is in them?"

"Nuts, dried fruit, jerky… and some kind of rock-like stuff I've never been able to figure out. I chipped a tooth trying to chew it, and since then, I just hide it in my mouth and spit it overboard the first chance I get. Knowing this life, it's a… uh…" Link quickly aborted his joke as he handed over two of the packages.

"What?" Zelda asked.

Link shook his head. "Never—never mind." He found a flask lying on the floor and brushed off the outside.

"Is there anything to drink as well?" Zelda asked as Link pulled the flask's cork.

"Yes, but I don't think you'll enjoy it," Link replied, removing the lid from a nearby barrel. He dunked the flask inside and let it fill. "It's grog."

"Grog?"

"Yeah." Link removed the flask and let an orange liquid drip on the floor for a moment. "It's a combination of water, fruit juice, and… alcohol. Uh… w-well, not enough to make you drunk, of course."

"I'm sure," Zelda replied as she took the flask, a teasing smile on her face. Link considered for a moment that she did not believe him.

They returned to the weather deck and parted, Zelda to Link's cabin and Link to his crew gathered at the starboard bulwark. Flower gave Link a hearty, "Hey, Skipper."

"Are we ready?" Link asked.

Metal clanking sounded near his head, and he turned sharply to find Leonard holding an old mailbag. With the lamplight around them, Link could see the glimmering edges of scrap metal through the holes in the bag. "Found this scrap in the engine room, Skipper," Leonard told him. "I think it's left over from when the boiler was refitted."

Link's brow furrowed with confusion. "The boiler was refitted?"

Leonard looked taken aback. "That's what _I_ assumed," he replied. "Why else would this scrap be sitting next to the boiler mouth?"

Link thought about it for a moment, then he gave up with a shrug. "I don't know."

"So, if it's not connected to anything, then we don't need it," Leonard concluded. With a satisfied smile, he lugged the mailbag further up the deck. He planted it on the bulwark and sighted it over the edge.

"Think you can hit it?" Albert asked, laying a thick plank against the bulwark.

"Hope so," Leonard replied. "I don't think we have anymore scrap we could randomly dump over." He pulled the bag into position. "Hey, Flower. How about helping me heave this thing over? Just to make sure we hit it."

"Wait, you're going to _throw_ it?" Link asked.

Leonard shrugged. "I figure if it can survive having this scrap metal fall on it, it's safe enough for us to walk across."

"Makes sense," Flower grunted as he lifted the bag from below. "This thing's got to weigh about as much as me."

Both men looked at Link, waiting his approval. This gave him time to make an appropriate assessment of the situation. "Airmen, you have permission to throw a mailbag full of scrap metal over the side of my ship to make sure that we can safely dock to a tree."

Albert snorted. The comment also received smirks from Leonard and Flower. "Yes, sir," Leonard chimed. "On three.

"One…

"Two…

"Three!"

Link, who had been standing next to the bulwark behind Flower, looked over the side. The bag did not travel far, but it did not need to in order to hit the branch. It landed with a thud and a heavy jingle right on target. The branch wobbled under the weight for a moment, then settled with the bag on top of it.

He stood up straight and addressed his airmen. "Nice work. Put a rope around it, have Line bring us down, and dock us. I'll inform our passengers."

"Aye, sir," all three saluted.

Link returned their salutes and crossed the deck to his cabin. As he took a deliberately slow pace, he could not help feeling particularly proud of how things appeared to have gone well so far. They had made it through the storm to the island, and they were now docking with it. No serious incidents had taken place (although he felt his pride falter when he remembered the conversation with the princess hours before), and his crew had operated efficiently and without the desire to stuff him into anything. A fair day, indeed.

He stood in front of the door, but he did not open it immediately. A few thoughts as to how the rest of the day would play out crossed his mind. He held on to the hope that whatever inhabitants they encountered were friendl—

_WHAM!_

The cabin door flew open without warning and met Link's forehead just as he leaned over to grasp the knob. His head reeling, he flopped backwards onto the deck hard.

"Captain!" Zelda cried out as she dropped to one knee. "Link! Link, are you okay?"

Link could not respond. The only thought he seemed to have while he was attempting to fight his way through the cloud in his mind was, "Somebody…

"Just kill me, please."


	13. Forelight Island

Chapter 13: Forelight Island

…

Link took a few minutes to recover. Then he, along with Zelda, Rireen, Line, and Flower, disembarked from the _Island_ _Sonata_. Flower led the group with a lamp in his hand, swinging it left and right to keep watch on the surroundings. In the other hand, he carried a spare metal cleat which he held at one end like a knife. Link was behind him holding an unshaded lamp to provide light all around. Zelda and Rireen followed him, and Line brought up the end with another unshaded lamp, his eyes wandering about similar to Flower. All walked with wary steps, always checking that their feet did not wander close to the edge of the walkway. And it was, indeed, a walkway; years of travel had left the inside of the humongous branch milled and soft, as if they walked on dirt. Yet the branch was sturdy, as to be expected from such a massive tree.

Line lost sight of the _Island_ _Sonata_ a few minutes after disembarking. Their only hint of the schooner came from the soft glow of light in the leaves behind them, which had reduced to a point later on. Around them, branches laden with large bunches of leaves twisted about the air. However, not one of them bore any signs of being inhabited.

"Skipper?" Flower spoke up after a while, what felt like an eternity after they lost sight of the ship. "If this is supposed to be the home of the Sorians… where are they?"

"Yeah," Line chimed in, "how certain are you that they're still around?"

Zelda glanced back at Line. Then she told Link, "I am quite certain that there are still some Sorians around. How could Rireen be the last of her kind and not realize it?"

Rireen shrugged. "I don't know. There was a _lot_ I didn't really realize until you told me."

"Maybe they moved on," Flower suggested. "Left Hyrule."

"From here?" Line asked. "Where would they go? Someone would've likely noticed a bunch of ships traveling through a Sky Line. The Southeast Line goes right by Autumn Island and three other inhabited islands. They would have to jump to another Sky Line in order to leave the kingdom."

"Not if they left at night," Flower pointed out.

"Not if they didn't _use_ ships," Rireen added.

Flower gave a half-hearted chuckle. "I think someone would notice a migration of _bird_ people, especially when one splats against a hull."

"_Sorians_," Rireen replied in an irate tone.

"We would appreciate it if you would be more respectful towards our precursors, Mister Flower," Zelda added in a similar tone. Flower huffed, commenting under his breath about not liking cargo that talked back; Link could not hear the full remark.

"Everybody freeze," came Line's whispered order. The procession immediately stopped and turned to him. He faced a branch up to his right, his lamp held high so light was cast upon it. "Did you see that?"

For what felt like a long moment to the group, confused stares jumped from the branch to Line's alarmed expression. Their puzzlement felt justified; the branch which Line's eyes pointed out did not seem any different from the rest which they had seen as they walked. It appeared to be a whole branch about half the diameter of the path they walked. It sported some of the largest leaves, rivaling Flower's height, they had seen so far at this particular length. Other than that fact, nothing seemed to be different about it. "See what?" Flower finally asked.

"One of those leaves moved."

Again, the group looked between Line and the branch. "Are you sure?" Rireen asked.

Line gaped at her for a moment. "Seriously, I saw that leaf up there move," he reiterated, pointing a finger.

"Now take it easy, Chief," Flower told him in a calming tone. "You sure it's not just the way the light's bouncing around?"

"Guys, do I have to _swear_!" Line barked at them. "It! _Moved_!"

"Maybe it was the wind," Rireen suggested. However, her words were met with silent staring from her companions. "What?"

"There isn't any wind here," Link told her. He circled one finger to indicate the air. "It's still."

"Which is strange considering the storm and the Sky Line," Line added in a fast tone. "But that's a different problem!"

"Just calm down, Line," Link told him, holding a hand up. "Let's keep going for now. If something moves again, try to get a good look at it."

Line grumbled to himself as the group began moving again, "If I still have my _eyes_."

A few minutes later, Zelda spoke up, "I do not mind telling you, Skipper, that I wish we knew more about this island."

"Same here, Lieutenant," Flower said. "In fact, I wish you and the girls had let _us_ explore before you stepped off."

Link cleared his throat, "Well… uh… cap-Captain Alfonzo regularly disembarked from the ship during a job."

"No offense, Skipper," Line said, "but we didn't have to worry about anything even _looking_ at Captain Alfonzo the wrong way."

"Indeed," Zelda nodded, "Captain Alfonzo does appear to be too intimidating to casually approach."

Line chuckled. "Especially when he catches you sleeping at your desk. Right, Skipper?"

"Hey, Lieutenant," Flower said. He gestured with the cleat. "Bit of a word?"

Link glanced back at Zelda, then quickened his pace so he strode side-by-side with Flower. "Yeah?"

"Where'd those two come from?" Flower whispered.

Link pulled back one corner of his mouth. "They were in those crates from the castle."

"How does the girl know Captain Alfonzo?"

On that question, however, Link had to think for a moment. He had not meant for Princess Zelda's identity to be a secret. Surely, if Flower knew who she was, he would not bother with asking for permission to haul her back to the ship. So, he answered with the most honest response he could think of. "I-uh… I don't know," was what he told Flower with the unappended subtext "I don't know when Princess Zelda first met Captain Alfonzo".

Flower's face scrunched, making Link wish he had added a little more to his response. "Is she a bar girl?"

The question had been reasonable enough. But Link's whole face lit up from ear to ear. What little he knew about bar girls was often accompanied by sniggering from nearby airmen. The usual comments he heard were "They're paying their way through school", "There are things that they know that will surprise you", or (and Link still didn't quite know what this meant) "They get excited when you give them things". The conclusions Link had drawn in those years made the whole bar girl "profession" seem morally questionable. He silently thanked the scant light focused on his face and replied, "N-no, she isn't."

"Hmm," was Flower's response. He stole a glance over his shoulder. "Too bad. She's cute enough to be one."

Link reached up and tugged hard on Flower's sleeve so he would face forward. "That's… very inappropriate, Airman Flower," he said in a harsh whisper.

"What?" Flower took a moment to figure out what Link was talking about. When he came to a conclusion, his reply came out loud and shocked. "Oh, _no_, Skipper, I'd never—"

"Is something wrong, Skipper?" Zelda asked.

Flower and Link looked over their shoulders at her, both sporting an embarrassed grin. "No, nothing at all," they chimed in almost perfect unison.

Link turned forward first and gave a sigh. "Just… don't bring up the matter anymore," Link told him. "It's not for anyone to question. Not at the present."

"Aye, sir," Flower answered.

Then both stopped. Ahead of them, the path they walked joined another from the left and merged onto a thicker walkway which appeared to lead into a denser part of the tree. Some kind of lame branch had grown out of the point formed by the merge, stood vertical, and stretched out near its top in two different locations. Flower held up a hand to halt the other three. He and Link ventured forward and stepped around to see the other side of this lame branch. They found it to be an odd signpost, both stretched out portions pointing out each path and decorated with a number of scratches.

"Must be writing," Flower commented as he used a forefinger to trace some of the scratches. "Look at how it forms angles."

"That tells you it's writing?" Link asked.

"If it was just a wild animal scratching, the scratches would be mostly parallel and straight," Flower pointed out. "But it doesn't appear to be Hylian. Do you recognize anything, Skipper?"

Link frowned. "I only know some of the Southern Island jargon. Just a few of these _look_ like our letters, but nothing I can make out."

"Is there anything to reveal our location?" Zelda asked as the other three stepped closer.

"You mean other than 'lost'?" Line remarked.

"Well, since both of these point in that direction," Flower replied, indicating with a finger, "this other path leads out to a branch similar to the one we're docked to. We probably won't find anything there." He turned and pointed down the larger path. "We might want to go that way."

Link found the logic sound and nodded. "Okay."

They continued in silence for a few more minutes, and then the flame suddenly died out in Flower's lamp. "Damn," the airman groaned. "I think I'm out of oil. Skipper, do you mind?"

"Oh, sure," Link replied, offering his lamp. But in the process of handing it over, the flame in Link's lamp sputtered out. "Uh oh."

Flower sighed. "Sorry, Lieutenant," he said. "I should've made sure they were full before we left."

"Line, we need your lamp," Link called toward the back of the line. But Line did not respond. Link did not have him immediately in sight, so he craned his neck around so he could see past Rireen. "Line?"

All eyes turned to Line. Everyone then felt the pit of their stomachs fall through at the sight of the shocked look on his face. His eyes appeared to have grown twice their normal size, and, even in the yellowish tint caused by the aged glass of his lamp, his face looked deathly pale. The lamp rattled in his shaking hand. The other hand, quaking just as bad if not worse, rose with his index finger extended and indicated the darkness in front of the group. So the group slowly turned in that direction.

Higher up and to the left, amidst a darkness which the single lamp could not penetrate, hovered a pair of small, green orbs glittering in the scant light.

Flower dropped his lamp and tightened his grip on the cleat. "Stay back, Skipper. If anything happens, better to happen to me first." Link had already stepped back with the lamp's handle in both hands, ready to swing.

He felt a hand on his sleeve. "Link?" Zelda's voice spoke from behind in a tone of rising panic. Link glanced over his shoulder at her before following her gaze to his right.

Two more sets of glowing eyes stared back. "There's more here," he said.

"Here, too," Rireen said. Link swung his head and found that Rireen's exposed plumage had fluffed into a rather intimidating display. It looked as if she was accosting the other two sets of eyes that had appeared to their left.

"We're surrounded!" Line called out. Link had to turn his shoulders in order to get a good look at him. Line held his lamp high, but Link could still make out the three sets of eyes between them and the _Island_ _Sonata_. One set appeared to be on the path just outside of the lamp's range.

"Skipper, I think we're more than surrounded." The sound of Flower's voice attracted Link's attention, and he spun forward.

He found dozens of sets of eyes lingering about the darkness's edge.

"Flower, what's worse than 'surrounded'?" Line asked.

"Trapped, Chief," Flower replied. "Trapped… and very, _very_ much f-uh… fried."

"Perhaps we should talk to them," Zelda suggested into Link's ear.

"Talk, yes?" one voice of a similar range to Rireen's hooted from the darkness. The sudden shout sent chills down the group's spines. "Then talk!"

"But be very warned," another voice, this one a deeper tone, chimed. "You are intruding on our sacred grounds."

"Sacred grounds, yes!" the first voice cawed. "Talk!"

Then the first voice let out a pained grunt. "Stop it!" a third voice of a higher range and annoyed demeanor shouted.

"Are you Sorians?" Link asked.

A dead silence answered. Then a hooded form illuminated only by light cast over Flower's shoulder stepped into view, green eyes locked onto them. "Who are you, young man?" it asked in a deep tone.

Link swallowed and stepped next to Flower. "I-I'm Lieutenant Link of the airship _Island_ _Sonata_," he announced in an unsteady voice.

A ball of light suddenly crackled into existence next to the hooded figure's head, casting a blue luminescence all over the group's surroundings. After the initial shock, Link and the others (except Flower, still poised to attack) gawked at the amazing sight of Sorians all about. They stood on or hung from the trees in some astounding positions; some of them sported talon-like hands and feet and appeared to prefer hanging from the sides of the branches by either. The ones which appeared to have normal hands and feet like Rireen huddled close to the branches, appearing ready to duck out of sight if anything happened. Each one sported a rather stoic expression.

"And what is your purpose here?" the hooded figure asked. His face was still invisible, but the curved stitching decorating his full-body robe had been revealed by the light.

At this, Zelda shouldered through Link and Flower. She planted her feet firmly in the ground and withdrew the Wind Waker from her tunic. The Sorians around them shifted, but she quickly held wrapped both hands around the baton and held it to her chest. "That was my doing," she confessed, looking brazenly into the hood.

"I am the Princess Zelda of the sky-borne realm of Hyrule." Link could hear Flower's breathing cut off with a brief grunt and smacked his forehead in embarrassment. Perhaps he _should_ have mentioned her earlier.

Zelda continued, "I bore no ill intents to your people. My close comrade, Rireen, is the last known Sorian left in our kingdom. She is alone among us, so I resolved to seek your people out that she might find peers to continue her life with. Please, take no offense to our presence." She held out the Wind Waker in both hands. "I offer this, an old treasure of our kingdom, as a sign of faith and sincerity."

The hooded figure appeared to ponder her words. Then he stepped forward, revealing long, bony hands as he stretched his arms forward. The hands gripped the edges of the hood. When the hood fell away, the group looked at a face aged with wisdom until deep furrows had been permanently dug into his features. His mane was a plumage of gray mixed with white specks which stuck up in a few places. One hand reached forward and gently took the Wind Waker from Zelda's hands.

He regarded the baton for a moment before addressing her. "It has been a long time since anyone has last reached this place," he said. "And still longer that anyone has come to this island. But perhaps the most impressive feat lies in your discovery of our home surrounded by this storm. Until now, your kind has never set foot on this soil made under our ancestors' feet.

"As it is upsetting that you have trespassed on the last land we claim as ours, I find your words sincere and your act worthy of friendship." He stood to one side and gestured with a hand. "Princess Zelda of Hyrule and Lieutenant Link of the _Island_ _Sonata_, you and your fellows are welcome into our territory. You shall join my table, the table of the Elder Ukhool, for your supper tonight."

Zelda nodded, and relief sounded in her voice as she answered, "Thank you, Elder Ukhool."

"Uh… Elder," Link spoke up. "There are two others on my ship whom I believe earned the right to accompany us to your table."

Ukhool gave a soft nod of understanding. "They shall be sent for at your word, Lieutenant Link of the _Island_ _Sonata_. For now, please accompany me below."


	14. Kuruuk Nehai

Chapter 14: Kuruuk Nehai

…

The Elder Ukhool led the group to the trunk of the tree, which had a diameter rivaling the width of the _Grand_ _Sails_. Inside, a staircase affixed to – no, _carved_ out of the inner walls spiraled down until the bottom could not be seen. Soft, orange light traced carvings in the banister, casting an even light across the whole interior space. They started down, the elder leading with Zelda in close tow, Link and Line walking side by side, an unarmed Flower (with the cleat hidden in his tunic, for those who consider the definition of "being hidden" not openly visible while still being an obvious bulge underneath one's clothes), and Rireen taking up the rear. She hung back a little to examine some of the drawings and carvings which decorated the inside of the tree's only wall. Link took a passive interest in them as well, although he found that most of the probable symbolism contained in them might have been lost on his own ignorance of artistic appreciation. Amidst the numerous depictions of Sorians, triangular and rectangular figures, and the same writing they had found on the signpost earlier, even some of the simplest pictures escaped his understanding.

Line had taken an interest in the vast space at the center of the tree. After about a minute of descending, he asked, "Where'd all those other Sorians go?"

"Only those of immense youth or great age ever use these stairs," Ukhool replied. "The rest are wise to the benefits of making one's own paths. They are descending from the outside."

"Through the tree?" Flower asked. "Isn't that a bit too much tree to fly through?"

"Only an idiot actually _flies_ through a tree," Rireen chimed in, arms folded behind her head and blades twitching as if she was about to spring them open. "But we Sorians are pretty good at jumping, too, so it's only natural that they simply just hop down the branches." She paused for a moment, uncertain about the words she just spoke. "Uh… right?"

Ukhool looked over a shoulder. "Indeed," he replied, his stoic expression giving off an irritated air. "So it is a wonder why one who should know better has elected to use the stairs."

Rireen pouted. "Well, I'd probably know if I hadn't been born on the outside," she remarked.

"Of course, we hope that she will be taught the ways of her own people if she is allowed to remain," Princess Zelda spoke up.

"We are not in the habit of turning down our own people when they seek us out," the elder replied. "It is her choice to learn, Princess Zelda."

"Oh, yeah, that reminds me," Line said.

He then quickly swung one fist into Link's arm. "D-_ow_!" Link hollered in response, placing a hand over the throbbing triceps. "What was that for?!"

"It's against regulations to strike a superior officer anywhere other than the arm," Flower commented from behind.

"You _idiot_, Link!" Line shouted at him. "When were you gonna tell us _she_ was _Princess Zelda_?!"

"W-I wasn't keeping it secret!" Link shouted back. "By the time I thought it would be a good idea to tell you guys, I was sure one of you would _kill_ me for not saying anything earlier!"

"Well, you got _that_ part right!" Line responded, poking Link's forehead with an index finger.

"Look, I didn't bring it up while we were over Castle Island because I didn't want to take the chance someone would turn her in," Link explained. "It's just… by the time we were a safe distance away, I kind of… you know, _forgot_."

"You _forgot_?! Link, she's the _Princess_ _of_ _Hyrule_! How the hell do you just _forget_?!"

"I had my reasons! Can't we just leave it alone already?"

"Skipper, permission to remind the Chief of the regs," Flower spoke up.

Both boys gave him a confused look. "There are regs that cover this sort of thing?" Line asked.

"Sir?" Flower asked Link.

Link shrugged. "By all means, Airman."

Flower quickened his pace to come closer to them. "I believe that you'll find it in the manual's index under… es-you-ay-dee-ay-why-tee."

Line twisted his face as he appeared to recall the Skyrider Airman's Manual. "S.U.A.… D.A.Y.T.?"

Flower gave the back of Line's head a gentle slap. "Shut up and do as you're told, sir."

Line blew a raspberry and crossed his arms. "Very funny," he remarked, directing his attention to the stairs on the opposite side.

"Is my transportation really such a bother?" Zelda asked over her shoulder.

"No bother at all, Your Highness," Flower responded. "Airmen just prefer a little notice from their screwy superiors."

"It's just my first day!" Link defended. "I'll get better!"

"And _I_ didn't know a _thing_!" Line shouted at Flower.

"Okay, okay, sirs," Flower said, holding his hands up in defense. "Just calm down before you make boneheads out of yourselves."

"Fine," Line answered. "So, while we're at it, _Skipper_, is there anything else about this trip we should know about?"

"No, I'm… sure that's all," Link replied.

"Fair enough," Flower said.

That exchange had passed as the only conversation between them while they descended. Afterwards, Line appeared to brood over Link's idiocy while everyone else just averted their eyes to avoid bringing the subject up again. Suddenly, everyone had developed an interest in the décor.

All but Ukhool felt their legs aching by the time they reached the bottom of the stairs. The trunk had widened, and the stairs ended on a floor of polished wood. Link could see the rings in the floor, but there was no feasible way of counting them without having to spend a whole day looking at the floor. Signs similar to the post they had encountered earlier pointed up both spiral staircases, these ones sporting long lists of the Sorian writing. An elderly-looking Sorian with a frail body, white feathers, and a tuft of fluff under his chin slept at a desk of carved stone with a pillow beneath his arms. Ukhool held up a hand to halt the visitors, and then he bade Link to follow him. Link traded a shrug with Line before following.

Ukhool approached the desk. "Ackaar," he addressed the sleeping Sorian.

Ackaar's snoring stopped, and one silver eye popped wide open. "Good evening, Elder," his voice croaked.

"A vessel has docked, Ackaar," Ukhool told him. "Please note it and tell no one but those of House Ukhool is allowed to approach. With the exception of the crew, of course."

Ackaar unfolded his arms. But before he could put himself into a straighter sitting position, he coughed, and some kind of white substance fell onto his pillow. He used an arm to slide it to the side. Then he reached somewhere under the desk and pulled out a sheet of parchment. He took up a bone-shaped pen that Link had just noticed lying on the desk and dipped it into an inkwell in the surface of the desk. "I will need the ship's name, the captain's name, and how my people can identify the crew."

Ukhool indicated that Link should answer. Link cleared his throat. "The ship is the _Island_ _Sonata_. I'm the commanding officer, Lieutenant Link."

Ackaar's only open eye finally focused on Link. With the number of folds in the Sorian's skin, Link could not tell what his reaction was. The old man just stared for a moment. Then he slid the sheet towards Link. "Why don't you write that down, Captain," Ackaar said, offering the pen. "Just anywhere on the paper. And make sure it's legible."

Link nodded as he took the pen. "Will Hylian be okay?"

Ackaar cleared his throat, dribbling spittle out one corner of his mouth. "I don't care; I'm just going to nail it to the sign up top." Link nodded and wrote. Ackaar craned his neck as he saw the letters take form on the sheet. "What the hell is _that_?"

Link finished scribbling the ship's and his names. "Hylian," he answered, passing the parchment back.

Ackaar's hand fell heavily onto the page. "You young people always have to make these things difficult, don't you," he growled as he took both items back. He turned the parchment around and scribbled something underneath. Then he looked up and past Link at the group still waiting on the stairs. After adding another note, he said, "Make sure you remove the notice before you leave, Captain."

"Uh… t-thank you," Link answered. Ackaar waved him off as he stowed the parchment and stood up to search for his pillow.

Ukhool used a hand to shepherd Link towards the entrance. "If there is ever doubt that your ship ever saw this place, Captain, Ackaar's records will attest," he said.

Link grinned, "I appreciate the thought, Elder."

Line and Zelda quickly stood when Ukhool and Link were close. "Is everything in order, Elder?" Zelda asked.

"Indeed," he answered. He held up a hand. "This way, please. Be sure not to stray; Kuruuk Nehai is far too large to be searching for a lost person."

"'Kuruuk Nehai'?" Flower asked Rireen as the group stepped into an archway descending further. Rireen only offered an equally puzzled shrug.

"Does anyone else hear that sound?" Line asked.

Link strained his ears for a moment. "Yeah."

"What is that? Music?"

They reached the bottom of the stairs, where bright rays of light waited. One by one, as the group stepped out of the archway, all but Ukhool dropped their jaws and widened their eyes with shock.

What the elder Sorian had called "Kuruuk Nehai" turned out to be an amazing mash-up of a forest and a marketplace. Trees of many different shapes towered into the air, yet none of them could reach anywhere near the height of what the group had just traveled through. Still, each tree was tall and thick, each one sporting a building of some sort in its branches. Although to say that they were "buildings" implied some kind of construction and deformity of nature. At the top of each tree, seemingly cradled in the center of their branches as if laid there, the trunk grew out a large, gourd-like structure. What passed for a doorway in these structures looked more like one side was simply allowed to grow limp and stretch out horizontally. None of them had roofs, which seemed convenient enough since Sorians seemed to be constantly diving in and out at any one time. A wild array of smells assaulted the visitors' noses, some from the trees above and others from the ground under those trees. A thicket of stalls offering food, drink, clothes, and any assortment of tools or trinkets formed what passed for streets in this place, a market the likes of which had never been seen by Hylian eyes. Color held abundance here, each stall and every table decorated with lush paint or rich textile. What best showed these extravagancies appeared to haunt the underside of each tree, lines of light similar to the banister of the staircases the visitors had descended from crawled about the trees' trunks. The ground of these streets were clean of litter _and_ dirt, electing to be sheets of grass like those found on a fresh, spring day.

In one tree, one which had flattened itself into a platform instead of forming walls like its neighbors, a small crew of Sorians played a series of woodwinds in a celebratory tune. Those on the ground who did not appear to be at business danced about and whooped and hollered their gaiety, occasionally inviting another to join in the fun.

Three of the five new arrivals stood beside the Elder Ukhool in utter bewilderment and awe. The remaining two—

"All right! A party!"

"Shindig hoooooo!"

—dove past the elder straight into the dancing crowd. No one appeared to take notice of Line's strange appearance as he and Rireen joined the festivities. As dancers, neither one seemed to have a talent for moving in any fluid manner. However, the Sorians seemed willing to assist when they took newcomers' hands and simply led them along.

Flower chuckled. "That didn't take long."

"They appear to be… rather accepting," Zelda commented to the elder.

"We are not averse to meeting new people, Princess Zelda," Ukhool replied. "However, it is considerably rude to land in a strange port at such a late hour."

"Hard to message ahead," Flower commented to Link.

Ukhool turned to give him a confused look. "I beg your pardon?"

Flower returned the look. "Oh, nothing," he answered. "Just clearing my throat."

The elder nodded. "I see." He indicated the main street ahead of them. "If you will accompany me, we shall dine soon."

"Of course, Elder," Zelda nodded. "Link?"

"Yes, of course," Link agreed.

"Skipper," Flower spoke up as they began walking, "what about the chief? You wanna just leave him here?"

"He'll be fine," Link said. "He knows when to quit."

"I hope so," Flower commented as they started by the dancing group.

Link stepped out of the group and located Line. "Keep an eye out for Albert and Leonard, okay?" he told Line, raising his voice over the loud music. Line appeared to nod, but the exaggerated movements seemed to suggest that he was merely bobbing his head (rather strong and uncomfortably, from Link's perspective) to the music. Link just shrugged. "Okay." He looked around for Rireen, and then he jogged to catch up with Ukhool.

The elder led them down the main road. For what felt like a long time to Link, Zelda, and Flower, they walked past hundreds of different tables selling all kinds of items familiar and strange. For instance, one elderly Sorian sold baskets full of heart-shaped acorns, while another sold necklaces made with two different shades of pearl. A few here and there offered the kind of exotic jewelry Link had only glanced at in books while waiting in a business office. Then there were the tables which held the bare skulls of some creature Link had never seen before, insect larvae drenched in honey, and a colorful assortment of leaves on one end of a cone which spun when a browsing Sorian blew into the opposite end. Link jumped in surprise at one booth which he thought were selling Ropes, although he realized after a demonstration that they were merely whips which used the full skin of a Rope (which appeared to make the items all the creepier). One young girl Sorian sold hats, and Link stopped for a moment. He picked up a plain, green hat and pulled it over his head. After examining himself in a mirror sitting on the table, he dropped the hat back onto the table, slightly irritated that it did not match the shade of his new tunic.

As the party faded into the distance, the stalls began selling different items: instruments of various shapes and sizes, powders, old coins, large chunks of stone of a purpose Link could not immediately determine, and clothing. Some of the aforementioned stone looked like Rupees in the raw in a selection of colors Link had never seen. One particularly large spot sold full sets of armor. Since Link had yet to see any Sorians in armor, he determined that they might be just for decoration. Not many Sorians walked this area of the street unless they were children or aged like Ukhool. The later of these seemed to take note of the elder as they passed, usually stopping to give their heads a polite bow. For the majority, the Hylians were ignored.

The noise around them eventually died to the general events of evening dining in the treetops above. Link noticed here that some of the gourd-like structures topping the trees had grown into their neighbors. The lights used in this section of street decorated the gourds' exteriors and, depending on the activity in the house, appeared to turn off at the will of the owners. They continued further, and these doubled trees eventually became taller, wider trees sporting larger gourds. And then these larger trees started merging with each other as well, starting at two, and then three.

Ukhool eventually turned down a side street of sorts and stopped. He looked up at a trio of conifers which had grown close enough that their gourds formed a house which challenged the size of the _Island_ _Sonata_. A spiral staircase led up into the underside of the home. The lights on this home appeared to spell out something in a cursive form of Sorian writing along the wall facing them as well as traced the outline of the staircase.

Ukhool turned to them and spread his arms wide. His voice appeared to defy his stoic look as he greeted the stunned Hylians.

"Welcome to my home."


	15. In the House of Ukhool

Chapter 15: In the House of Ukhool

…

The first room that met the visitors was a sitting room with enough height that Flower could reach for the ceiling (and he actually made the attempt moments after entering) and find that he needed another hand's length to touch it. The bare wood of the floor had been stained red and polished, although most of it had been covered by a rich assortment of rugs and furniture. The room was warm, yet no visible source of heat existed. A single sphere of white light hung in a glass bulb over the central table. Filled bookshelves lined the wall across from the entrance. At either end of the long room was a doorway, the one closer to the entrance blocked by a curtain. The room smelled of cooking meals, but as with the heat, there was no sight of a warm meal to be held.

"Please make yourselves comfortable," Ukhool said as he crossed to the entrance not covered by a curtain. "I shall see when dinner will be served."

"Thank you, Elder," Zelda said as he left the room.

As soon as he left, Flower spoke up, "Lieutenant?"

"Yes, Airman?" Link replied, hands rubbing his sore thighs.

"Permission to pollute the room with my smelly feet, sir."

Link sighed, realizing how relaxing removing his own boots might feel. "Granted."

All three Hylians slipped their boots off and left them on a patch of bare floor near the entrance. Then they dispersed across the large room only to decide to collapse in the furniture.

"I have never had to walk so far before," Zelda remarked as she gently fell into an armchair. She pulled a pillow from behind her and laid it across her lap. "I feel fatigued."

"I'd _break_ my own legs before I have to walk anywhere else tonight," Flower said as he stretched himself across a sofa. "I guess life's not so bad around here so long as you can fly."

Link fell into another arm chair. He underestimated the thickness of the upholstery and promptly sank into the seat cushion. "Whoops," Link uttered as he used the armrests to push himself up.

"Might as well just let it happen, Skipper," Flower told him.

Link, in the middle of standing up, paused to consider it. "Good point," he answered, allowing himself to fall back into the chair. He struggled for a moment to push himself against the back of the chair. Then he let out a long sigh as he finally settled down. "It's been a long day."

"Indeed," Zelda agreed. "I had underestimated the journey."

"I think we all did, Your Highness," Flower told her. He reached into the pocket of his slacks and pulled out a watch. After checking it, he informed Link and Zelda, "It's eight-thirty in the evening."

"It was only the start of the afternoon when we left Castle Island," Zelda said with an air of surprise. "Have we really spent so much time getting here?"

"The sun was just setting when we flew into the storm, Your Highness," Flower pointed out. "When you considered the amount of time we spent walking, it's plausible."

Link and Zelda nodded, and the room fell silent. The three of them had lost the need to converse; such was the degree of their exhaustion. Link's eyes scanned the room. Most of its furnishings had been colored with the idea of warmth in mind. The exposed wood of the furniture had not been stained as the floor, but their upholstery sported various decorations depicting either basic shapes or flowers on top of an orange or subdued yellow field. A lot of the books on the shelves behind Flower sported red dust jackets, although the ones without the jackets had been strategically placed so that their odd colors were suppressed by the surrounding books. Link had never seen such coordinated furnishings, and it somehow made him feel a little more comfortable. As he sat, he considered taking a nap.

Flower stood up with a hefty grunt. "Your Highness, Lieutenant, if you'll excuse me."

"Where are you going?" Link asked.

"Call of nature," Flower answered as he crossed the room. "I also thought it would be a better idea to stay with the chief; they don't know where we're at."

Link nodded. "Right."

"So you will not be joining us for dinner?" Zelda asked as Flower put his boots on.

"I'm afraid not, Your Highness. Sorry."

Zelda shook her head. "I understand. It would be best if the rest of the crew knew where we are." Flower nodded and stepped out. She then looked over at Link and commented, "Your crew is very thoughtful of each other."

Link nodded in agreement. "That's how crewmates behave. We all have to rely on each other in order to keep the whole ship alive. It's one of the things we're taught when we join the company."

"How long have you served under Captain Alfonzo?"

Link took in a deep breath while he thought. "Five years," he answered. "I was originally a cabin boy on a schooner."

"From cabin boy to skipper in five years… I do not believe I have ever had someone my own age be recognized as you have. I must admit my surprise when I saw you standing with Captain Alfonzo."

Link grinned, and his cheeks flushed. "I was surprised when he sprung the promotion on me this morning. I did not realize I was up for promotion."

Zelda pushed herself to the edge of her seat and sat up straight. "There were no indications?"

Link shook his head. "If there were, I must have missed them."

She put a hand to her mouth to suppress her amused smile. "That… that must have been quite the surprise."

Link's face grew redder, forcing him to glance away for a moment.

Ukhool appeared in the doorway. "Dinner is ready," he told them. Then his eyes narrowed. "Where is your taller companion?"

"Mister Flower is attending to the rest of the crew," Zelda answered as she and Link rose. "He will not be able to join us."

Ukhool nodded. "I see. This way please."

Ukhool led them up the stairs beyond the doorway. The first floor they passed turned out to be a large kitchen where a small collection of Sorians were eating a meal and talking with each other. The second was a hallway with a number of curtained doorways on one side.

They had to stop on the third floor because that was how high the home went. The stairway opened up into the crisp night under the great tree. As both looked up, Link and Zelda saw a great number of lanterns dangling from that tree as if to replace the missing stars. The dining room itself was a long table stretching the length of the floor. A few more Sorians were just landing while three had already taken seats. An assortment of meats and vegetables adorned the wooden table; Link could feel his mouth watering like had not eaten in days.

Ukhool strode forward and pulled out a chair on the near end. "Princess Zelda, if you please."

"Oh, of course," Zelda replied, surprised by his polite gesture. She sat, and he pushed her into the table.

Then he pulled out a chair as Link stepped towards the opposite side of the table. "Lieutenant Link?"

Link froze in place, his eyes darting between Ukhool and Zelda. He had seen a seat on this side which he would have preferred since both chairs at either side had not been taken yet. He swallowed hard and slowly stepped to the other side. He sat, and Ukhool shoved him into the table a little too hard. Link's head flipped forward and smacked the edge of the table. Fortunately, the edge was rounded.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Lieutenant Link," Ukhool said while Link rubbed the pain out of his forehead.

"No, it's okay," Link told him. He checked his hand and found it clean of blood. "I'll be fine." He glanced at Zelda. She had her head turned away from him and a hand covering her mouth, but her shivering shoulders indicated her silent laughter. On his other side, he found a young Sorian giving him a strange look. They stared at each other for a moment, and then the older Sorian seated at the child's opposite grabbed the top of the child's head and turned it away.

Link glanced at the head of the table just as Ukhool stood in front of the chair. He clapped his hands loud, catching attention from the rest of the Sorians. "My family! Today is an incredible occasion for us, for we have visitors from beyond the Storm of Purgatory to join us on this night. Now, I present Princess Zelda of the Kingdom of Hyrule and Lieutenant Link of the airship _Island_ _Sonata_."

Both visitors scanned the table as the rest started issuing clicking noises from their mouths. Someone on the far side shouted, "What'd he say?"

Then, after the elder sat, people started reaching out for food and piling it onto their plates. Link picked his plate up and took samples from the closest dishes as his reach would allow. After double-checking that everyone else was eating, he picked up the larger spoon among his utensils and started shoveling heaps of food into his mouth.

"I imagine that there is much you would like to see here, Princess Zelda," Ukhool commented.

"Indeed there is," Zelda replied as she helped herself to food samples. "I regret that I can only afford so much time before I am to return to Hyrule."

"Is that so? Regrettable indeed."

"Perhaps I can ask for an escort around Kuruuk Nehai?"

Ukhool nodded. "I shall arrange it with one of my sons, if you will permit me."

"That would be nice, thank you. Afterwards, I hoped to spend some time with Rireen before my return."

"Naturally. You had mentioned that she was the last Sorians living in your realm, correct?"

"Yes, she was. She had lost her parents years ago, when I was really young. My parents took her in and treated her as if she was another daughter. To me, it felt like having an older sister. When we had heard from tales of old that the Sorians had taken residence here, I promised to bring her to be among her own people. Life is truly difficult when you have to keep your existence secret from everyone around you."

"Why would her life be such a secret among your people?"

"She explained that her parents' purpose, as well as the other Sorians who had remained in the kingdom, was to warn the rest of the Sorians of great danger returning. However, Hyrule has been thriving quite well with no signs of danger on the horizon, so we both felt that she would prefer to be among others like herself."

Ukhool nodded as he took a bite. "Of course, now that you have arrived, I find no reason that you could not send a message to us now."

Zelda shook her head. "It was not _entirely_ my purpose to maintain contact with your people without an accord, and I find myself not in the position to make one for Hyrule."

"You would leave us in isolation?"

She nodded. "It has been in the best interests of both of our kingdoms. The Wind Waker, which I have given you, is one of only two means of coming through this storm. After it is used so that I can return, there will only be one way to return here. However, if you would prefer to open a dialogue, I can inform my parents of this journey."

"Perhaps. I would like to speak to the other Elders of this matter."

Link's mind had wandered away from the conversation at that point as he continued to put away bite after bite of some of the most delicious food he had ever had. The last fine dinner he had ever tasted was two years ago when a successful deal with a shipbuilding company had prompted a meal between the company's owner and the commanding staff of the _Grand_ _Sails_. It had been a rich dinner, and it still paled to the experience of the Sorians' food. The company, on the other hand, could use a little work since the child next to him kept throwing him strange looks as he ate. After a while, he started returning them with ugly expressions which caused the child to turn away.

Towards the end of the meal, one Sorian entered the dining floor. "Elder Ukhool," he said, "guests of Captain Link have arrived and are waiting in the sitting room."

"Lieutenant?" Ukhool asked. Link glanced at him with his spoon still in his mouth. "I believe your crew is here. They are in the sitting room now. Would you like them taken to the guest quarters?"

Link took the spoon out. "Are they all here?"

"There are four, but they appear to be… intoxicated, Captain."

Link shared a worried look with Princess Zelda. "Uh oh," he commented. Then he asked, "Are they okay?" The Sorian only answered with a shrug. Link sighed and stood up. "If you will excuse me, Elder."

"Of course," Ukhool replied.

Link followed the attendant down the stairs back into the sitting room. When he stepped inside, someone shouted, "Skippy on deck!" Two forms immediately jumped to their feet; the third was already standing.

Link was already dismayed; Rireen had been the one who made that call. With her, Flower and Albert attempted to stand at attention, but their legs wobbled horribly. Line had been draped over Flower's shoulder with his lower half visible to Link. Albert was the only one saluting, which Link decided to dismiss. "You guys had a good time?" he asked them.

Albert snorted. "You got it, Skippy," he replied, trying not to laugh.

"Where's Airman Leonard?"

Looks passed between the conscious drunkards. "W-w-w-w-w-w-we-uh… we don't know, Skippy," Flower replied. He pulled off Line what Link initially thought was a blanket and held them out so Link could see that they were a pair of tan slacks. "Th-th-th-th-that's all we-we found of him." Albert snorted again and turned to hide his face.

Link pointed to Line. "Is he okay?"

"Let—Let's ask him!" Albert declared. Flower turned so that Link could see Line's face. His forehead wore a large, red lump above his left eye. Albert put a hand under Line's drooping jaw and moved it up and down as he spoke with an odd accent. "Arrr! I be drunk as a sailor, Skipper! Only a drop, and I be slack as a dropped jib!" All three of them burst out laughing.

Link frowned. "Come on, guys, that's not funny."

"I be fine, Skip," Albert continued. "The floor broke me fall. Arrr!"

"And the bump on his head?"

"Where the floor broke me fall. Arrr! Arrr-rar!"

Link threw out his arms to indicate his surprise. "What were you guys _doing_?!"

"Oh oh oh oh… shhhhhhh!" Rireen replied, stepping closer. She then whispered to him, "It's a secret. Don't tell the prin—"

"WE WENT DRINKING!" Albert suddenly declared.

"Albert, keep it down!" Link ordered.

"Aye, sir!" Albert replied, clobbering himself in the head with his salute. The force of the blow knocked him backwards, and he landed with a powerful thud on the floor.

Link slapped a hand over his face, partially in embarrassment and partially to keep the others from seeing the smile he could not hold back. When he had himself under control, he asked the attendant Sorian, "We have quarters here?"

The attendant nodded. "The elder asked that they be prepared during the meal. We have seven rooms available for you and your crew, Captain."

"I see," Link replied as he slid the hand down his face. "Please see to it that they are taken to their rooms."

"Yes, Captain," the Sorian answered.

"Sleep it off, guys," Link told them as the attendant ushered them towards the door. Flower reached down and picked up Albert by the back of his tunic, helping him to his feet. "We should be moving on tomorrow."

"Got it, Skippy!" Albert called back. The two conscious airmen then proceeded to sing a shanty which Rireen clumsily followed with an incoherent voice as they descended.

"Is everything all right, Link?"

Link spun around and found Zelda looking at him. "Y-yeah," he answered. "Yeah, uh… the-the airmen just… uh…"

She smiled at him. "It is all right, Link. I imagine that they enjoyed themselves."

"Smells like it," Link agreed. "But now I'm missing one."

"I would not be concerned," she assured him. "It cannot be hard to find the missing airman." Link nodded. She closed her eyes and used a hand to cover her mouth. "Oh, excuse me. I shall be turning in for the evening. I look forward to seeing you in the morning."

"Uh… yeah, sure," Link replied as she walked passed.

She paused to put her boots back on. Then she gave him another smile. "Good night, Link."

"G-good night." He stared as she disappeared down the doorway, then he sighed and glanced over at the bookshelves. Curious, he stepped over to examine the spines. None of the covered books bore labels. Those that were uncovered only showed the same Sorian writing in either ink or silver stamp.

"Ah, Lieutenant Link." Link started and spun. Ukhool, his face still unreadable, stepped into the room with his arms folded behind his back. His tone had a delightful lilt as he continued, "I had hoped to speak with you before you turned in for the night."

Link sighed with a weary smile. "Please, just call me 'Link'," he answered. "Is there something I can do for you, Elder?"

"Actually, I wondered if there was something that I could do for you."

The skipper tilted his head. "Huh?"

"Well, I noticed your reluctance during dinner."

Link tried to hold a grin back. "Actually, I think I let myself become a pig. It's been a while since I've ever had such a meal."

Ukhool's face shifted slightly, but Link could not tell if it was a smile or not; this "different" face looked almost identical. "No, no," he replied with a subtle chuckle. "I was referring to your lack of attention to the conversation at the table this evening."

"Oh. I-I wasn't ignoring anyone, was I?"

Ukhool shook his head. "Not to any particular degree. I have also noticed that you seem to be much more concerned with your crew than any kind of entertainment. You spend more time worrying for their sakes than indulging yourself as they have. Are you not pleased with your discovery?"

"No, not at all," Link answered with an exaggerated shake of his head. "I-I'm glad that we made it here!"

"Despite that, you are unhappy."

At that statement, Link sighed. "A little, I suppose," he admitted. His eyes fell. "I've never had this kind of responsibility before."

"The responsibility for keeping a very important person safe?"

"The responsibility of a ship commander. I-I thought I'd gotten over the worry when we left Castle Island this afternoon, but I guess I just… haven't."

"The others in your crew have found ways to alleviate their anxieties. Why haven't you?"

Link shrugged. "Someone has to make sure everything stays together."

"But what happens if things fall apart regardless?" Link shook his head, unsure of how to answer. For a moment, they stood in silence. "Are you a fan of literature, Link?"

Link glanced back up at the elder, finding that he had stepped closer. "I like to read in my spare time."

"Tales? Fantasies of escape?"

The Hylian shook his head. "Journals. Log books. I'm a fan of history, biography."

Ukhool nodded. "I wonder if you would like to view our library. We have a number of personal journals of Sorian explorers which you might find interesting."

Link took in a deep breath and let it out. "That's very considerate, Elder," he responded, "but I-uh… I can't read Sorian."

"Do not let that trouble you. I will make arrangements with a librarian tomorrow morning. If it will help you, I shall send the scholar right to your room."

Link thought for a second, then nodded. "Okay, I'll give it a try."


	16. Irleen

Chapter 16: Irleen

…

When Link first stirred, he found that whatever he was laying on was far too comfortable to get up from. He could not even conceive of waking up without wanting to punch himself in anger for it. His body sank into what a cloud must feel like if only people could touch them. It was the first bed in which he did not even need a pillow; the material simply molded itself to his body. And the sheet lying over him felt softer than any fabric he had ever worn, slept in, or shipped. Who in their right mind would want to wake from that? Thinking so, he rolled onto his back to feel the full comfort across his whole body.

But something felt wrong, felt… weird. As much as he hated to do it, he opened his eyes. It was quite the chore; between his exhaustion and the comfort of the bed, he found he contributed more power to keeping his eyes shut rather than opening them.

A pair of bright, green eyes stared back at him.

"Wah!" Link suddenly shouted, scrambling for the side of the bed away from the figure standing above him. He hauled himself over the edge and—

"Omph!"

—flopped hard and head-first onto a bare wood floor. His body slumped onto the floor a second later, and he rolled onto his stomach and pushed himself up.

A young, short Sorian stood on the other side of the bed. Link figured that this was a girl from the style of clothing she wore. Similar to Rireen's clothes yesterday, she wore a white, sleeveless top held tight against her, decorated with a single word in the Sorian language, and blue slacks buttoned at her ankles. She had a slightly tan complexion compared to Rireen, and the feathers visible on her arms were a kind of dirty white, not quite white, but not strong enough to call it brown. The plumage growing from her head sported a green color made almost blinding by the light entering from the window above the head of the bed. Unlike Rireen's "hair", however, this Sorian's head plumage reached for an incredible length and fanned out from behind her. She looked to be closer to Link's age (if height was any judge).

She giggled at him. "Good morning, Captain," she told him.

"Uh… g-good—" Link quickly cut off his reply after getting to his feet. Just as he remembered that he had undressed before bed because it was too warm for him to sleep in his clothes, he snatched up the sheet from the bed and wrapped it around his waist. "G-good morning. Uh… who-who are you?"

"Irleen," she answered. "Elder Ukhool asked me to show you to the library."

"H-how'd you get in here?"

Irleen put on a confused face. "Through the door."

Link glanced over at the door just as it opened. "Is everything all…?" Princess Zelda trailed off as her eyes fell onto Link's almost bare form. Then she looked to the Sorian girl standing on the opposite side of the bed. For a moment, she appeared to be in shock at the scene, and her cheeks flushed. "I-I hope I am not disturbing anything, Skipper."

"Skipper?" Irleen asked, tilting her head to one side. "Is that what they call captains who are as young as you?"

"Ah-wah—" Link stuttered, not sure whether his embarrassment or his frustration should be expressed first. "Wha-what do you mean 'as young as me'!"

"Nothing in particular," Irleen replied with a dismissive wave. "After all, it makes sense to refer to a juvenile commanding officer with a diminutive title."

Juvenile. Diminutive. Link could feel the words slap him across the face. Up until now, he had taken being a fourteen-year-old ship master as a compliment. So when he snapped, "Who are you calling 'juvenile'?" with an accusing finger pointed across the bed at this new girl, it was directly after the fact had lost its flattering nature.

"I didn't mean anything by it," Irleen replied with a confused look on her face. "And it wasn't like I intended to insult you. I was merely making an observation."

"I have to admit that it makes sense," Zelda confessed, crossing her arms as she thought. "Up until now, I have always known that ship masters are regularly referred to as 'Captain'. It never occurred to me that the term 'Skipper' would be applied to those of Link's age."

"Lots of people go by 'skipper'!" Link defended. "And what do you mean 'of Link's age'? Aren't we the same _age_? Aren't we _all_ the same _age_?"

"Well, if many people go by 'skipper', would Captain Alfonzo allow any of his crew to refer to him as such?" Zelda asked.

Flower, who was about to walk by the door looking cleaner than he had last night, brought himself to a halt and answered, "Only if they want to be chucked overboard, Your Highness."

Zelda turned to him with a grin decorating her face. "Good morning, Mister Flower."

Flower saluted with a half-grin of his own after looking in on his commander's predicament. "Good morning, Your Highness, Lieutenant." Link dismissed the salute. "Sir, care if I ask what's happening today?"

Link faltered for a moment as his mind changed back to his job. "I, uh… it's-it's all up to Princess Zelda at the moment," he answered, indicating her with a hand. "We're dependent on her itinerary."

The princess nodded in agreement. "Indeed, that appears to be the case, Lieutenant. I find that I have a number of different engagements at the moment, but I intend to depart perhaps mid-afternoon?"

"Mid-afternoon?" Link asked.

She shrugged. "Perhaps later. It depends on the amount of progress I can make this morning."

"Skipper, it'll take just a few minutes to set out once we get back to the ship," Flower pointed out. "We can get underway as soon as everyone boards."

"I am sure that I will not take long," Zelda assured him.

Link gave a minute to think. Then he replied, "Take what time you need, Your Highness. As soon as you're through, we'll depart."

"Thank you, Link," Zelda said with a nod and a smile. She spun and disappeared into the hall.

Flower stared after with one eyebrow raised until she left his sight. Then he turned to Link with a large smile plastered to his face. "Permission to enjoy a few hours of shore leave, sir?"

"You'll have to wait," Link replied, readjusting the grip on the bedsheet. "When you guys showed up last night, the only thing left of Airman Leonard was his pants."

Flower, upon summoning the memory, squeezed his eyes shut. "Oh, right," he mumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"As soon as Line and Albert are awake, all three of you need to go out and look for him," Link ordered. "After that, you guys can do anything you want as long as you're ready to leave this afternoon. If you can, I'd like one of you to remain with Princess Zelda so we can be ready to leave as soon as possible."

"Line'll probably take that job," Flower grinned. "He expressed some _interest_ in her last night."

Somehow, the way Flower twitched his eyebrows sickened Link. He sighed and said, "At least remember that you four are supposed to be professionals. I don't need any trouble just because we're out of contact with the company. Make sure the other three know that."

"Oh, of course, sir," Flower replied with a salute. "I didn't mean anything by it."

Link returned the salute. "Dismissed."

"Yes, sir." Flower turned. But before he left, he froze mid-step and glanced back into the room. "Skipper, what's your position on souvenirs?"

Link sighed. "Something _small_."

Flower shot him a thumbs-up. "Got it, sir."

"Wow," Irleen, whose voice reminded Link that she was still standing in his room, uttered with an air of awe. "For a young captain, you sure know how to take charge."

Link, remembering his original predicament, turned to her with an irritated glare in his eyes. "Could you wait outside, please?"

"Huh?" She looked him up and down as if realizing that he stood before her half-naked. "Oh, sorry."

Link dressed and partook of some of the breakfast that had been left for him on the table in his room. Then he followed Irleen outside. The morning on Forelight Island turned out to be much brighter than Link had expected. Granted, the storm looming on the horizon gave the visible sky around the island a bleak appearance, but bright colors filled the air directly under the great tree. By that much, he concluded that there might have been a break in the storm at higher altitudes, although there was no way to use such an opening since airships would not be able to reach the required altitude as they were. Still, there was some comfort in knowing that the island was not completely surrounded.

For the first time, Link had a genuine fondness for Forelight Island. Seeing Kuruuk Nehai in natural light lent more to the innate beauty of the Sorian dwellings. The nightlights had highlighted bare branches the previous evening, but now that the daylight had the opportunity to look down on the secret island, Link could see that the trees bore leaves and flowers befitting the middle of spring. The wild colors had thrown him off last night, and the natural blend of greens and browns with an assortment of pinks, yellows, reds, and any other possible color left him speechless. Somehow, simply strolling through the trees felt… peaceful. Of course, the quiet ambiance about the air above may have also contributed to this feeling; whereas Sorians had darted about during their party, now they sailed through the air with grace and serenity. Irleen seemed to be caught up in the feeling as well. Instead of walking beside Link, she had elected to fly from one tree to another, occasionally stopping until Link caught up.

Judging from the large tree above the city, Link saw that they were heading back toward the massive trunk. The paths near its base still bore the various tables and booths of individual trades, but the shopping crowd had waned quite a bit since the previous evening. Older-looking Sorians manned most of the tables, although they did not seem very concerned for their wares because a considerable number of them were asleep in their seats.

Suddenly, in flight, Irleen took a sharp turn to the right. She disappeared behind a nearby house, and Link, worried he might not find her again, mentally marked her position before breaking into a light run to catch up with her. After jumping clear over a table bearing a number of glass trinkets which two Sorians crossing his path were carrying across the road, he found that he had to cut under a few trees to locate the librarian. Irleen had landed on the ground near a large, bare root of the massive tree. When he caught up, he doubled over while he caught his breath.

"Are you okay?" Irleen asked him, leaning over to look at his face.

"Hahh… just…" Link huffed. "Just… a little… out of breath."

"Really?" she asked. "That didn't look too hard."

Link leaned back and took in a deep breath to calm himself down. "I… I'm just… out of shape…. Don't do… much running… on a ship."

Irleen frowned for a moment, and then she shrugged her acceptance of the explanation as she turned to the tree. Link had not noticed until he calmed a bit that there were two regular-sized doors set inside the tree trunk just past the exposed root. As with everything else about this place, the doors did not sport the aftermath of tool marks. The exterior had simply retracted back into the trunk, and the gap between the doors and the surrounding frame looked as if they had split along the cracks in the bark. Irleen pulled one open soundlessly, showing Link that where the hinge would be looked more like rotten wood holding the door to the tree. Inside was a spiral staircase leading down, its path lighted by a white line in the ceiling. Irleen led him down these stairs. At the bottom, the stairway opened up into what Link first thought was a cavern.

But the light inside quickly dismissed his thought. Instead, he gazed upon a room whose size was beyond any other room he had been in before. They stood on the highest level overlooking three different tiers of bookshelves, the lowest level a full floor. Here, the Sorians wore blue robes over their whole bodies, seemingly at the expense of their ability to fly. It did not seem to be a concern, as most of the Sorians were sitting at any one of a number of tables or desks organized about the room. A central globe of light peeked out from the ceiling, surrounded by a number of concentric rings sporting symbols of one kind or another. In places where the light could not reach from this main source, numerous, smaller lines of illumination crawled about in a very straight, square pattern. Dotted about the ceiling were vents from the surface, which seemed to allow a soft breeze circulate about the library. Link saw that some of the bookcases in the walls had actually been made out of the roots of the great tree above.

"This is amazing," Link awed as he strode to the rail. Looking over, he saw that the room had been formed into almost a perfect square.

"This library has been here ever since we decided to make our home here," Irleen replied. Link turned to look at her as she received a blue robe from an elderly Sorian sitting at a long desk just next to the entrance. "Most of these texts are written in Sorian script, although I think some may be in Hylian. It would take a person five lifetimes over to read everything in this place if they started the moment they learned to read."

"Wow…" Link remarked as his eyes passed over the room again.

Irleen pulled the robe over her head. Then she clapped her hands, stealing back Link's attention. "Now, where would you like to start?"

"I… I don't know," Link confessed with a shrug, his mouth pulling itself into an embarrassed smile. "I've never seen a library like this before."

Irleen nodded her understanding. She pursed her lips as she thought. "The Elder said that you like to read personal journals. And you're an airship captain, so how about some logbooks?"

Link could feel excitement building as he gave an enthusiastic nod. "Yeah."

Irleen picked up a board sitting on the big desk and glanced at it. Then, dropping it, she said, "This way." and started across the floor.

Link followed her down to the second tier and around to the opposite side of the library. Guided by the Sorian writing on the shelves, she eventually selected a place and wandered down the bookcases. Link lingered near the tables overlooking the rest of the library for a moment, feeling somewhat nervous as his presence seemed to attract the attention of the scholars around him.

Irleen returned a moment later with a pair of large tomes under one arm. "I wasn't sure what to start with, so I just grabbed these," she told him as she dropped them onto a nearby table with a slam that caused the Sorians within earshot to jump in surprise. "These are logbooks from Sorian sea vessels before airships were conceived."

Her words alleviated Link's anxiety from being stared at, and he stepped closer and pulled open the cover of the top book. "Really?" he asked. "I've always wondered what it was like to sail in one of those."

"Here, sit down," she said as she sat on the bench just in front of her. Link sat on the corner and watched as she gently opened the top book. She frowned a moment. "You're going to have to bear with me; the language in this book is kind of old." Link nodded, hunched forward as he listened to her read.

"'Captain's log of the _Dragon Tamer_, a vessel of the Sorian. Set out on…' I, uh… I can't read the date, so we'll just skip it. Eh-hmm. 'Vessel sailed under Captain Namuli.

"'Set out from Dragon Island, bound for Outset Island. Carrying passengers: two scholars and…' Met… Meddi… Oh, _Medli_. Okay. 'The reasons for this journey are not entirely clear to me. The young girl Medli has indicated the interest of the scholars in the other islands of this region as the cause, but I suspect an ulterior motive from her. Being too young to fly, I think that she is attempting to find the Hylian boy this way.'

"Next entry. 'The wind has not been with us this day, instead forcing us east towards Eastern Triangle Island. The lookouts reported a tower in the distance, but the wind prevents the ship from approaching. We are pressing on towards Forest Haven with the hopes that tomorrow's wind will allow us to go west.'"

She paused to turn the page. "'Medli has asked us to turn the ship to the tower we saw yesterday…


	17. There's Always a Bigger Boat

Chapter 17: There's Always a Bigger Boat…

…

Link listened to Irleen's words like a child listens to a bedtime story, except Link was far too excited to simply doze off. History was his fiction, the best fiction he could ever hope for. Granted, the next two logbooks she read from fell into mundane comments about the ships' crews and the conditions they were forced to sail in, but to Link, who had never even seen a body of water larger than a lake, these were the kinds of mundane forms of excitement which one never found on an airship. To be so close to such a world felt almost too good to be true to him, which left his memory of the experience dotted with small bursts of realization that he was far from the company, in command of an airship, traveling with a member of the royal family, learning of explorers from generations ago, and in desperate need to be punched in the head just to be sure everything was real. If Line was around, the airman would have gladly obliged with such a request.

Irleen, on the other hand, did not seem to have the same appreciation for the texts as Link. Every turn of the page, every new entry, appeared to elicit an exhausted sigh from her. The likes of Captain Namuli and Captain Kolobeli of the sailing vessel _Morning_ _Greeting_ greatly disinterested her, so much so that, when she went to find another logbook, she decided to grab one from an early Sorian airship. This seemed to satisfy both of them, for the logbook of the _First_ _Flight_, captained by a Sorian named Kualu, detailed the journeys of one of the first Sorian airships.

"'Made landing on Mercay Island and retrofitted a sail to the hull. Set sail back for home at first light.'" After turning a few pages, Irleen closed the book. "I guess that's all," she told Link.

"It would have been nice if they'd logged their journey back," Link remarked.

Irleen shrugged. "Maybe they stopped recording when they returned home," she suggested. "It looks like they were just recording for their flight experiments. It's a good thing they were using a vessel with a ship hull instead of a balloon gondola; with as many times as they hit the water, that's probably the only thing that kept them from sinking."

"I suppose," Link agreed. His stomach grumbled audibly, and he looked down at it in surprise. "Uh…"

"Hungry?" Irleen asked with a grin. Link nodded. "Me, too. I think I've lost track of time."

"Must be noon by now," Link commented, glancing across the room in search of a clock.

"In fact, it is quite into the afternoon, Captain." The deep voice behind Link surprised him out of his seat. With the table so close, Link hit his pelvis hard against the edge. In response, he doubled over and bashed his forehead against the thick cover of one of the logbooks. Slumping back onto the bench, he rested his head on the table while holding his waist in pain.

Someone behind him burst out laughing. Recognizing the voice, Link rolled his head to look over his shoulder. "Shut up, Line," he commanded in a weak voice.

"I-I'm sorry, Link," Line replied, his tone indicating otherwise, "but you've been finding creative ways to injure yourself all yesterday. It just so… ro-rous …" He broke off as he nearly collapsed laughing. "I… I can't breathe!"

"Lieutenant-Captain Link?" the deeper, masculine voice spoke up again. Link puzzled at the combined rank and, forcing himself to stand up, turned to find the person addressing him.

The first sight to meet him was a close-up view of someone's red-clad stomach. Leaning back, he found that he stood before a Sorian about as tall as Captain Alfonzo. He had a beak-like nose and beady, grey eyes. His complexion was tan, and the "hair" on his head was a short mass of strewn, gold feathers. His face looked as if it had been chiseled out of rock, his expression almost cold and distant.

Feeling intimidated, Link responded in a meek voice, "Yeah?"

"Captain Koroul of the _Horizon's_ _Eye_," he replied, holding out a hand.

"Uh," Link uttered as he took a step back. He took Captain Koroul's hand and found his own nearly crunched in the captain's stiff shake. "Wha-uh… what can I do for you, Captain?" he continued, shaking the pain out of his hand.

"I've come to seek permission to take charge of Princess Zelda and your crew."

Link gave Koroul a blank stare for a moment, not sure of what the Sorian had just told him. "What?"

Koroul's stoicism broke to form a confused look. "The princess, Captain," he repeated.

"Please allow me," Zelda's voice addressed the Sorian from behind. Captain Koroul stepped to one side so that she could speak with Link. "Captain Link, I know that this may be a touch short-notice, but I wanted to inform you that I have found another way back to Castle Island."

Link's head tilted to one side. "Y-you did?"

She nodded. "After I had expressed interest in Sorian airships, Captain Koroul was kind enough to offer me a return voyage in his vessel."

Link's eyes darted between her and Koroul. "H-he did?"

"Yes. I hoped that it would not trouble you too much."

Link put a hand on the back of his neck. "Well… yeah, it's a little sudden…" he trailed off.

"Far be it from proper to presume that your occupation with the library would be of greater importance," she continued, although Link had a hard time following that half of the statement, "but I felt that Captain Koroul, in fair exchange for his offer, would like to see Hyrule as it is now."

"Well, I _suppose_ it's okay," Link replied with an uncertain shrug.

"Since you were attending a library, I felt that to hinder your education would be selfish of me," she further explained. "You must be learning some amazing stuff to have missed lunch."

"Uh… y-yeah."

"And since Captain Koroul would be using your crew, it would be easy to convey a message through them if you need."

At this, Link glanced over at Koroul. "You-you're taking my _crew_?"

"My current staff has fallen ill," the captain replied. "Airman Line volunteered your crew to help fill in the gaps."

Link then glared at Line, who recoiled in surprise. "You _volunteered_?" he asked in a heated tone.

"Wa-da-I… uh…" Line stumbled. "Um… yeah, kinda."

Link turned completely in Line's direction. "Kinda? How do you 'kinda' volunteer someone else's crew?"

"Well, it's pretty easy when that someone else's crew is only four men," Line replied with a grin. For a moment, they stared at him. The only one to make any sound was Irleen, who had to stifle her laughter in order to not break the serious atmosphere. When Line finally understood that his joke had touched a few nerves, his grin faded. "Oh, boy."

"Line!" Link whined.

"She talked me into it!" Line quickly defended, pointing at Zelda.

"Line!" Zelda whined at him.

"What? It's a sink-or-swim venture," Line told her.

"Line!" Link snapped.

Line held up his hands in defeat. "Okay, I admit it," he said. "It wasn't the best of ideas right now. I just thought we'd give you some downtime, Link. You've been so tense lately, I figured you could use some shore leave yourself. Besides, with us, the _Horizon's_ _Eye_ might make it back in no time at all."

Link raised an incredulous eyebrow at him. "Really?"

Line grinned and jerked a thumb into his swelled chest. "I got us into the storm, didn't I?"

"Although Rireen assisted by opening a hole with the Wind Waker," Zelda remarked.

Line gave her an irritated side-glance. "Okay, but who _piloted_ the ship into that hole? Hmm? _Me_."

"It was the same size as the Sky Line," Link pointed out. "A blind man could do it."

"Tell you what, then," Line replied. "When we leave on the _Island_ _Sonata_, I'll do it with my eyes closed."

"Captain," Koroul said. "I had hoped to leave as soon as possible."

Link sighed. "Okay, okay," he conceded. "Line's right; I need a break."

"Eeh… actually, Link…" Line said, "this was just… more of a notice. Flower, Albert, and Leonard are already onboard helping with preparations." Link slapped a hand over his face.

"Line, would you please escort the princess to the vessel?" Koroul asked. "There is something that I wish to discuss with Captain Link. I will be along in a moment."

"With pleasure, Captain," Line replied with a salute. Koroul gave him a confused look for a moment before returning the salute. He had saluted with the wrong hand, but Line did not bother to correct him as he gestured for Zelda to lead the way. Then, as he started to follow her, he looked over his shoulder and told Link, "Don't get too cozy, Lieutenant. I'd hate to knock you out and drag you away from all this."

"Would you just _go_!" Link shouted at him.

Zelda turned and told him, "Good luck, Link. I hope that you will share the information you gather here with me some time."

"Uh… y-yeah, sure," Link answered, feeling his face grow warm. Zelda gave a small wave before walking away.

"Captain," Koroul said as Link returned the wave. "I had hoped to discuss personal matters concerning your crew before we left."

"What did you want to discuss?"

"Well, understandably, I am not certain how to handle Hylian airmen," Koroul admitted. "I wondered if you had any advice."

"Ooh!" Irleen suddenly cried out, reminding the captains of her presence with a start. "I've got just the thing!" Without further word, she stood up and ran in the opposite direction from Line and Zelda.

Koroul and Link stared after her for a moment. "Who was that?" Koroul finally asked.

"A librarian… I think."

Koroul sighed and continued, "I had heard about the antics of your crew this morning. Apparently, after becoming intoxicated last night, one of them shoved Airman Line into a large pot and started competing over who could wrap him up in a rug and roll him along the ground the longest. Another one fell asleep in a bird cage naked."

Link sighed. "I thought I was going to get away without knowing that."

"I have never had to order Hylians around before."

Link gave him a helpless look. "I don't think you have anything to worry about. If they were particularly disobedient, they would have probably stuffed me into my hammock and hung me from a stay."

"I'm not sure if I should be relieved by that sentiment or not," Koroul replied as Irleen came into Link's view again.

She dropped what sounded like a sack full of rupees on the table. It was not what made him concerned, though. When she started sorting through the bag, revealing it to be filled with gemstones, she had to set down a silver-headed mallet with a polished wooden handle. The metal of the handle gleamed as if to show its eagerness to be used.

"Wha-what are you doing?" Link asked.

"Just… just give me a sec," Irleen replied. She continued looking through the gems, dropping the unneeded ones on the table. Selecting a red, oval-shaped gem, she picked up the mallet and stepped up to Link. "Think about your crewmen."

Link blinked at her for a moment. "Why?"

"I'm going to make an impression of your mind."

"Wha?"

"Don't make me explain it," she said as she pressed the gem to Link's forehead. "Just think about your crew." Link gave her a worried look. "If it helps, just close your eyes."

"What are you going to do with that mallet?"

"Just ignore the mallet. Think about your crew."

After failing to cast his worry in Captain Koroul's direction, Link took in a deep breath and closed his eyes. Although he could still feel the gemstone pressed against his forehead, he managed to force it aside so that he could concentrate. Although he did not know much about Flower, Albert, and Leonard, he tried to keep them in mind as he thought about Line. It felt awkward because he was not sure what was happening.

_WHUMPH!_ Link felt a momentary daze, and then he realized in the next moment that he had fallen to the floor. He picked himself up and dusted his clothes off. Despite having just fallen to the floor, however, he did not feel different.

"Wha… what just happened?" he asked.

Irleen gave him an equally perplexed look before turning to Captain Koroul. "Here, hold this in your hand," she told him, offering the gem.

Koroul, sharing the confusion, took the stone into his hand. Then his eyes widened for a moment. "Wow," he commented. "It feels as if I know them a little more than when I had first met them. Fascinating."

"As long as you hold that stone," Irleen told him, "you'll know everything that Captain Link knows about them."

"I see," Koroul said. He pocketed the stone. "Thank you for your assistance. Captain Link, I look forward to seeing you again before you depart."

"Won't be too hard," Link remarked. "You have my crew."


	18. Panic

Chapter 18: Panic

…

After Captain Koroul left, Irleen and Link took a break so that they could have lunch. They sat and talked at a bar near the large tree, mostly concerning airship travel in Hyrule. She seemed fascinated with the Sky Lines and cited passages which said that the Sorians had established them for similar purposes in the past, although they had not progressed their ship-building techniques as quickly as the Hylians had. Link replied that, according to some of the older journals he had read, Hylians had found early airships which they based their current fleet on and that, in all likelihood, they were ships that the Sorians had used in the past. Her scant knowledge of but great interest in airships almost launched him into a spiel about the designs of Skyrider airships. Irleen was quick to stop the talk before he became committed, telling him that, although she found the subject absorbing, she would be lost on the technical aspects of airships themselves. It left Link a little disappointed, but this was relieved when they ended lunch and returned to the library to read the logbook of the airship _Cloudraiser_.

After reading aloud an entry detailing the amount of damage done when a powerful wind gust sent the ship listing at strong angle, Irleen let out a high-pitched yawn. "Aaaah~, excuse me," she told Link.

Link shook his head as he looked through an artbook of airships. "It's okay. It's probably kind of late anyway."

Irleen looked up at the ceiling. "It _is_ a little early in the evening," she remarked.

Link, after casting her a confused glance, followed her gaze toward the large orb in the middle of the ceiling. He realized that, in addition to the symbols circling the large light, an arrow positioned on a ring outside of the symbols pointed out one of them. "It… it's a _clock_?"

"Yep," Irleen replied. She sighed and closed the logbook. "Do you mind if we stop for now?"

"Yeah, that's fine," Link said as she stood. He closed the artbook and followed her through the shelves. "So, I have a question."

"Sure," Irleen said, replacing her book.

"How long have the Sorians lived here?"

Irleen frowned as she looked for an answer. "It's really kind of vague," she responded, leading him to another spot. She took the artbook and put it back on the shelf. "At least a hundred years."

"Well, I know we first colonized these islands further back than that," Link told her. "But it must have been some time after the Sorians left because all that was left was the machines which supply the islands with water."

Irleen could only offer a shrug. "Records were lost a long time ago, during the War of the Spirits," she told him. "It's hard to say anymore. Why do you ask?"

"Well, it's just that you've lived her so long surrounded by the Undying Storm."

"The Undying Storm?" she asked. "Oh! You mean the Storm of Purgatory?"

Link nodded. Then he thought for a moment. "You know, I heard the elder call it that last night," he remarked. "I didn't catch on until now."

"Well, what other storm could we be talking about?" Irleen laughed. She pointed him towards the wall. "Come take a look at this."

"Okay," Link said, following her.

"So, what's the name of your ship?"

"The _Island_ _Sonata_."

"Hm. That sounds nice. How long have you been captain?"

"Two days?"

Irleen stopped mid-step, and Link jerked to a halt just short of colliding with her. "T-two _days_?" she asked as she turned around.

Link nodded. "I was promoted just yesterday morning."

"Wow…" she awed as she continued walking.

"What about you? How long have you been a librarian?"

"Well, _technically_, I'm just a sorter. It's my job to make sure all of the books go back where they belong when people are done with them. A little mundane, but it gives me the opportunity to read while I'm working. I know where most of these books go; I've been doing this for two years." She stopped and stepped aside. "What do you think of that?" Link turned to look at a relief molded into the wall.

He leapt backwards in surprise. At first, he thought it was the maw of some enormous creature; the relief was square and twice his size. The central figure was the bow of an airship hauling itself with apparent effort over a cloudbank. Loose lines fluttered about the tattered sails in a still wind. But perhaps its most menacing quality was the gapping chunk missing from the prow. Planks had been ripped away from the hull just above the keel, and on the face visible to the viewer the missing planks continued almost up into the weather deck at a curve, giving the ship a rather sinister smile. The inner decking appeared to form teeth. Above the smile, two cannons jutted out of their gunports like eyes. Link took the next moment to study the relief before calming down.

"What was that?" Irleen asked him.

"It… kinda surprised me," Link replied, his face turning red. "Wha-what is this?"

"The _Smiling_ _Gunner_," Irleen replied. "I thought you might be interested in seeing this while you were still here."

Link dared a step toward it, leaning as if to look into its mouth. "Is-is it a Sorian ship?"

"A demon ship." Link looked over his shoulder at her with a look of mild shock and confusion. She shrugged. "There are books about it dotted all over the library. This was the ship used by a demon general called Cunimincus during the War of the Spirits."

Link looked back up at the relief. "Yeah, Princess Zelda mentioned that name before. She said that he followed the Sorians into the skies during the war. That was why all of the islands exist as they are now."

"Correct. The ship was heavily damaged during the war, but Cunimincus never repaired it. He just renamed it. The hull was as black as a starless night and as large as an island."

Link imagined the ship as she had described.

Then a chill ran up his spine. "I-I've seen this ship before," he uttered.

"Huh? What was that?"

He did not answer as he tried to remember where he had seen it before. The image felt so vague to him, so lost that he had to force it out. But he knew it now. He knew where he had seen this thing.

Once, on the bridge of the _Island_ _Sonata_ while they traveled through the Sky Line. He recalled it now, how the nearby lightning had lit up the clouds around it so that it showed Link its smiling maw and gleaming gun barrels. It was the image that had made his heart nearly stop with fright but left no trace upon his memory except for the pure, primal fear it had inspired in him. But to be so afraid of something required a person to have seen such a thing before, and, indeed, Link had. It was not until Irleen had mentioned that the ship was large and black that Link remembered it.

Because he had seen it in a dream. A dream that had felt so real to him that he would have died had Captain Alfonzo not awakened him.

He took a step back without realizing it. "Irleen…" he started, having to pause so that he could swallow the lump in his throat. "The Storm of Purgatory…"

Irleen leaned forward to look at his face. "What about it?"

"Who… who's purgatory is it?"

Irleen flashed a confused look before she racked her memory trying to remember the story behind the storm's name. "Well, us Sorians live pretty peacefully here, so… I imagine it's Cunimincus's purgatory."

The color drained from Link's face. "Cu-Cunimincus's… purgatory?"

"Yeah," Irleen replied matter-of-factly. "It's his prison, after all." Link stepped backward again, and this time Irleen could not ignore it. "Are you all right?"

Link continued to puzzle everything together in silence, not responding to Irleen when she waved a hand in front of his face. He remembered the dream a little clearer, and one of the images he recalled was the sight of Princess Zelda stumbling across the deck of the ship. And then he had also seen Line's face. But… neither one of them were with him now. And, surely, the princess would not be returning on the _Horizon's_ _Eye_. At first, he thought his decision to let Captain Koroul return her to Castle Island had been one of relief. But then he remembered another aspect of the ship he was on. In the dream, the ship's rudder had been destroyed, rendering the ship incapable of correcting its list.

The _Island_ _Sonata_ did not use a rudder.

Link immediately turned and bolted. "Hey!" Irleen hollered after him. She started to chase him, but then she remembered something and dashed in a different direction. She grabbed the sack of gemstones she had left on the table. "Captain, wait!"

Link dashed around the library heading for the door, ignoring a reprimand from a librarian he ran past. Irleen was on his heels, throwing her robe at the same librarian before receiving the scold that had been prepared for her. Up through the stairs and out into the open air, Link had to get his bearings for a moment before remembering where the door inside the tree was. Irleen continued to shout at him as he rounded the tree. Through the doorway to the dock, Link could already feel his breath giving out. But he willed himself on until he slammed his hands on the stone surface of Ackaar's desk.

"Hey, wake up!" he shouted at the elderly Sorian, rubbing the pain out of one palm. "Come on, hurry!"

Ackaar released a snort and gave a heavy grunt as he turned his head to give Link an irate glare. "What do you want, feather-less?" he growled.

"Captain Koroul's ship," Link said. "What kind of ship is it?"

"Huh?" Ackaar crowed, lifting his head and wiping drool off his chin.

"The _Horizon's_ _Eye_!" Link shouted at him. "What's its sail-plan?"

"How the _hell_ would I know that?" Ackaar spat in response (with actual spit landing short of Link's tunic). "I just _park_ the damn ships, I don't know what they look like."

"Come on, I _have_ to know!" Link said. "Doesn't _anyone_ besides the crew tend to the ships here?"

"Captain, what's going on?" Irleen said, finally making her presence known.

"Is everything all right?" Link looked up to find a young, rather burly-looking Sorian man stepping from the staircase. His chest was bare, and he wore a pair of loose-fitting slacks. "I heard you mention the _Horizon's_ _Eye_."

"Are you an airman?" Link asked as he approached.

The Sorian sniffed. "Yeah," he replied in a nasal voice. "I'm one of the duty boatswains on the _Horizon's_ _Eye_." He sniffed again. "I'm dealing with a bit of a cold right now; that's why I'm not onboard."

"Your captain's ship, what kind of sail-plan does it use?"

Again, a sniffle. "Sail-plan? Well, it's a fully rigged ship with three masts."

"Fully rigged," Link confirmed. "Three square sails, so it uses a rudder to steer itself, right?"

The Sorian airman blinked at him for a moment. "Wha-yeah, of course it—Hey, wait a moment!" Link was already climbing the steps toward his own vessel.

"Captain, what's going on?" Irleen shouted as she pursued him.

"We have to get to them _now_!" Link told her over one shoulder.

"Wait, there's something you should know!" the airman called up after them. Link stopped and looked back down at him. "The _Horizon's_ _Eye_ is running all course and topsails at stuns'l right now."

"What?" Link shouted at him. "Why would they do that? The Sky Line could tear the yardarms apart!"

"Captain Koroul wanted to get out of the storm before nightfall. You might not be able to catch them."

Link glanced at Irleen, who could only offer a confused shrug. "Thanks!" Link called back down before continuing up the stairs as fast as he could.

Irleen continued after him. "Captain, I don't get it!" she called to him. "Why are we chasing after the princess!"

"Because… the _Horizon's_ _Eye_'s… in danger!" Link shouted back through his heavy breathing.

"How do you know _that_?"

"My dream!"

"Your _what_?"

Link paused and looked over the rail. He had made some progress up the spiral staircase, but he was not as close as he had hoped. "It's…" he huffed. "It's… a dream I had… yesterday morning. I-I saw… the _Smiling_ _Gunner_… attacking the _Horizon's_ _Eye_."

"In a dream?" Irleen asked. "How do you know it was the _Horizon's_ _Eye_?"

"I… didn't know… until just now. It doesn't… it doesn't have the same… sail-plan as… the _Island_ _Sonata_. I also… saw Princess Zelda… in the attack. They're… they're all in danger."

"But you're not on the ship," Irleen pointed out to him.

"I know," Link huffed. "I saw it… I must've seen it… through someone else's eyes." He started up the stairs again, and Irleen followed in silence for a while.

Then, as they started seeing portals to the docks outside, she called to him, "I think I know why you had that dream!"

"Why?" Link asked, still running as hard as he could.

"The gem I gave to Captain Koroul," she replied. "I imprinted your knowledge of your crew onto it, but sometimes it'll cause the person the imprint is taken from to spontaneously share dreams with whoever's holding it at the time."

Link found what looked to be the dock which the _Island_ _Sonata_ had been tethered to and stopped at the doorway to catch his breath. "That… that's impossible, though," Link told her. "I-I didn't meet… Captain Koroul until today. And… I never saw… that ship before yesterday… evening."

Irleen sighed, feeling her breath giving out as well as stiffness in her legs. "Look, if you want magic to make sense, you'll have to talk to a god or something," she replied. "Because only they know why things like this happen. The book said that someone using a gem with someone's thoughts imprinted on it _might_ share dreams with that person from time to time, but it didn't say _when_ it would happen. Magic books are notorious for not thoroughly explaining side effects."

"Okay," Link said. "Another question."

"What?"

Link took in a deep breath to steady himself. "Why are you following me?"

"Well, I thought you might need some help," she answered. "Your crew's on the _Horizon's_ _Eye_, remember?"

"But… you don't _know_ anything about being an airman," he pointed out.

"If the _Eye_'s in trouble, you don't have the time to find anyone else to help you," she rebutted. "Just tell me what you need."

Link stared at her for a moment. Then he looked out at the docking branch. "Okay," he decided. "Let's go then."


	19. Encounter

Chapter 19: Encounter

…

Link was hard-pressed to get the _Island_ _Sonata_ caught up with the other ship, and only having Irleen to help him made the matter all the more drastic. Unfortunately, the schooner was not the kind of vessel that could simply be brought to life in a matter of seconds. Without a crew to do it, he and Irleen had to set the gaff angles on the main and aft sails before they could depart. And because they were running out of time (the sun had already disappeared over the edge of the storm clouds above, leaving the inside almost as dark as night), he decided to have the gaffs open to larger angles to increase the _Island_ _Sonata_'s speed once they entered the Sky Line, despite the risk that the gaffs could fall apart from the wind. Next, he taught Irleen how to raise the jibs so he did not have to stop the ship to do it himself. After that, he had to hand-start the feed belt for the ship's boiler while Irleen untied and dumped the moorings over the edge. He opened the airship's engine to full throttle and steered it around the tree. Using his compass, he determined where the Sky Line was and rounded Forelight Island.

Every second he spent making sure the ship got into the Sky Line made him a little more nervous. He silently prayed to whatever god would hear him that they would make it in time to at least save the crew of the _Horizon's_ _Eye_ before it was too late. His knuckles turned white from his death grip on the helm's handholds. When the airship was close enough to the Sky Line, he shouted at Irleen to put the jibs up. Then he dropped the schooner into the Sky Line with a jerk that made the ship growl. But they were on their way. And Link could only hope that they could find the other ship.

Unfortunately, Link had forgotten a vital part of the rescue. The ship's lamps were all out. He had to call Irleen up in order to ask her to light the forward lamps so that the _Horizon's_ _Eye_ could see them coming. She said that she would handle it, and then the lamps on the bow lit almost at once.

She came up onto the bridge just as the ship entered the storm. As Link had expected, someone had used the Wind Waker to open a hole in the storm. So when she was close enough, he asked her, "How much do you know about this storm?"

"Enough, I hope," she answered, holding a lamp up to better see his face.

"I know the _Smiling_ _Gunner_'s going to attack the _Horizon's_ _Eye_," he told her. "But can Cunimincus get _out_ of the storm because of the holes we made in it?"

"From what I remember," she replied, "the storm is supposed to deter him from attacking anyone stupid enough to approach where he's being held. It also blinds him, making it hard for him to simply lob fire at anyone close to this area as well as just firing on our island. His ship would be demolished if he tried to leave."

"Could he take another ship out?"

Irleen shrugged. "I don't know. It's like I said. Magic books don't give you all of the rules. It would imply that someone actually _had_ a lifetime to figure it all out. Besides, I didn't look into it _that_ deep."

"Okay, okay," Link quickly told her, although _he_ was the one who was growing tense. He realized it, too, but he could not think of how to alleviate it other than finding the _Horizon's_ _Eye_. He kept hoping that there had not been any substance behind his dream, that everything he had seen and all of the different connections to real life had merely been coincidence.

"Say we _do_ find them," Irleen said. "What do you expect to do? I couldn't help noticing that your ship doesn't have guns."

"I _know_," Link replied, tightening his grip on the helm until he thought his bones would shatter. "We couldn't fire them anyway; we don't have enough people to load them."

"Then… what do we—?"

"I don't know!" Irleen quickly clapped her mouth shut. Link gritted his teeth for a moment. Then he sighed. "Just… just give me a moment to think." Irleen nodded and stepped back. "Assuming the _Horizon's_ _Eye_ is in trouble and we could catch her, we wouldn't do any good in a shooting match. But if the other ship's busy, it would give us a chance to offload the crew onto the _Island_ _Sonata_."

Irleen tilted her head. "How?"

"We can drop one of the jibs to slow the _Island_ _Sonata_ down. We can also press against the hull of the _Horizon's_ _Eye_. With my crew back, we can open up the sails a little more and put the jib back up. From there, we just have to hope we can make it out of the storm before the other ship catches us."

"Link, are you _sure_ it was the _Smiling_ _Gunner_? Because, if it is, this could be _suicide_."

Link sighed and looked over one shoulder at her. "I hope it isn't," he confessed. "I keep hoping that what I saw was _just_ a dream. But I can't shake it off."

Irleen glanced around the bridge for a moment. Then she remembered something and, setting her lamp on the deck, pulled out her bag of gemstones. She had to sift through them for a moment until she squatted down on the deck so that she could pour them into the lamplight. Finding the one she wanted, she scooped the rest back into the bag. Then she stood and offered an amethyst shaped into an oval to Link. "Here, take this."

Link stared at her hand for a moment before accepting the stone. He watched the light of her lamp dance off its polished surface for a moment. "What is it?"

"Trust me, if we're leaving the storm, you'll need it."

Link would have asked more, but Irleen had turned and stepped back down to the lower deck. Shrugging, he pulled aside the hem of his tunic so that he could put the gem in the pocket of his undersuit. He leaned forward to glance between the sails and the helm, looking for a sign of ships ahead of them. But if they were still in the storm, they still had a good lead on the _Island_ _Sonata_. If the airman back at the docking tree was right, the _Horizon's_ _Eye_ had her studded sails deployed for extra push from the Sky Line's tremendous winds. For a fully rigged vessel, it meant a great speed boost. A schooner like the _Island_ _Sonata_ could not gain that sort of speed unless it had more masts and much larger sails, and that could not be accomplished without increasing the ship's weight and potentially tearing its timbers apart from the sheer force the Sky Lines provided. Still, if the studded sails of the _Horizon's_ _Eye_ were out, then there was a chance that they could escape on their own.

A moment later (how long exactly had been lost on Link), Irleen ran up the stairs to the bridge. "I see it!" she cried just before making the last step.

"What?" Link asked.

"There's a light ahead of us!"

"Hold the helm for me!" Irleen stepped in to take the wheel. Link moved to the starboard bulwark so that he had a clearer view. Just as she had said, there was a light in the tunnel in front of them. Unfortunately, there was still some distance between the two ships, and Link could not see if there was another ship there or not. The lightning surrounding them had chosen just then to not be as revealing of the scene before them.

Link stepped back into the helm. "Keep an eye on them," he told her, pointing to the starboard side of the bridge. "Let me know when you have sight of the ship itself."

"Got it."

Link's heart raced. This close to learning, this close to finding out if his imagination was getting to him or not. Irleen's silence felt like torture. He wanted to know now. Was he right, or was he crazy? Between the two, he would prefer the latter; it simply meant that he was cautious.

"What was that?"

Link almost leapt at Irleen's words until he realized that they were nothing like he had been expecting. Concerned, he looked over at her. "What was what?" he asked.

"Something… there it goes again," she replied. "Some kind of flash."

"A flash?" Link asked. He meant to ask more.

_WHUM—BOOOM!_

The whole ship quaked from impact. Link held firmly to the helm, but Irleen collapsed to the deck with a cry of surprise. The controls of the schooner jerked in Link's hands, forcing him to put effort into keeping the ship straight.

When his eyes fell on the weather deck below, he saw a large hole where the hatch used to be. Pure terror set into his mind, draining his body of all its heat.

The _Island_ _Sonata_ was under attack!

_WHUMP! CRRRRRCK!_ The helm jerked in Link's hands as the foremast, broken by another direct hit, twisted. The sail caught in the wind of the Sky Line, the mast ripped out its stays as the wind carried it over the bow. The subsequent impact with the bowsprit pulled the tacks of both jibs until their lines snapped. Link barely had time to realize this and pulled back hard on the ship's ballast control. The bow dipped for a moment, then suddenly rose when the final stay to the foremast broke away. Link slipped and fell but kept a hold on the helm. As a result, the ship bucked to starboard before it leveled itself again.

Link got back to his feet and set the ship on course again, correcting the ballast. "Irleen!" he called out, looking over his shoulder.

"I'm okay!" Irleen cried back, stepping up behind him.

_WHUM—BOOM!_ Again, Link felt the ship jerk hard. The hit blew away the port shroud holding the main mast along with the bulwark and some of the deck in that area. Miraculously, the fact that the main gaff had been opened to port seemed to keep the starboard shroud tensioned instead of letting the main mast fall over. For a moment, Link thought they still had a chance.

__Phwiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii_…_

But that whistling sound caught his attention. Looking down, Link saw that the small emergency whistle on the ballast controls had popped out.

The ballast, the tank of thin steel holding pressurized hot air, had been ruptured from that last hit. Only the release of the pressurized air would cause that whistle to sound.

The _Island_ _Sonata_ was going down.

As if to confirm this, Irleen took a hold of Link's sleeve. "Uh… Captain!" she said as she stared in horror at the ascending light in the distance. Despite her plea, Link was lost for a moment.

Then he turned and grabbed her wrist. "Come on!" he cried as he could already feel gravity releasing him from the deck. He dragged her to the stairs. The descent was difficult because each step felt as if the ship would fall away very soon. Both kept a firm hold on the rail and made it to the weather deck.

Meanwhile, the _Island_ _Sonata_ fell out of the Sky Line and its blue, guiding radiance. It plunged into the darkness of the storm clouds beneath. Just as Link set foot on the lower deck, a bolt of lightning flew out of the darkness with a burst as bright as the sun and punched the starboard hull hard. The impact nearly jarred Irleen off the steps, forcing her and Link to wrap their arms around the rail. Crackling sounded from above as a swarm of smaller strikes stung at the only sail still standing on the ship.

Link urged Irleen on, pushing her toward his cabin while they both maintained a grip on the stairs. When they released, they quickly fell against the door, and Irleen pulled it open. Link entered after her and slammed it shut. He met a cabin littered with all of his navigating equipment and writing utensils.

"We've only got one chance at this!" he shouted at Irleen as he forced her into the hollow where his hammock had been set up. "Get in!"

"How is _this_ going to help us?" Irleen cried as she tried to climb into the wild hammock.

"If we get this right," Link responded as he picked up his bag, "the hammock might absorb all of the fall for us, and we'll survive." He dumped his clothes on the floor, kicking them under the hammock.

"What if we…?" Irleen trailed off before finishing the question, realizing that she did not need the answer openly explained to her.

"Just get in!"

Irleen pulled herself into the hammock. Since the hammock had been made for someone twice Link's size, he managed to climb into it with her.

When he was in, he felt Irleen's arms wrap around him. "I-Irleen!" She pulled him tight against her body. Through the lightning striking the ship's hull and the raging of the ship as its timbers flew apart around them, he could just barely make out Irleen's whisper.

"I'm… I'm scared…"


	20. Waking to Another Reality

Chapter 20: Waking to Another Reality

**Arc 1 of 3**

…

Darkness. It was all that the young man could see when he roused. At first, he thought it was because wherever he had ended up did not offer light, that light was a forbidden thing here. After some thought, though, he realized that it was simply because he did not have the strength to open his eyes. His whole body ached as if he had spent days being battered. Even now, whatever surface he laid on bounced his tortured frame about. What kind of sick creature would beat him like this when he could not even muster the will to defend himself? A moment felt like forever. He lived in a haze, the events of his life refusing to play out for his recollection. Had they been taken from him? Or… maybe he just did not _want_ to remember. What did it matter to him now? He was here. Here was all he would ever know now, ever need to know.

But wait a moment. Pained as he was, he realized that his other senses still worked. He heard… crunching, an irregular noise which seemed to simply be without any particular purpose. A subtle groan mixed with it, the kind one found when nearby a wooden vessel on the brink of falling to pieces just from moving. His nose found the scent of burning oil: not quite fragrant, but not disgustingly scorched. And there was another sensation in the air which his exposed face felt, something which he had never encountered before. His skin felt moist. He did not perspire; if anything, he was rather cool and comfortable. Yet he had the sensation of water upon his face, much as if he had dipped his face into a cool pool and held it there. As he found that he could flex his hands, his fingers gripped a massive amount of straw. It felt as if he laid on it like a bed.

The color before his eyes then gained the flesh tone one sees before waking. He felt his eyelids loosen until they seemed to simply open themselves. They first met a dull, yellow blur. As his eyes adjusted, he found himself looking at a canvas stretched over a thick, wooden frame. For a moment, he thought it was a sail, but he had never seen such a structure before. The canvas ended just to his right, and the rocking of the bed beneath him caused his head to turn out towards the opening. Outside loomed a starless night sky the likes of which he had never seen before; his judgment that it was a night sky at all came from nothing but intuition. The overall sensation of moving finally reached him, and he found that a single plank of wood kept him from flopping out of whatever carried him.

Was it an hour or a year? How long had he lost consciousness? And how could he be sure he was conscious _now_? What about those lights that drifted past the opening? When did he start seeing them? His mind buzzed with questions as he tried to make sense of his surroundings.

Those surroundings jerked to a stop. Shouting sounded in deep tones of confusion; he could not understand what they said. His last sight before blacking out again was a man's bearded face entering his vision.

He woke again with much more clarity. Or, about as much clarity as can be afforded to someone who had just awoken in a strange place. He had been sleeping in a bed; this was the first on his mind. The feel of a stuffed mattress, the modest decoration and arrangement of bed sheets under a fine quilt, pillows which cradled his head rather than merely support it. It was unlike any other bed he had ever slept in. The comfort ended, however, when he tried to sit up. Just the smallest motion to rise set off a fire in his abdomen, and it took his breath for a second. Pulling away the sheets covering him, he found his upper body stripped of clothing and bound in a white bandage.

He had to wait for the pain to subside before he could move again. This gave him the opportunity to study the room around him. The first unusual thing to occur to him was that this room constructed of wood had only two walls: one curved wall against which the bed was set and one straight wall on the opposite side. A single, circular window just above the bed allowed light into the room. A table with a chair occupied the corner near the foot of the bed, while a chest of drawers topped with a wash basin sat in the opposite corner. A large, wooden trunk rested at the foot of the bed, and he saw that someone had laid out clothes on top. Judging from the fact that he was naked, those clothes were probably for him.

He reached up and put a hand on the window's frame. The pain threatened to overwhelm him, but he managed to sit upright. Although he was not tall enough to see the ground outside, he could still look up to find a dull gray haze dominating the sky above. Somehow, it triggered a vague memory of failure, and a wave of regret and despair washed over him.

After some moments of agony as he got to his feet, he limped over to the trunk. Putting the clothes on felt as if it took forever as each move he made brought a fresh spark to whatever wounds lay under the bandages. In the end, though, he pulled up and tightened the drawstring on a pair of white, cloth pants and put his arms through the sleeves of a blue, faded shirt. He was not sure how to close the shirt, so he left his chest and wrapped abdomen exposed as he walked out of the room through the doorway opposite the bed.

Outside, he found that he stood atop a landing with a short walk to another doorway just to his right. On his left, a flight of stairs curved against the round wall as they descended. He could smell something cooking now, so he decided to take the stairs down. He had to move slowly, as each step felt like it jolted his whole body. About halfway down, he gazed over a room dominated by a large, round table. He counted five chairs arranged around the table with two more set against the wall under the landing. One of them sat askew from the others, and he noticed that this particular spot sported a plate covered in crumbs. Another place, close to the foot of the table, also had a plate decorated with food. Near a doorway on the opposite side of the room from him, which appeared to lead out onto a dusty road, was a large fireplace made of stone with an oven and stove setup directly next to it. Along that same half of the wall was a large sink.

And in front of that sink was a girl. She looked to be about his age, with long, bright red hair tied into a single tail. She wore a green, one-piece dress with no sleeves, revealing her spindly arms. At first, she had been humming to herself while she scrubbed dirty dishes. But as he descended, an audible groan from one step gave away his presence to her, causing her to turn. Her dark eyes switched from curious to alarmed, and she quickly set down the plate she was scrubbing. She strode towards him with a frightening vigor while drying her hands on a white apron.

"Jus' wait a minute now," she told him in a peculiar accent. She reached out to him and pulled his left arm over her shoulder. Then she put her right arm around his back with her hand clamped under his right armpit. Her back stiffened, and she helped him down the rest of the stairs. With one foot, she pulled out the closest chair to the table and deposited him into it. "There," she said as he relaxed against the back of the chair. She leaned in closer to his face. "Are yeh feelin' better now?"

"Uh… y-yeah," he answered, feeling his face grow hot. "Th-thank you."

She smiled and stepped around him on her way back to the sink. "Breakfast has been waitin' for yeh," she told him. "Yeh might want ta eat an' get yer strength back."

"Right," he said, looking down at the plate. He froze in place when he saw it staring back at him. With two fried eggs for eyes, black berries shaped as a nose, and strips cooked meat arranged to be a smiling mouth against the edge of the plate, he found himself questioning his appetite, not to mention his willingness to eat a plate so carefully and… strangely laid out. Cautiously, he picked up a piece of the meat between his fingers.

"There was some concern about yeh las' night," the girl spoke up as he dared to bite off one end. "Yeh showed up here all sorts o' battered an' all."

"Really?" he asked after swallowing.

"Um-hmm," she answered. "But I wasn' worried. Yeh don' seem the type."

He looked up from his plate with a confused look on his face. "I-I don't?"

"Um-hmm. Yeh look ma age, so I can tell yeh've got the strength." He sighed and continued to eat. She must not have been very tolerant of silence because she asked only a moment later, "What's yer name?"

His response came out a little shy. "Link."

She looked over her shoulder at him with a smile. "Tha's a unique name. I've never heard it before. Yeh mus' really be from another land."

Link nodded. "Yeah," he replied as he finally started remembering events from before. "It sure feels like it…"

She read the depression forming on his face and walked back over to him. "I'm Meilont."

"Mei—" Link started to say.

But before he could get another word out, the girl calling herself Meilont carefully wrapped her arms around his head. "Yeh don' have to be so sad," she whispered to him. "It makes me sad." Link was unsure how to respond, simply sitting in the chair with a confused look on his face.

Heavy steps coaxed a groan out of the floor. "Meilont, what are yeh doin'?" a man's voice asked in an irritated tone.

Meilont jumped away from Link with a nervous laugh. Link saw a large man standing in the doorway, large enough that he had to turn his shoulders so he could enter. He wore a thin, blue, sweat-soaked shirt under a pair of leather overalls, the shirt tight enough to expose his barrel chest. His face sported a thick, red beard. He unloaded an axe from his shoulder and set it against the wall. Link found his attention locked to this tool, as the handle rivaled his height and the double-bit blade looked as large as his head and sharp enough to slice his neck in two with one stroke.

"I was jus' tryin' ta comfort him, Dad," she replied in an innocent tone.

"He looks scared if anythin'," he answered. He fell heavily into the askew chair near the door. "How're yeh feelin', son?"

"He's doin' a'right," Meilont replied before Link could get a word out.

The man gave his daughter an irritated glare. Then he asked, "What's yer name, son?"

"His name's Link," Meilont said.

"Thank you, Meilont," he told her with a tone meant to silence her. Then he addressed Link, "Yeh mus' be starved by now. Go on, eat." Link nodded and continued to eat as he talked more. "I'm Talein. As you can imagine, this is ma home. I brought yeh here after yer ship fell out o' the sky last night."

Link paused. "How bad is it?"

Talein gave him a reluctant look. "It's been demolished. Most o' it fell apart before it hit the ground. I imagine the Bulblins livin' out on the field pulled all the metal off it by now. Tha's what they use to put their tanks together. I saw them jus' as I left."

"Oh." Silence filled the house for a moment. Talein sat with a sober expression on his face, and Meilont showed concern for Link. Link sighed and ate another bite. "So… you're the one who found me?"

"Yeah. Thought yeh might've died on impact, but yeh were still breathin'. I found yeh in one of the upper rooms."

Link took in a sharp breath just as he recalled being in his cabin as the _Island_ _Sonata_ fell. "Was there anyone with me?" he asked with a tone of urgency.

Talein shook his head. "No, I didn' _see_ anyone but yeh. Yeh were wrapped in a blanket on top a pile o' clothes."

"No… one?" Link fell against the back of his chair. Irleen… where had she gone?

"I don' know what yeh were doin' up there in a ship all by yerself, but it doesn' look like yeh faired too well. I know it isn' gonna do much good ta remind yeh, but it looks like yeh might be stranded down here. We haven' got any airships down here, and all the Architects've been… hey, are yeh a'right?"

Link's breathing had speed up as Talein's words brought about the memories of the past two days. Two days of command, two days of discovery, all smashed to pieces in a night of careless action. The _Island_ _Sonata_ was destroyed, and the Sorians had lost their own vessel as well. Princess Zelda was gone, and Line, along with the rest of his crew, were likely dead. His stomach tightened with the thought of how all of them met their fates thanks to him. If only he had gone in the _Horizon's_ _Eye_'s place… If only… he had told Captain Alfonzo no…

"I feel sick." The words fell out of his mouth like drool as he leaned forward, arms cradling his stomach.

"I didn' mean to upset yeh," Talein quickly told him, rising from his chair in concern. "If yeh—"

"No, I'm going to be sick!" Link managed to say before his gag reflex cut him off. Feeling a fresh wave of pain, he stood and pulled his hunched frame around the table as fast as he could. Talein scrambled out of his way, ramming his back into the wall.

"Link!" Meilont cried out as she followed him.

Link reached the doorway and clamped his hand on the frame. Leaning out, he spun so his head hung over the grass instead of the dirt path leading up to the door. The rancid taste of gastric juice spoiled his taste as he vomited his breakfast out. His face paled, and his knees grew shaky as he stood over the discarded food. He did not stand there for long; it was too much effort. He carefully slid until his knees dropped to the ground.

He felt a hand rubbing his back and glanced over his shoulder to find Meilont offering him compassion. "Thank you," he croaked before he retched.

"There, there," she told him. "Jus' let it all out."

She looked up at her father, who hovered near the doorway with an empathetic frown showing through his beard. "Look," he said, "the doctor said yeh'll need rest so yeh can heal. If yeh wan', yeh can stay with us."

"Yeh can use ma room," Meilont added. Link said something, but his voice was quickly broken by a fit of coughing. "What?"

"Did…" he managed between breaths. "Did… you… bring… any… thing… else?"

"Like what?" Talein asked.

"Log… my… log."

"Log?"

"Log… book."

Talein gave a depressed sigh. "I'm sorry, Link. The only thing I had time to get was _you_. Much as I don' wanna say it, the only thin's yeh have left now are the clothes off yer back."

The only things left… He had not even had the comfort of waking with _those_. His home was the sky above, his life the first vessel he commanded. Now he was stranded to the world underneath that home, and he lost his first airship to the ravages of war incarnate. No friends on the surface, nothing familiar to him at all. All that remained now were his memories of that life and the pain he had received when it all fell apart. He was not sure which hurt more. Before he knew it, he was practically screaming his tears out of his watery eyes. Others who would have walked past the house without concern stopped in their tracks as the young man wailed and blubbered.

Link fell onto his seat and leaned against the doorframe, hands pressed into his face as his agony continued. He was not sure when he stopped, whether it had been minutes or hours, but when he did, he felt exhausted and hungry. He fell into a gradual silence.

"Feel better?" Meilont asked.

Link sniffed and shook his head. "No," he groaned.

Talein offered him a cup from behind. "Yeh might wanna wash yer mouth out." Link nodded and took the cup. Talein then used a hand to wave off the onlookers in front of his house. "Yer logbook… did yeh need it?"

Link spat out the water in his mouth to one side, feeling better now that his tongue was clean. "No," he replied in almost a whisper. "Not anymore, I guess."

"Well, when yeh feel like it, yeh've still got a hot meal waitin' for yeh." With that, he stepped past Link and disappeared down the road.

Meilont still hovered in front of him, crouched so that she could still look him in the eyes. "What will yeh do now?" she asked.

"I don't know," he confessed, wiping a stray tear away. "Without my ship…"

Meilont's expression changed to a shy smile. "If it comes to it, yeh can always stay here with us."

Unfortunately, the offer did nothing to alleviate Link's melancholy. He merely nodded and slowly got to his feet. Meilont led him back into the house, where she deposited him in the closest chair. She rounded the table to retrieve his plate.

"So… where am I?" he asked as she set it down in front of him.

"Small town we call Whittleton," she answered. "It isn' much, but we're a close folk. Mos' o' the men here work as lumberjacks, so everythin' yeh see is probably made o' wood."

"What… h-how did your father find me?" Link asked, pressing his fingers into his tired eyes.

"He was out lookin' about the plains," Meilont told him as she walked back to the sink. "The forest hasn' been feeling too well lately; a lot o' the trees have been sick. He was lookin' t' see if other areas were also dyin'. Yer lucky he found yeh; if it had been the Bulblins… well…" She spun to him with a bright look on her face. "No need to think about it, right?"

"Yeah…" Link sighed as he picked up a fork to start eating his eggs. Meilont decided to let him be for the moment and returned to washing dishes.

Link had his opportunity to eat in silence. Through all of the chaos and emotion of the day, he had developed an appetite that he had not even noticed until the scene outside. After she finished the dishes, Meilont disappeared upstairs for a moment. Link could hear her moving around and wondered what she was doing as he finished his plate.

"Hey, Link," Talein's voice sounded from behind, startling Link. He turned in his chair as Talein entered. Following him was a smaller man (still quite large compared to Link) wearing a white longcoat. This man's beard, longer than Talein's, was almost snow-white and seemed to compensate for the lack of grown atop his head. "This is Doctor Beld. He's the one who patched yeh up."

"An' no' a momen' t' soon, ah think," Beld said as he stepped forward and dropped a bag heavy with metal utensils on the table next to Link's plate. The sound prompted a worried look from Link. "Ah see yeh've go' yerself an 'ealtha appetite. Tha's good. Kicks the 'ealin' process oot o' bed." Link blinked in confusion, wondering if half the words coming from the doctor's mouth were even proper Hylian.

Meilont jogged into view from the stairs. "Oh, Doctor Beld!" she greeted him.

"Hallooooo, Meilon'," he bellowed at her with his arms wide, almost smacking Talein in the face. "An' how're yeh this good mornin'?"

"Good," she answered as she leapt over the final step. "How does Link look?"

"Eh, who? Link?" Talein tapped the doctor on the shoulder and pointed down at Link. "Oh, ho ho. _Tha_' Link! Well, ah was jus' beginnin' my examination o' 'im. Well, c'mon then, son, take the shirt off."

Link's face grew red. "Wha-what?"

"The shirt, son, the shirt!" Beld replied as he wrenched open the bag. "Din' yeh 'ave yer senses, boe?" Link gulped, slowly peeling away the shirt from his shoulders.

Meilont quickly rounded the table and strode past her father in a rush for the door. "LoveyehDadbebacksoon _byeeeeeee_," she blurted as she disappeared from sight.

"What was _tha'_ about?" Talein wondered aloud.

"Kids these days," Beld moaned as he pulled a glove of thin leather out of the bag. "C'mon now, i's no' the time t' beh shy."

"D-do we have to do this… in front of the door?" Link asked as he hesitantly pulled one arm out of his sleeve.

"Look, son, ah 'ave five broken fingers, twenty seven broken toes, an' sixteen puss-filled bandages t' change in the nex' few hours b'fore lunch," Beld told him. He stopped to fit his hand into the leather glove, which gave an audible groan as he forced his palm inside. When he was satisfied, he held his hand up to show Link what looked like a petrified claw. "Ah don' 'ave the time to beh treatin' yeh like a babeh." Link gave a slow nod as he finished pulling the shirt off. The doctor gave a huff as he fit a finger underneath Link's wrap. "Bruisin' gone down qui' a bit. Either o' yer arms in pain?"

Link shook his head. "N-no…"

"Good," the doctor said as he stepped behind Link. "Ah don' wanna 'ave t' wrap yeh anymore than necessareh. Yeh've a'readeh 'ad enough bad luck up t' now anyway." Link jumped in surprise when the doctor prodded his back. "Tha' hurt?"

"A lit—_Yipe_!" Link replied when the doctor pressed a hand hard against Link's side.

"Well, yeh don' 'ave any broken bones," Beld told him. "Skin's still tender an' slightleh bruised, bu' ah be' i'll 'eal soon enough. Yeh don' wanna beh movin' aroun', so yeh bes' beh stayin' in bed fer a' leas' t'night."

"Thank yeh, Doctor," Talein told him.

"No' a prob'm a' all," the doctor said reaching around Link to grab his bag. "Jus' see 'e gets res'; tha's all there's t' it."

"Understood," Talein said as the doctor left. Then he looked down at Link as the young man put the borrowed shirt back on. "Yeh can use the bed we put yeh in. If yeh need anythin', jus' tell me or Meilont." Link nodded his understanding and stood to walk upstairs.

From there, Link spent the rest of the day in bed. It eased his sore body being in a bed that did not swing nor had a wooden plank making up part of the cushion. He only wished his mind fared so well. For hours, he spent agonizing upon the failures that came about thanks to dereliction of his duty to both the princess and the Skyriders. What would Captain Alfonzo have to say when he realized that the _Island_ _Sonata_ had disappeared from the skies? And what would become of the kingdom itself with the last member of the royal family gone? He could only imagine, but imagining was all it took to bring a fresh tear to his eye time and again. Then, there was the question of the Sorians. What would they do when the _Horizon's_ _Eye_ did not return? What happened to the crew? Could they abandon ship and just ride the Sky Line to the nearest island? Would they be able to save Princess Zelda?

As for his own situation, he wondered what would become of his new life on the surface. The only thing he really knew was how to run an airship. Maybe he would try to find work on a sailing vessel. Yeah, that might have to be it; without any other talents, he would quickly find his life progressing far worse than now. This meant that he would have to look for work once he was up.

Meilont visited him twice during the afternoon to bring him a fresh meal. She also had to point out the small shack in the back of the house where the toilets were. It brought up an interesting point about the houses in Whittleton, at least what Link saw. They were all trees. The trunks, some of which could easily rival the _Grand_ _Sails_ in thickness, were hollowed out for families to live in. He could not help seeing the similarity between Whittleton and Kuruuk Nehai while, at the same time, finding delight in the vast differences between how these people lived compared to the Sorians. Maybe… he could get used to this.

He was sitting up in bed with his eyes cast out the window when Meilont came up the stairs again. She knocked on the doorframe to get his attention. "Can I come in?"

Link nodded. "Sure."

She approached him with a mischievous step, her hands behind her back. "How're yeh feelin'?"

Link sighed. "Better," he told her. He looked down at the sheets covering his legs. "I'm… sorry you had to see me crying earlier."

She shook her head. "It's no' so often a boy cries," she reassured him. "Besides, after what yeh've been through, I think yeh earned it."

"Yeah, but…" Link sighed and looked back out the window. "I don't know what to do now. I… never expected anything like this to happen."

"Well, maybe this will help." Link turned back to her as she offered something to him. He found it to be a book, barely larger than her hand with a leather cover. He took and opened it, finding the pages inside to be blank. "Yer new logbook." His gaze fell upon her again, and she blushed. "I mean… if yeh want it."

Much to his own surprise, Link found himself smiling. "Thank you."


	21. Bullies

Chapter 21: Bullies

…

~~Day 2. I guess.

~~Meilont gave me this journal last night. I suppose she was just trying to help cheer me up. But I really don't know if I can. I've lost practically everything. The Island Sonata's been destroyed. And I've made shore on the surface world. All hope of seeing anything remotely resembling home is gone. And my crew—I don't know if they're alive or not. Talein said that my ship was the only one to fall out of the sky the evening before last. I suppose that can be some comfort; it means that somewhere up there, the crew and passenger of the Horizon's Eye may still be alive. Although what has become of them—I'm not sure if I want to think about it.

~~At the same time, I feel guilty. Now that I've had time to reflect on things, I can't help noticing all the signs that I missed. That dream—I remember Irleen telling me that whatever magic she used to impress my experiences with my crew onto Captain Koroul may have caused that, although I had the dream just the day before. I've spent some of my waking hours struggling to remember anymore dreams that I might've had, but they keep eluding me. It makes me wish I had the knowledge behind the magic. But worse, I wish I had her. And that's just another part of my guilt: the fact that I survived and was found, but she seems to have disappeared without a trace. I can't remember anything before we impacted the ground—I must have hit my head. I want to believe she survived, too, but where could she be?

~~I suppose I'm cond—no, "condemned" is the wrong word. I've been trying to shake the idea of the surface world as a prison. But just repeating the idea of this becoming my permanent home doesn't make it any easier to accept. I've never been long without the feel of a rocking airship beneath me. Now I'll never have it again. I just don't know what to do.

…

After dining on the breakfast Meilont had left on the table for him, Link stepped out of the house to look at the village. The sky above was dulled grey by the constant haze which he had once looked out over the edge of a ship like a sailor dreaming of adventure on the sea. The sun only had half of its power here, and some of the life about the village reflected what must have been the appearance of past generations. The half-brown grass at his feet had grown stunted. Trees on the edge of the village sported dead branches mixed with poor bunches of greenery closer to the top. Bushes here and there had a sickly coloration to them, and some even appeared to have died in the weak shadows of the trees. Having been so miserable the day before, Link had neglected to realize that Whittleton looked about as depressed as he was.

However, as he stood on the doorstep to Talein's house wearing the same clothes as yesterday, he found himself greeted by smiles from the village women and solemn nods of acknowledgement from the men. The size of the men came as a surprise to him; like Talein, they wore massive muscles under their clothes and thick beards on their faces. The women were not so large and wore full-length dresses of earthen shades with the occasional stripe of vibrant color. The children who ran about seemingly without care or conscience simply ignored him, shouting at each other, sharing a world which Link could not begin to piece together. All in all, while Whittleton appeared to be quite desolate and sickly, its people showed a powerful resolve to be happy.

Link had on a closed, brown shirt one size too large for him, but he was thankful that he did not have to explore with his bandages exposed. He also wore a clean pair of cloth trousers which fit more to his skinny frame. He had yet to receive shoes, so he traversed the exposed dirt paths before the house in his bare feet. The ground felt dry and eerily cool to the touch, as if to reveal its part in the growth of the grass around the village. Still, he continued forward, his movements stiff from the pain he felt about his abdomen.

His eyes wandered about the massive tree trunks that the villagers called homes. Although they looked nothing alike, the concept of using trees themselves as houses reminded him of the Sorians. The style in which they lived seemed so close to nature yet in completely different ways. It made his life on airships feel contrived, immoral, with how much wood had to be corrupted in order to fly. Maybe he could learn something from them.

A cool breeze tousled his hair, and he turned in that direction to feel the full force on his face. It had not lasted long, but it felt good. The first breeze he had felt since waking.

"Geddem! Geddem!"

"Take a bite outta _this_, Bulblin swine!"

"Come on, guys! Knock it off!"

"Watch it! Watch it!"

"He's gowin' behin' the twees, he's gowin' behin' the twees!"

The ruckus zipped past Link in a blur, and a stray hand had shoved into his side, leaving him cradling his injury for a moment. He watched a small group of children, all younger than him by at least four years, chase a single child towards a small cluster of leafless trees some distance behind Talein's house. The children in the group wielded sticks, although one appeared to be toting a wooden sword against his fleeing peer. Their commotion appeared to attract a mild curiosity from the nearby older residents of Whittleton, but Link could not help feeling a measure of concern for the child being ganged up on. Taking in a breath to help calm the pain (which actually seemed to make it worse), he started across the grass towards them.

"Stop it! Help!"

"C'mon, Dissal, don' be such a wimp!"

"Wet us hit yeh!"

Link quickened his pace as best he could until he was close enough to see what was happening. The child being chased, a spindly boy wearing an oversized tunic of faded green and brown slacks, had climbed into one of the trees and clung to one of the higher branches out of the others' reach. Among the group were a plump boy swinging the wooden sword seemingly more at the peril of his comrades than his target, a tall boy wearing a bucket on his head and (predictably) unable to acknowledge that the object he whipped with a long stick was actually the tree their prey had climbed, a boy with long hair mounted on the shoulders of another boy whose balance was made worse by the flailing of his dual-stick-wielding rider, and a little girl whose shin-kicking was easily ignored because of poor aim.

"Get down hewe!"

"No!"

"Down? Whaddya mean 'down'?"

"Take the bucket off, stupid!"

"I said stop it!"

"What are you doing?"

Link's question only seemed to reach the plump kid with the sword. Turning to see who addressed them, his sword arm swung down and clobbered the bucket-wearing kid. With a heavy, disorienting _pang_, the kid stumbled backwards and collided with the plump swordsboy. The branch he was armed with flailed into the ribs of the bottom kid of the totem boys. The top boy reeled as the bottom boy lost his balance, and one stick smacked the bucket boy's armored head. Responding with no sense of where the blow came from, the bucket boy swung his weapon into the bare calf of the plump kid. This coincided with a shin strike finally landed by the girl, and the plump boy landed on the ground. The top of the totem boys realized that his steed was heading for the downed plump boy and tried to lean away. The bottom boy threw him off just as he fell, leaving him to trip over the plump boy while the top boy took down the bucket boy with him.

"What are you doing?"

"Retreat!"

The boys stood up and scattered into different directions, the bucket boy tripping over a stump before finally removing his improvised helmet. Link looked around in confusion, wondering how exactly they had managed to defeat themselves.

He felt a tug on his sleeve and looked down. He was greeted by the girl, her large, green eyes sending a shiver of discomfort up Link's spine. "Y-yeah?" he asked.

"Thank you," she replied, giving him a wide grin.

"Uh… yeah…" Link said, scratching the back of his head. "I-I didn't really _do_ anything…"

"I ain' in much a position t' complain," the boy in the tree called down to him. "Whatever gets 'em away."

Link looked up and shrugged, stepping so that he was under the boy. "I suppose. You might want to come down."

"No, I _definitely_ wanna come down," the boy corrected him as his wobbly limbs slowly took him towards the tree trunk. "I think this branch's abou' t—"

The branch under him, at first appearing thick enough to sustain the boy's meager weight, gave way with a _crack_. Link ducked out of the way as the branch swung from the few splinters still holding it to the tree. These detached, and the branch hit the ground just before Link. The boy's legs fell with it, and, just as he was recovering, Link flung his arms out at the sight of the boy falling at him. Link caught him, but the sudden press of even the scrawny boy's mass sent a great deal of pain through Link's back, causing both of them to fall to the ground.

"Dissal!" the girl cried, helping the boy back to his feet. "Are yeh a'right?"

The boy, Dissal, nodded. "I'm okay."

Link let out a hiss of pain that wanted desperately to take the form of words he had heard from many an airman having a bad day. But, somehow, his meek upbringing prevented him from forming the words, so he gnashed his teeth together as he crawled over to the same stump the bucket boy had tripped over.

"Wha' about yeh?" the girl asked as they wandered up to Link.

Link gave a pained nod as he turned to sit. "I'll be all right."

"I think I saw yeh b'fore," Dissal remarked. "Yer tha' boy wha' came out Talein's house t' up-chuck, aren' yeh?"

Link nodded. "Yeah, that was me."

"Yeh feelin' any better now?"

At that, Link sighed. "I don't know."

"Well, yeh mus' be doin' a'right if yer tryin' t' catch me." Dissal held out a hand. "I'm Dissal." He gave the girl a side nod. "Tha's me sister Lura."

"I'm Link," was the older boy's response as he shook Dissal's hand. When he released, he asked, "Why were those other boys chasing you? Did you do something wrong?"

Dissal shook his head. "No, nothin' like tha'. I's… well, i's sorta this game we play."

"Tha' _they_ play," Lura corrected him. "Yer jus' the target."

Dissal gave an irritated groan. "Yeah, suppose she's right. I don' really like playin' b'cause _I'm_ always the Bulblin."

"Bulblin?" Link asked, vaguely remembering Talein using the word the previous day.

"They're the creatures wha' live south here," Dissal replied, pointing a thumb over his shoulder. "Mean mess. They don' much like people, an' they're always attackin' trains an' anythin' wha' tries to cross the plains. Me dad says i's b'cause they like to steal more than try t' live on their own."

"Have they been a problem for Whittleton?"

Dissal shrugged. "Abou' since I was born. They don' attack the town if tha's wha' yer worried fer. Jus' travelers."

Link frowned deeper. "I still don't get the game, though."

"The adults're all 'fraid tha' the Bulblins might attack the town. Been talkin' it fer days now. Bu' we ain' concerned; i's jus' a game. They're the lumberjacks, and I'm the Bulblin."

"That doesn't sound very fair."

"Don' _yeh_ ever play games like tha'?" Lura asked.

"Well… no, not really," Link admitted. "I was always busy with duties, and there weren't a lot of people my age to play with."

"Dyoo-tees?" Lura slurred.

"Wha', yeh mean a _job_ or somethin'?" Dissal asked.

Link squeezed the back of his neck. "Yeah, kind of."

Both children frowned. "Well _tha'_ doesn' sound fun a' _all_," Dissal remarked.

"No, I guess not," Link said as his eyes wandered back over to the tree. From where he sat, he could clearly see the broken branch on the ground. Confused by the coloring, he stood up and walked over to the branch. The bark looked normal enough, but Link saw that the inside was hollow and black. When he prodded it with his foot, he found that the bark barely managed to hold its shape, so he could understand how it had collapsed from Dissal's weight. "What is this?" he asked as Dissal and Lura stepped up beside him.

"I's dead," Dissal said, pointing. Link followed the direction of his finger to the tree's trunk. There, a small splash of almost white stained the otherwise dark bark. "The lumberjacks stain the dead trees so they know not t' cuddem down."

Link glanced up at the rest of the fallen branch and saw the same, hollow blackness where the branch used to be. "What's causing that?"

"Bugs," Lura answered in a disgusted tone.

"The bugs crawl up through the bottom o' the tree an' star' eatin' the wood," Dissal added. "When they finish, they go."

"Dad says tha' they didn' used t' do tha'," Lura continued. "Bu' since the trees're dead, i' doesn' matter."

Link gave the tree a glare of suspect before turning to look at Dissal. "You mean this tree was dead before it was eaten?" he asked.

"No' jus' _this_ one," Dissal corrected. "A bunch o' trees're like tha'."

"They make it hard for ma dad ta support us." Link started and spun to find Meilont, wearing a green dress similar to that of the previous day, standing behind him. She smiled at him. "Good ta see yeh up, Link."

Link swallowed hard. "Y-yeah, thanks," he replied.

She nodded, and the smile disappeared from her face as she glanced up at the tree. "'Where one falls, two rise'. Tha's what the lumberjacks remember when they cut a tree down. Sadly, it's no' what happens these days."

"How come?"

She pointed at the sky, and Link followed her gaze to the haze far above. "Yeh see, trees need three things ta grow," she explained. "Water, soil, an' light. But it's been _years_ since we've seen the sun. Dad has ta travel about the realm lookin' fer places ta harvest trees. Soon, though, there won' be _any_ trees left. No' live ones, anyway."

All four stared at the sky for a while. Link was not sure what the others thought, but he could feel a wave of depression hit him. The haze that had always obstructed his view of the surface world appeared to be the bane of this world, at least for the lumberjacks of Whittleton. He felt troubled by the news that his new home slowly died.

Meilont released an audible sigh. "Well, I bes' be off ta practice now," she said, emphasizing her need with a shake of the large quiver she held over one shoulder.

Link gave her a confused look. "Practice?"

…

_Thunk!_

A shaft of wood protruded from a white, monster-shaped target a good distance across an open range. Meilont readied her next arrow, aimed a long bow almost the same height as her a little higher, and released. With a similar sound, the arrow embedded itself directly between the poorly-drawn eyes of her target. Link awed at the sight, never having seen such a demonstration before.

Dissal and Lura, standing behind her with Link, clapped. "Nice shot, Meilont!" Dissal cheered, much to the irritation of the other young women on the range. Lura elbowed him and indicated the glares they received.

"What's this for?" Link asked.

"Fer protection," Meilont replied as she readied another arrow. "We don' have much problem with the Bulblins, bu' i's bes' ta be safe."

"Is there really that much concern about them?"

Meilont loosed her arrow, but Link's question proved enough of a distraction that the arrow did not hit her target. Instead, it landed in one nostril of the overly-ornate nose of the target next to hers. She aimed a cross glare over her shoulder. "I _like_ archery, too."

Link swallowed hard and took a step back. "S-sorry."

"Maybe yeh should go home, Link," she said, turning back to the range as she readied another arrow. "Make sure yeh don' work yerself too hard."

Link nodded, taking the silent hint not to distract her anymore lest one of those arrows should find real flesh next. He turned and walked away with Dissal and Lura in tow. His eyes scanned across the local grounds, which appeared to be some kind of training place. They were situated quite some distance from Talein's house, close to the edge of the surrounding forest. There appeared to be three separate groups: the archery range, used mostly by women; some kind of practice range, used by some of the smaller men wielding different kinds of wooden weapons against dummies; and a sparring ground, where a bunch of boys appeared to be beating the snot out of each other using weapons similar to those used by the men. Although that last one might just be kids at play, Link rationalized after recalling the scene earlier of Dissal being chased up a tree.

Dissal hid behind the taller Link. Link barely caught this out of the corner of his eye, and he knew why Dissal did this. Among those sparring was the same group that attempted to use Dissal as a practice dummy that morning. They appeared to have formed a camp and horded the weapons of the defeated. Link, Dissal, and Lura watched as they ganged up on two people and pummeled them, swiping their weapons before they left the boys crying in the dying grass.

"What are they doing?" Link asked.

"Bein' bullies," Lura replied with a pout.

Link sighed in response. Living among airmen for most of his life, he knew what it meant to be bullied. He never found the prospect of being a bully too exciting, so he often wondered how to deter a person from behaving like one. On an airship, either a skipper or the Chief Airman of the Deck, along with any of the specialist chiefs, had the authority to tell someone to quit it. Part of Link's problem here, though, was that Whittleton was not an airship. It meant that his status as a lieutenant of a Skyrider vessel held the same meaning as pile of excrement, if not lower.

But, clearly, Link was older and, in a manner, more experienced. That should be a kind of authority they should respect. Believing this to be a good cause, Link took in a deep breath and straightened himself to full height. When he strode, it was with the air of someone about to hand out an order by nailing it to a person's forehead using his bare hand as a hammer: calm and strong.

The gang saw Link approaching. Their faces formed looks of confusion, wondering why this blond kid from earlier was walking towards them with such a stupid gait. Wonder gave way to annoyance very quick, and each one tightened his grip on his wooden sword in anticipation of smacking the hell out of this kid, too, even if he was not armed. Link drew to a stop in an attentive posture, arms at his sides.

"Give them back their weapons." It was a direct order, no room for interpretation unless one wanted his sword shoved in a personally important space. At least, that was the impression Link wanted to give them, making sure the message was received and followed without question.

The three other boys turned to look at the plump boy standing on the pile of stolen goods. The plump boy's head recoiled like someone wrongfully accused of farting in a room. He gave Link an imitation of his stone-cold serious face.

"No."

Link glanced around at the other boys before replying, "I said give the other boys their weapons back."

"I heawd yeh," the plump boy said. "And I towd yeh 'no'."

"This is not a discussion."

The plump boy stepped off the pile, brandishing the wooden sword in his hand. "Who do yeh think yeh awe?" he asked. "Yeh don' scawe me. I'w do what I want. What awe yeh gowin' t' do? Tew meh pawents?"

Link saw one boy, the tall, lanky one who now wore a different bucket on his head, slide off to his right. "Maybe I should," he suggested.

The plump boy sneered. "I dawe yeh."

Without warning, Link felt the blade of the lanky boy's sword slap into his back. His lower back, right about where his bandages began. Pain engulfed Link's senses, and he fell to the ground screaming loud and hard. The boys backed off in horror, surprised by how fragile this tough-looking teenager had really been. They wondered if they might have broken something.

"Wha're yeh li'l motheh-cryin', spi'-swallowin', sacks o' cow puss doin' t' me patient?" came an angry adult's cry across the practice grounds. Link could not be sure who it was. His eyes squinted shut and his voice the loudest thing for what felt like miles, the masculine voice seemed too far out of his mind for him to fully comprehend.

"I's Beld!"

"Run?"

"Wun!"

The boys scattered again, dropping their swords where they stood moments before. Link could not see where they went. In the next moment, he felt a pair of hands on his shoulders.

…

"Ah neveh 'eard o' such a stupid idea," Beld barked from the side of Link's bed. "Goin' t' pick on a bunch o' bullies jus' b'cause yeh think theh respec' someone oldeh. Wha' are yeh on aboot, playin' the 'ero?"

Link gave the sheet covering his legs a downcast stare. "I'm sorry, Doctor."

"Yeah, ah'll be' yeh are _now_," he huffed. "Le' tha' wel' on yer back r'mind yeh o' wha' kind o' shape yer in, boe. Now ah'll 'spec' yeh t' stay inside the nex' day an' le' tha' 'eal. B'cause nex' time yeh go do somethin' so stupid, ah'll be _chainin'_ yeh t' tha' bed."

Link swallowed. "Y-yes, Doctor."

Doctor Beld sighed as he stood up. "Ah don' know wha' i' is, bu' ah feel like ah jus' gave a soldieh an ordeh." As he past Meilont standing in the doorway, he told her, "Make sure 'e stays."

"Sure," she replied. "Thanks."

Then she turned to Link as he settled under the bed sheets. "Wha' happened, Link?"

"I don't want to talk about it," he answered.

"Tha's too bad." She crossed the room and took a seat on the trunk at the foot of the bed. "Because I wanna."

"It was stupid."

She nodded her understanding. "Tha' explains why yer back in bed."

He continued to stare at the ceiling, a little brighter from the somewhat stronger afternoon sun bouncing off the quilt. "They were bullies."

"An' yeh thought yeh could stop them?" Meilont replied with an undertone of humor in her voice.

"Yeah, I guess." He took in a deep breath, sighed it out, and took in another for a moment. "I… don't like bullies."

"Well, _nobody_ likes a bully, Link. But from wha' I saw, yeh came across as one yerself."

Link took a moment of thought before responding. "I guess I hadn't thought of it like that."

She smiled knowingly at him, as if to say, "now you do". "Well, wha'ever yeh meant, it didn' come across right, did it? I think we can safely say tha' yer bad at bein' a bully, Link."

Link chuckled, causing a surge of pain in his abdomen. He paused until the pain subsided. "I wish I knew that sooner."

"Probably bes' yeh learned it at all," she giggled. "At leas' yeh won' do it again."

"Not for a day, at least."

Meilont stood up. "I'll be makin' dinner soon. Do yeh wan' me ta bring it up fer yeh?"

Link shook his head. "No, I'll come down. Just… I'll rest a bit." He grinned at her. "Promise you won't tell the doctor?"

She gave him a helpless smile. "Fer a sad face like tha', I don' think I have much choice."

Link settled his head against the pillow after she left. Being back in his borrowed room gave him a lot of free time to think. Of course, foremost on his mind was his incident with that group of boys. He wished now that he had given his idea of flaunting authority they did not care about a little more. Meilont had been right; there was no other way for him to objectively perceive the flow of the confrontation without the realization that his own actions had been just as defining as a bully as their own, pigheaded attitude towards those beaten kids. It had been childish and petty. Most of all, it had not worked out too well. And now, he was just a little fool.

After he berated himself for what felt like an hour, his tired thoughts turned towards the sight of Whittleton. A village made up of lumberjacks, and yet their stock was either dead or dying. It seemed horrible at first, but when he reflected on how poor that particular tree had looked when Dissal had broken the branch, his assessment jumped up to horrific. The inside of that tree reminded Link of the Undying Storm: dark, and full of danger. He recalled part of his discussion of Meilont the previous morning. She had told him that Talein would travel about looking for other area where plants were dying. He could not help coming to the conclusion that the whole surface world might be dying. The cause seemed obvious; if Meilont had been right, then that haze that he always looked down on had taken the role of killing the trees and endangering the people of Whittleton. It was reasonable enough, but there remained a question.

Where was the haze coming from?

…

~~Just finished dinner with Meilont and Talein. She didn't tell him about what happened earlier, and I find that I'm grateful for it. I think I've had enough people tell me how stupid I've been for today.

~~I'm sitting in my bed now, writing using what light I have left from the setting sun. It feels so strange not being able to feel the full warmth of the sun on my face. The haze I've come to know from looking beneath my feet now feels like it's made a permanent home high over my head. Was I really so d—stupid to not realize what kind of problems it would make for those who still lived down here? Are w—Are we really that ignorant?

~~I've toyed with the idea of setting out and discovering what makes that haze. But I think part of me would rather stay in Whittleton. With her.


	22. Get Over it

Chapter 22: Get Over it

…

~~Day 3.

~~I've spent most of the day in bed.

~~Meilont brought Dissal and Lura to visit me. She told them about my wounds, so they were surprised to find out that my catching Doctor Beld's attention was not as clever an act as they first thought. I really don't know what I was thinking! And I think everyone else I talked with today made me have that same thought over and over again. I've more or less promised everyone that I won't do it again, but I'm not sure what I can do if I ever see those guys again. The way I feel now, I probably couldn't even run away. I might just stay here tomorrow; Doctor Beld says I need to take it easy.

…

~~Day 4.

~~I ache all over. Doctor Beld was giving me a thorough examination today, which appears to include pressing down hard on my wounds. I can barely move; I had to ask Meilont to bring this book since I left it on the desk last night. The doctor says that I still have a lot of bruising; his examination proved that even before he told me. I feel like I know exactly where my pain begins and ends. But he also said that I should be well enough to move soon. I wanted to tell him the chances of that were slim thanks to the exam, but I think I've already caused enough problems for him.

~~Something else, too. I dreamed last night that I was back on the Island Sonata while it fell out of the sky. It seems a little blurry now; it's early into the evening right now. I remember seeing the whistle for the ballast tank pop. The fear—I'm amazed I was able to think so clearly back when it happened. Just recalling it now makes me wonder where I had the presence of mind to run to my cabin while the ship fell apart around me. That part, I remembered, too. I know I had Irleen with me; she was asking me why we had run to my cabin. I threw my spare clothes onto the floor under my hammock, and then—I've forgotten again. This whole day, it felt so clear to me that I could almost feel what Irleen was feeling as we dropped. But, I suppose it's a little too late now.

~~Talein brought me a map of the surrounding region. I guess he thought he'd try to help me find home or something. But I couldn't; the map was just too small, and there is no way to tell where Forelight Island is compared to Skyrider Island, not without one of the ship's charts. Judging from what I saw, though, it looks like the Island Sonata came down in an opportune location. If she had fallen from the sky further south, I might not have made it; most of that area is ocean.

…

~~Day 5.

~~I had that dream again. This time, I think I know what happened just before we hit. I'd jumped into the cot with Irleen, and

A knock at the door interrupted Link, ruining all of the concentration he had placed into remembering the dream he had awoken from. He looked over his shoulder, finding Meilont standing in open doorway. She had been wearing one-piece dresses ever since they had first met, so Link was a little surprised to see her wearing a cloth shirt and baggy breeches, both dyed different shades of green. Her hair was tied back in its usual fashion, but her bangs had also been tied back, giving Link an unobstructed view of her forehead. A scabbard hung from her left hip, complete with the leather-wrapped hilt of a sword. She leaned against the doorframe, a grin on her face and her arms crossed as if she expected something from Link.

"How are yeh feelin'?" she asked.

"I'm doing better," Link answered. "I can move again."

"Great!" she said, pushing away from the frame. She waved for him to follow. "Come on."

Link's expression changed to a confounded stare. "Wh-uh… where?"

…

_Thunk!_ _Thunk!_

Link immediately retreated with a cry of alarm, the wooden abomination nearly rolling him over from the force of the weapon blows on the other side.

"C'mon, Link," Meilont shouted at him, peering around the wooden device. "Yer suppose ta charge _me_."

Link put a foot against one of the device's bare wheels, using the sole of his shoe as a brake. "I can't even _see_ you," he replied. "I-I don't want to run over you!"

"Yer no' gonna run me over if yeh don' do _anythin_'," Meilont argued, disappearing from Link's sight again. "Get yerself ready again. An' don' forget the club."

Link sighed, placing one hand on the horizontal pushing beam and the other on the lever for the large, swinging arm attached to the right side. Although Meilont had mentioned that she had wanted to practice, he had not expected to be the target. She had asked him to man and move the wooden mock-up of a Bulblin (which looked to have been drawn on by the village youngsters, if the lack of consistent proportions as well as the squiggly line art were any indication) while she attacked it with a borrowed sword. He did not expect her to strike hard enough to nearly roll the dummy over him. With his own movements a little sluggish from his injuries, he really was not sure if he should be working the contraption anymore.

Meilont gave the crude drawing of a Bulblin a tap with the sword. "C'mon, Link, charge me."

Link gave another sigh and, taking a step forward so he could put as much power into it as he could, shoved the contraption at Meilont. Then, remembering her last direction, he pushed up on the lever.

_Thud!_ "Ow! Liiiiink!"

"Are you—wah!" Link's compassion distracted him from Meilont's counterattack, and the contraption bucked from the blow Meilont delivered with her foot. Link fell backwards, but he quickly put a foot up to catch the contraption before it rolled over him.

"Link!" Meilont cried as she stepped around the target. "Are yeh a'righ'?"

Link could only grunt as he held back the urge to call out in pain. He did not want to scream as he had before; he was quite certain that Doctor Beld would chain him down to the bed for another outburst. Fortunately, it had not hurt him as much to fall, allowing him to keep a mild amount of composure as he rolled and slowly rose again. He drew in a heavy breath, holding it in until the pain resumed its usual background stabs.

Then he sighed with relief. "I'm okay," he told her with a weak smile. "How about you?"

She frowned at him, her empty hand patting the top of her head. "Bi' o' a knot, bu' nothin' so bad. No' even bleedin'."

"Sorry."

Meilont put her hands on her hips, her sword's handle pressed into the fitted waistband of her breeches. "Hey, now," she told him in a tone weaving between insulted and playful, the grin on her face proving more towards the latter. "I may be a _girl_, bu' I've had me fair share of lumps, too. Migh' even be more 'n yeh've ever had."

"Yeah, maybe," Link replied with a grin. "The last time I got hit in the head, it was with a… hammer…"

His grin faded into a depression, and Meilont watched his eyes fall to the ground. "Wha' is it?"

Link laid back against the ground, his eyes focused on the grey sky above. "I… I was just thinking about…" He pointed. "Things up there."

"Like wha'?"

Link sighed as he started sifting through his memories, looking for examples to give her. His thoughts dwelled on the people whom he had lost. Princess Zelda; Irleen; Line; airmen Leonard, Flower, and Albert; and Captain Koroul and the crew of the _Horizon's_ _Eye_. His best friend and his first crew, a ruler of the kingdom, people of a newly-discovered race. How would it reflect on him for not only failing to help the _Horizon's_ _Eye_, but also losing the Sorian librarian? What would Captain Alfonzo do to him for allowing his crew to disappear?

What would happen to Hyrule without the princess?

"I left everything a mess," he finally told Meilont, although with a volume that spoke more to himself than her. "I don't know what I was thinking, but I've just about screwed up in the worst possible way. And now that I'm down here, there's no way that I can fix it all."

He spent a moment in silence before Meilont leaned into the middle of his vision. "Maybe this _is_ how yeh fix i' all."

Link gave her a confused frown. "What do you mean?"

"Think 'bout it," she replied. "If yeh muddled up so bad up in the sky, maybe the universe gave yeh 'nother chance down here with us. Yeh may think yer bein' punished, bu' _I_ think someone out there's lookin' out for yeh."

Link looked away uncomfortably. He thought that she would not be able to say something like that if she knew what had happened. "I wish I could believe that so easily."

"Why no'?" Meilont asked. "Yer new here; we don' know anythin' abou' yeh. Yeh don' have a reason ta dwell on anythin' above." Link did not reply, so she stepped around and knelt down in front of him. And she reached a hand forward. "Don' worry so much."

Link watched her for a moment, seeing a carefree smile behind that helping hand. He admired her determination to not let him drag her into his doldrums, but if she knew what kind of things he had left behind, she might not be as willing to set it aside. Still, he had to do something. So he took her hand, and she helped him back to his feet.

"So, who hit yeh with a hammer?" she asked him as she turned to walk to the front of the target.

Link gave a weak smile and diverted his gaze as he remembered the grand library under the Sorian's great tree. "A friend I made," he replied. "Just before I fell."

"No' much o' a friend ta hit yeh with a hammer," Meilont remarked.

Link shook his head. "It… well, I'm not sure what it was for _exactly_, but it was something she had to do."

"Can' think o' many reasons ta hit someone on the head," Meilont commented, giving the club-arm of the target an idle smack with the flat of her sword. But before she disappeared from sight, she leaned backwards so she still had eyes on Link. "'Cept maybe ta knock a bi' o' sense inna a certain boy I know."

Link grabbed the contraption again. This time, he managed to move it while Meilont dodged about without kicking it back on top of him. His anxiety eased by her words, Link managed to focus on helping Meilont with training. After a while, he even put himself into it, growling and snarling like a beast as he continued to assail Meilont (although she mentioned that, at best, Bulblins just grunt). Somehow, his whole world just broke itself down into this single moment, almost as if no others existed around them. Just him, her, this wooden abomination, and the grass clearing. All cares gone as if they never existed to begin with. Maybe… Meilont was right, he decided. Maybe falling to the surface was a chance at redemption, although in the eyes of whom could be up for debate for a long time.

Link was not sure how long Meilont wanted to practice. Having spent what felt like a lifetime with her doing just this one thing had given him an interesting perspective on things. How this simple life may just be the sort of thing he needed after a failure as an airship captain. How things like speaking with Meilont and meeting new people could help him forget his troubles. He felt that this exercise had helped him finish his transition to a new life. Through watching her, Link had begun to understand some of the basics to swordplay. And, even further, he believed that he may have helped her improve. After a while, he had begun to spot openings in Meilont's defense and would advance the target until she figured out on her own how to counter it. It had been nothing but silent exchanges, but ones neither of them could mistake for anything else but the want to help.

Meilont eventually collapsed to the ground, chest rising and falling with her frantic breathing, sword dropped into the grass beside her. Link, feeling the same fatigue as her, slowly lowered himself to the ground so that he did not risk provoking his injuries. He sat leaning back on his hands, feet stretched out before him. Not very far away lay the rest of the training grounds, where he had forgotten that tens of adults had taken up practice for the late morning. Or was it afternoon yet. Link glanced up at the sky, but the haze offered no clear answer.

"Mus' be 'bout lunchtime," Meilont commented.

"How can you tell?" Link asked, tilting his head as he continued to look for a hint of the time of day.

"I'm hungry." Link glanced down at her, and she gave him a cheesy smile. "Aren' yeh?"

Link glanced around the grounds again, realizing that a few more people had shown up with baskets of food. "Is that how you tell time here?"

"A'ways the curious one, aren' yeh," Meilont answered as she sat up. "We have clocks, too. Bu' they don' do yeh much good when you can' see 'em."

Link shook his head. "It's just… this place is so _different_. It throws me a bit."

"No' like yeh won' get used to it. I can' think o' a better place ta be."

"Except for how it is now."

Meilont lost her smile. "Wha', yeh mean the dead trees an' such? Believe it or no', Link, Whittleton has survived fer well over a hundred years. Thin's'll get better."

"But how long have these trees been dying?"

Her gaze fell to the ground as she thought. "Since before I was born, maybe."

Then she delivered a blow to his exposed shoulder. "D'ow!" Link shouted, covering the shoulder with his opposite hand. "What was that for?"

"Yer gettin' me down, Link!" Meilont accused him as she stood. "Yer a'ways mopin' abou' like it'll do yeh good ta think o' thin's that make people depressed!"

"I've—" Link broke off as he tried to stand, his words choked back by the pain in his abdomen. He slowly worked his way to his feet, his breathing picking up for a moment as he fought to keep the throbbing sensation of his injuries from forming into screams of agony. After getting it under control, he said in a calmer voice than he intended to use, "I've just had my life _changed_, Meilont. I'm constantly trying to adapt to things, but I just can't _accept_ the fact that this village is in trouble."

Meilont's face formed a deep scowl. "An' wha' do _yeh_ plan ta do abou' it?" she asked. She spoke with heat in her voice, having lost the playful edge she had been using up to that point.

Link was taken aback, drawing a step away from her in surprise. "I-I…"

Meilont stared at him for a moment, then broke her mood with a sigh. "It doesn' do much good ta think abou' thin's yeh can' fix," she told him, crossing her arms. "Yeh can only accept 'em. _Only_."

Link shook his head. "But that's not _fair_."

Meilont nodded. "Yer right. So wha'? Better ta be somewhere yer wanted, isn' it?"

Link's mouth slacked open. He felt his stomach churning with guilt. Along with maybe a touch of hunger, but definitely mostly guilt. One hand idly raked the hair on the back of his head, and his gaze dropped to the ground. "I-I'm sorry, Meilont. I just…"

Meilont stepped forward. Link braced himself for another punch, hoping she would strike anywhere but his face; it would definitely hurt, although he probably deserved it there most of all. However, he felt her arms gently wrap around him. "I know yeh don' wanna be here, Link," she whispered to him. "Bu' isn' it enough tha' _I_ wan' yeh here?"

Link's face glowed a soft scarlet. His arms rose in a hesitant manner as he wondered if he should return the hug or not.

But Meilont pulled away before he could. She gave him a shy smile, her own face quickly approaching the color of her hair. "Are yeh done mopin' _now_?"

…

Link could never be done moping, but it would be the last thing he wanted mention to Meilont. For now, he decided to keep his depressing thoughts and questions to himself.

After a quick lunch, Meilont left Link back at the house while she set off to practice more with her bow. Link finished up not long after her. His intentions of returning to his borrowed room gave way to his curiosity, and in only the blink of an eye, he found himself standing at the small cluster of trees behind Talein's house. The tree whose limb had been broken by Dissal's frantic climb to safety succumbed to much more hardship in the past couple of days. Whereas there had only been the single break, that break had sprouted jagged, black fingers of rot which had grown down the trunk of the tree. The broken branch on the ground had nearly been rendered a pile of black ash, slowly disappearing with the frail breeze. This tree was falling apart, and yet the other trees around it, aside from the uncharacteristically bare branches, looked perfectly normal.

Link stepped closer to the nearest, intact tree. Laying a hand over the white stain, he felt that this one was, indeed, hollow as the open one. He could tell when he pushed his hand against the trunk, feeling feeble bark give way while what little wood remained gave an unhealthy crackle. From a distance, it had been hard to tell how sickly these trees had been. The lumberjacks of Whittleton must have done something similar before they marked this small patch.

It troubled him. Although the trees being dead probably meant that his wellbeing among the people of Whittleton was in similar jeopardy, that did not feel like the reason it caused his concern. Somewhere in his gut among the bruising and the soreness that had vexed him these past few days, the subtle churn of intuition spoke to him. It said that this was all wrong, that the world down here should not be like this. Of course, he could not possibly know this from just living here for five days, and that was something he understood. Only a handful of lifetime experience backed his instincts, all of them born of existence above this haze, far in the clouds.

His eyes scanned the horizon above the trees. He saw, towards what he had figured to be west, that the haze somehow looked darker in that direction. Could it be… could it be possible that the haze was terrestrial?

Something sounded in the distance, a deep wail he had never heard before. Link's gaze shifted about until his eyes fell upon smoke towards the south of the town. As he started for it, he dismissed his initial thought that a fire had broken out. The smoke was grey and puffed, like that which tended to come from an airship's steam engine. But… Link found it impossible. From what he understood, there could not be an airship down here. So what was the engine running? His pace picked up as he saw others running towards the source of the steam. A crowd had gathered near the steam, but they appeared more focused on something away from the source. This gave Link ample room to clamber onto a wooden stage which looked to have been built a long time ago, if the warping of its boards were any indication.

What he saw left him in awe. A large, long cylinder, likely the boiler for the whole engine, had been mounted on four sets of wheels, painted a faded black that had chipped away enough to show Link thick steel underneath. The front of the cylinder was capped by a gold, winged form supporting a single triangle bearing the number "17" in a mechanical-looking script. Steam from an idling engine wafted from a wide tube at the top. At the back of the cylinder, a man wearing a blue uniform leaned out of an open cabin space, his face covered in soot.

This man jumped out of the train as he watched Link approach the boiler, revealing his great height. "Ya don' wanna venture too close there," he warned Link as he approached.

"Sorry," Link answered, withdrawing his hand. Still, he looked up and down the black hulk of steel before him. "This is an amazing engine. I've never seen one like this before."

"Ya 'aven'?" the man replied, a confused look on his face. "Goddesses above, 'ave ya never _seen_ a train b'fore?"

Link found his awe replaced by pure delight. "_This_ is a train?"

"Aye, ya can be sure," the man told him. "Ol' Seventeen's the fastest on the tracks, tha' she is."

"Amazing," Link said, lost in his own little world of wonder. "I never expected to see where it came from."

The man's face twisted itself further in confusion. "Yar no' from 'roun' these parts, is ya."

Link shook his head, finally turning to look in the blackened face of this man. "No, I'm not."

"I 'ad a feelin'," he answered with a grin. He held out a hand. "The name's Luggard."

Link offered his hand. "I'm Link."

"Where're ya from?"

Link pointedly glanced up at the sky. "There."

Luggard looked up. "Ah, the sky kingdom, is ya? Wha' is ya doin' down _here_?"

"It's a long story."

Luggard glanced over his shoulder. "Prob'ly go' plen'y o' time."

Link leaned over to follow his gaze. He watched as the people of Whittleton unpacked a bunch of small crates from some of the cars hooked to the engine. "What is all that?"

"Some supplies from Library Town," Luggard told him. "Been a bit o' a poor spell for all these lumberjacks 'ere, it 'as. Don' thin' it might improve much, either."

"'Library Town'?"

Luggard turned back to Link and nodded. "Where the royal family used t' live. When people moved up t' the sky, there wasn' much use for the cas'le 'cept t' make it a library. Ergo, people jus' call it 'Library Town'."

Link frowned. "Why does Whittleton need so many supplies?"

"They ain' been able t' support themselves very well la'ely," Luggard told him as he led Link back to the cab. "Wha' with all this dead forest 'n all, it's a miracle they've lived for _this_ long, it is."

Link's gaze hovered over his view of Whittleton on this raised platform. Granted, the town appeared to have a gloomy atmosphere, but, somehow, he seemed to have missed all of the ruin that some of the houses had fallen into. Near the platform, a few trees which appeared to be large enough to support families looked to have collapsed some time ago. Grass had given way to bare dirt. And some people wandered about wearing little more than rags for clothes. It felt as if the fortune of living with Talein and Meilont had hidden the true sorrows of Whittleton.

"She smiles so much…"

"Wha'?"

Link shook his head, having not meant to utter that statement. "N-nothing."

Luggard nodded and pointed. "'Ere comes payment now."

Link watched as a number of men carrying bundles of lumber climbed onto the platform down at the end where people still unloaded supplies. "Right, I suppose they _would_ pay with lumber."

"No' t' quota t'day, though. This forest's been gettin' worse 'n worse lately."

"It's the trees dying."

Luggard nodded. "Lack o' sun'll do tha'. Often wondered meself if we jus' ain' doin' enough t' 'elp."

"What do you mean?"

But the engineer just shrugged. "A dumb theory I 'ad 'bou' a year ago."

"What is it?"

Luggard hesitated for a moment, a look of indecision showing through his dark face. "Well… ya know this 'aze is wha' kills the trees, right?"

"Yeah."

"I been travelin' 'roun' on Ol' Seventeen for a good number o' years now. And I thin' I might've seen somethin'." He pointed over Link's head, prompting the younger boy to turn towards the west. "If ya look, the 'aze gets darker tha' way. I been on the other side o' this forest 'ere, 'avin' t' cut through the Snow Realm t' get t' the stations on the other side. From the north, the south looks thicker. From the west, the east looks thicker. Ya see where I'm goin' with this, right?"

Link nodded. "You think the source is to the west of Whittleton."

Luggard nodded, "Smar' guy."

"So if that's where the haze is coming from, why not just go there and try to stop it?"

"Ain' tha' easy, Link. Over in tha' direction's the Lost Woods, tha' is."

Link tilted his head. "The Lost Woods?"

Luggard nodded. "A cursed wood. People been goin' in it for years. If yar lucky, ya come back out same way ya go in. And there's 'posed t' be some 'orrible creatures in those trees, there is. I seen someone been mauled by somethin' with long claws, I 'ad."

"Is there anything in the forest which could cause that? Some kind of monster, maybe?"

Luggard shrugged. "If there is, I ain' one t' find out."

Link looked out towards the front of the locomotive. His eyes followed the tracks into the distance for a moment before he turned back to Luggard. "Does it cost anything to ride?"

"A pretty rupee, a' least. 'Ard t' get any travelin' done these days, wha' with the Bulblins 'n all."

"The Bulblins attack the train?"

Luggard took a step towards the engine. One finger pressed against a silver scratch in the paint. "This ain' a beau'y mark, Link. They attack everythin' tha' _moves_."

"Luggard!" shouted another man wearing the same, blue uniform as Luggard. Luggard turned as the man, a thicker build than the engineer, signaled to him. "Ge' 'er star'ed."

"Go' it!" was Luggard's reply. He turned back to Link and slapped the young man's shoulder. "Nice t' meet ya, Link. Ever ge' the pence for a ride, jus' remember Ol' Seventeen."

Link nodded as he watched Luggard climb into the cab.

…

~~It's been a long day. I forgot the dream. It's frustrating. So far, these dreams have been causing me nothing but trouble, and I wish I could stop them before I go mad.

~~I've been contemplating the town's situation lately. If Luggard is right, that the haze may be coming from something to the west of Whittleton, then maybe there's something that can be done. I suppose one obstacle stopping me is the forest, the "Lost Woods" as Luggard called them.

~~And I suppose that I'll need some money, too. But if something can be done about the haze, then someone has to do it. Maybe I—

Frantic pounding from below caught Link's attention. He could hear Talein shouting from outside, too. He dropped the quill on the desk and slowly stood.

However, by the time he hauled himself to his full height, Meilont smacked a hand against the doorframe as she leaned in. The sound startled Link, and he caught the wild look about her, the wide eyes, disheveled hair, and heavy breathing that could have only come about if she had been running with all her might.

"W-what's going on?" Link asked, fear tingeing his voice.

Meilont have to catch her breath before responding.

"Link! We're under attack!"


	23. Where Legends Call

Chapter 23: Where Legends Call

…

"But, I thought you said the Bulblins _didn't_ attack Whittleton!" Link called after Meilont, who had run down the stairs faster than him.

"Tha' because I _believed_ it," Meilont replied in a rushed voice. "They appear ta have changed their minds. Now hurry."

Link grunted under the strain of having to move his injured body in a hurried manner. His muscles were stiff from all of the training and exploring he had done earlier that day. He kept moving, though. The effort left him hunched at the base of the stairs, trying to take breath into a body plagued by constant throbbing. His eyes scanned the kitchen, but he could barely make out the large table and the staircase in the soft light produced by the candle sitting on the edge of the table closest to them. "Why?"

"How d' _I_ know?" Meilont told him as she moved under the stairs. There, she wrenched open the lid to a chest, banging it against the wall. Her arms dug through the contents (which sounded like a bunch of metal tools to Link) until she pulled out her sword and the same double-bit axe Talein had been carrying when they first met. The axe looked curious, though; Link recalled the handle being longer. It was not until Meilont worked it when Link realized that the handle had a joint in the middle, allowing it to fold up on itself. She double-checked that the latch on the handle was secure before she set it next to the chest so that she could fasten her sword around her waist.

Seeing her reach for her bow and quiver set next to the chest finally put the gears of thought in Link's head into motion. "W-wait a minute," he said, suddenly dismayed by the way she armed herself. "Are… are you getting ready to _fight_?!"

"O' _course_ I am!" she replied in an annoyed tone, buckling her quiver to her back. "I'm a' the right age. I _have_ ta be out there!"

Link's mind blanked. He wanted to tell her not to go, that she could not go. But he could not justify it. As he watched her test the string on her bow, he realized that he _helped_ this attitude. All that practice, practice that he did not believe that she would ever have to put to the test… She really _was_ about to go into battle!

"Don' think I'm leavin' yeh unprotected," she told him, reaching back into the chest. Link craned his neck to see, but his eyes only fell on the item once she offered it to him. It was a dagger. Ornate, to be sure, with a crimson hilt and matching sheath capped in silver shaped like leaves. But as Link took it, he found it to be light, as if it was made of air. He pulled the blade, finding it to be a little worn. "Was ma mother's. She left i' here when she wen' ta Library Town. Don' lose it."

"B-but _I_ don't know how to _fight_!" Link argued, the color draining from his face.

"Yer no' gonna fight, Link," she told him as she slammed the lid down on the chest. "The woods should be safe for yeh 'til we take care o' the problem. Yeh'll be goin' with the children, the older folk, an' the injured."

"Meilont, hurry!" Talein's voice called from the front door.

Meilont hefted the axe onto her shoulder. "C'mon. We have ta hurry." Link clutched the dagger against his chest with both hands and hustled after Meilont out the front door.

Outside, in a place where one could only tell the time of day with a clock, night made a definite difference on the town. To Link, it felt as if something had swallowed all light. Talein stood near the doorway, holding a small oil lantern in one hand. The orange flame cast strong against one half of his body, while the other half simply existed as part of the darkness. Similar dots of people wandered around the tree houses. To Link's left, the south part of town, a line of torches had been set up on the inside of a wall made of logs that Link had never seen before.

"Where'd _that_ come from?" he asked Talein.

"Defense wall," Talein told him. "We pu' it up in case o' attack."

Link was still at a loss for the presence of something so big being put up without him noticing. "W-when?"

"'Bout five minutes ago, when we found out the Bulblins were attackin'." He pointed in the opposite direction of the wall. Link followed his line of sight to a collection of lights forming among the trees of the woods to the north. "Go with 'em. Yeh'll no' be much good here."

"Link!" The call came from the direction of the wall. Turning, he saw Dissal and Lura running towards him. Dissal held a lantern up so that Link could see his face. "Yer goin' ta the woods, right?"

"Uh…" Link glanced back at Talein and received a cross look. "Y-yeah, I'm going."

"Good. We have a light. Yeh can follow us."

Link spun to say something to Meilont, but he met a concentrating look as she focused on the bow in her hand. Although he wanted to stop her from fighting, he still could not find a valid reason as well as the words to put that reason before her. Lura and Dissal each took one of his hands, and he found himself being dragged away before he could think of anything.

The walk to join those hiding in the woods seemed treacherous to Link. With the deep darkness before him obscuring everything, he found himself glad that Dissal had a lantern to light the way. Still, they had to go quite a way to reach the others, such was their progress into the woods already. It was not for a few minutes after crossing into the woods that they finally reached the group. Link was amazed by how quickly the people of Whittleton had moved to get ready. Not only did they have a large wall in the middle of the town standing mere minutes after discovering the impending attack, but most of the elderly and injured had already made quite some progress into the woods. They appeared well-prepared, too; those who were injured but looked well enough to fight held smaller weapons, swords, knives, or just some rusty chain, in preparation for the defense line behind them to break. One man near Link and his companions, a leaner man about as tall as Talein and wearing bare wrapping around his mid-section, appeared to be sporting a blacksmith's work hammer. Link also saw that an elderly woman, supporting what he assumed was her crippled husband, wore a dagger at her side similar to the one Meilont had given him.

In fact, the thought of the dagger prompted him to pull it from its sheath to look at it again. It glowed brighter in Dissal's lantern light, but Link could only find himself frowning at it. Even if he could not use it, he wished he had a real weapon and not some old dagger that looked to have been poorly cared for. At the same time, he feared having to use this, as it meant that those who stayed behind to defend their homes and families had failed.

"A'righ' there, Link?"

Link searched the faces around him until he saw Doctor Beld among them. "Are you here to keep an eye on the injured?"

"Well, they won' take care o' themselves," the doctor pointed out in an irate tone. "'Ow's yeh wounds?"

"Doing better," Link nodded. "I can move much more now."

"Din' stah' nothin' 'ere now," he replied, removing a fresh roll of bandage cloth from the bag he held. "I won' beh savin' yeh."

"I'll be all right."

"S'wha' I though' a few days 'go," he mumbled as he walked away.

"I don' think he's gonna forgive you for tha' whole thin' before," Dissal commented.

Link sighed. "That's fine; I'm not sure I've forgiven myself for it."

"Yer no' mad a' yerself, are yeh?" Lura asked.

"Disappointed mostly. I'll be fine," Link answered while his eyes wandered about. The group had halted among the trees, making a clear line of sight on someone difficult with all of the vegetation around, dead though it was. There were no particular comforts nearby; people either leaned against the trees or sat on the ground. No one carried much more than the clothes on their backs, the only exception being Doctor Beld and his clanking instrument bag. Children huddled together or around an adult with wide eyes, not the sort you find on a frightened child but on a person maintaining a good vigil. The townsfolk around him stood tall (well, those that could stand on their own, at least) with weapons in hand in case. Link could feel the charge of duty, the heat of anticipation, in the air around him. He never imagined that all of their practice and preparation had gone this far. It was almost like being surrounded by airmen again.

But he noticed something. Granted, he did not quite know all of the residents in Whittleton (he was lucky enough to remember the chief officers on the _Grand_ _Sails_; such was the power of his memory), he still could not shake the feeling that someone was missing. It eventually came to him, but not before he started recognizing other faces in the group. More specifically, he recognized the boys that had chased Dissal up a dead tree three days ago. One, two, three…

One was missing. While three of the four huddled around an old woman handing out baked snacks, Link found that their leader, the plump boy, was nowhere in immediate sight. For confirmation, he nudged Dissal's shoulder. "Hey, Dissal? Where's that boy at?"

Dissal gave Link a confused look, holding up the lantern to better see his face. "What boy?"

"The one I tried commanding a few days back. The pudgy one."

"Yeh mean Gwait?" Lura asked.

Link was not sure, so he only gave a shrug. "His friends are over there."

Both followed the direction of his nod. Upon discovering that the same boy Link referred to was missing, all three of them looked about the area.

"Gwait's gone," Dissal finally said. "Bi' rare o' 'im no' ta be aroun' 'is goons." Link turned back towards the town to see if any more people were joining the group. But only the darkened silhouettes of the surrounding trees framed the small, glowing form of the defense wall in the distance.

"Look," Lura said, tugging the sleeve on Link's borrowed shirt. Link's eyes traced the direction she indicated with a finger. Barely visible between the dead trees over quite a distance from the group, he saw a handful of sparks flying like the flint trigger on an unloaded pistol. It seemed like a miracle that Lura had noticed it at all; for anyone else who did not know it was there, their eyes might simply pass over the quiet flashes. "Coul' _tha'_ be him?"

"I… suppose," Link replied.

"Maybe we shoul' take a look," Dissal said. "Jus' in case."

Link's face scrunched as he looked back to the group in search of Doctor Beld. As much as he did not like Gwait, he did not want to abandon the boy in case he was hurt. So if he was going to go searching for him, he did not want the doctor to see him sneaking away.

Not finding the doctor in sight, he turned to Dissal and whispered, "I'll go look."

"We're comin' with yeh," Lura replied.

Dissal gave her a worried look. "Who? Yeh _and_ me?"

"He migh' need help," Lura told him in a factual tone.

Link pursed his lips, not sure if he should take them along. Certainly, the woods were safe; they _had_ to be if half of the town was hiding in them. There was also his condition to consider. Although Link had regained enough mobility that it did not hurt him to walk somewhere, he might not be able to help if trouble started. Dissal and Lura could be extra hands if it came to something that might provoke his injuries. Still, there was a problem.

"What about your lantern?" Link asked Dissal. "We can't have it lit, or else people will see us. And you can't put it out because you might not be able to light it again in the dark."

"Nothin' ta worry abou'," Dissal whispered back.

He held up the lantern for Link to see. Unlike the box-shaped lamps used on the _Island_ _Sonata_, this lantern was cylindrical with a handle at the top. Light peered through slots in the metal cylinder, eight in total. Link watched as, one by one, Dissal slid a tab at the top of each slot. A plate moved to fill each slot, blanking out the lantern until Dissal had only one slot open. He held the lantern so that the single beam of light traced along the ground in the direction of the sparks. He mouthed "follow me" to Link and began walking with Lura in close tow. Link glanced back at the rest of the group to see if anyone was watching them. Finding their escape free of wandering eyes, he followed the two children.

Moving through the woods seemed worse than when he first entered. Dissal led his sister and Link through thorn bushes without a second thought, while Link could feel sharp branches scratching his skin through his trousers. A couple of times, Link had to tell Dissal to slow down because something had snagged his clothes. In addition to that, moving through the quiet woods without all of the ambient light around them gave Link a sense of foreboding, like something was about to happen. These woods were nothing like the port-side arboretums he had seen while traveling on the _Grand_ _Sails_. There was no frightened bird flight, no scurry of little animals about them while they walked, like the creatures that had lived in these woods had disappeared long ago. Of course, that would only make sense. What, besides the residents of Whittleton, would want to live in such a dry place?

They finally happened upon a small clearing. Their light fell upon Gwait, the plump boy, who dropped the lantern he had been frantically trying to ignite while jumping to his feet. Eyes wide, he grabbed for a sword on the ground and attempted to pull it.

"Easy, Gwait," Dissal said. "I's me."

Gwait's eyes narrowed as he tried to look past the lantern light. "Dissaw?"

"What're you doing out here?" Link asked.

"I, uh…" Gwait faltered as he attempted to think. "I was… expwowin'. Yeah."

"Explorin'?" Lura asked.

"Looks more like yeh go' los'," Dissal pointed out.

"Come on, let's get back to the group," Link told him.

"No, wait," Gwait said, picking up his lantern. "We can' go. Bwing yew wight hewe. I found somethin'."

At Gwait's beckoning, the trio followed him to the other side of the clearing. Pushing aside a pile of dead branches with a foot, he showed them a large, wooden disk which reminded Link of a barrel cover. But, unlike the wooden goods around the town, which used nails to keep themselves together, Link saw that this particular work, five slats of lumber cut into a vaguely circular shape, was held together with some kind of adhesive. He continued to watch with Dissal and Lura as Gwait set his sword on the ground and pulled up the closest edge of the disk. Underneath, darkness filled in a hole which was barely wide enough for an adult to pass through.

Dissal suddenly took in a sharp breath. Lura reached over to cling to Link's sleeve. Noting their reaction, Link glanced at the lid of the hole. On the underside, there was some sort of decoration, a seemingly mindless splash of yellow paint. Gwait nodded at them, his face particularly grave for someone so young.

"Yeh see wight. Buwbwins."

Link exhaled after taking a sharp breath as Dissal had done. He noticed his heart softly thudding against his chest, as if the revelation had coaxed it into existence. After another breath to calm himself, he said, "We have to tell the others."

"We can' weave it," Gwait pointed out. "We'w nevew find it again. I's too dawk."

"We can leave a lantern here," Dissal pointed out. "Gwait, can yeh ligh' yers?"

"Yeah," Gwait replied, dropping the lid. The lid landed with a soft thud.

Then it growled.

The four looked back down at it in confusion, wondering what had prompted that sound.

Then something jumped out of the hole, sending the lid flying into Gwait's face. Dissal, Lura, and Link leapt backwards in surprise as a squat figure recovered from its powerful vault. Their eyes fell upon a hunched figure with green skin partially hidden under a patchwork tunic of grey scrap. The creature's face was oblong and squeezed as close to its button nose as possible, dominated mostly by the large horns growing from the sides of its head. Its eyes glowed red in Dissal's lantern light, almost as bright as its yellow teeth as it slowly opened its wide maw in a gleeful smile.

Link snapped out of his shock and immediately yelled, "Run!"

But the Bulblin acted first. Unable to get a full swing in right away, it brought up one lanky arm as hard as it could and, with a large club of battered wood, caught Link in the back as he turned to run. Link hollered in agony as he collapsed to the ground, nearly falling on top of Dissal and Lura. His vision swam as a new source of pain aggravated his current condition. One hand clawed the dirt as he braced for another beating.

Instead, he heard Lura scream. Looking up, he found that the creature had stepped around Link's collapsed form. It held Lura by one arm while she frantically tried to beat off the hand with her little fist.

"Leave her alone!" Dissal's scream was met with an irritated grunt as the club clobbered the boy in the side of the head, sending him spilling across Link's legs in a motionless heap. Link felt around the ground for something, _anything_ he could use as a weapon.

"YAAAAAH!" The shout came out of the darkness towards where the hole had been. Link felt the foot of another combatant brush his out-stretched arm, nearly crushing it. He jerked the arm away, getting a glimpse of Gwait as he swung the sword down on the Bulblin.

Still sheathed.

Using the wrong end.

With aim befitting a one-eyed man cursed by a lack of near-sighted focus.

The top of the sheath landed on the Bulblin's horn, prompting a confused grunt as it stared at the shimmering hilt hovering about the side of its head. It turned to look over its opposite shoulder, pulling some of the blade out. It released Lura and spun so as to put momentum into the club it aimed at Gwait's head. The spin ripped the sword from its sheath with a metallic slip, dropping into the grass near Link. Gwait, seeing the blow the Bulblin was about to deliver, ducked while taking a step back to avoid the hit. Lura immediately disappeared into the bushes.

Link's hand found the sword.

"Missed me!" Gwait taunted as he stepped backwards again to dodge the Bulblin's return swing. The swing brought the club's head down almost in contact with Link's skull, and Link slipped his legs out from under Dissal to roll away so he could avoid another wild strike. The Bulblin gave an angry growl as it swung again, stunning its own arm after the dodged attack rammed into a tree.

Link got to his feet.

"Miss—_gyah_!" Gwait cried out as a thorn bush snagged his retreating leg. Ripping his leg free cost him mobility as he flopped to the ground with a cry of pain.

The Bulblin towered over him, club raised high above its head as it readied what would surely be a killing blow. Gwait's face froze, suddenly contemplating his last moments without even an attempt to protect himself.

"HIYAAAAA!"

The Bulblin released a sudden scream of pain as a blade of metal sliced across its back. Its spin was clumsy when it turned to find a very dangerous Link, figure cast in shadow by the fallen lantern somewhere behind him, swing Gwait's misused sword back at it with a forward step that put more power into the blow. The second slice ripped through the Bulblin's tunic and spattered purple blood into the air as metal met flesh. The wound went deep, a clean cut from its left hip to its right shoulder. The force behind Link's strike knocked it backwards onto the same thorn bush that had nearly claimed Gwait's leg. Its eyes met the web of bare branches above for a moment.

Then the red glow in its eyes faded.

Link stood there for a moment, heart pounding against his ribs so much it hurt. But his body, energized as it was with some newfound will, bowed to his need to not be in so much pain. At first, he could not quite comprehend the scene that had just played out before him. The one who tore open the Bulblin's body… had that really been _him_? _He_, who could not even bring himself to smash a bug on his plate? Who had never even handled a weapon, much less a _sword_, before in his life? Who could never raise his voice or his hand in anger? It all felt so vague, like a dream one struggles to remember after mere moments of waking up. What happened to reality? Did it just… forget him for a moment?

As he looked on the dead aggressor, he swallowed back the urge to throw up. He had seen men's flesh burned by a snapped stay, crushed by a falling timber, and skewered by a miss-handled knife. No one ever came upon such brutality, such _violence_, on an airship. Up until now, he had always believed that, when a fight broke out, the conflict would resolve itself fast enough for the next round of drinks to hit the tables.

Death… Like this… By another using a weapon…

By _him_ using a weapon…

His stomach churned, and he finally had to direct his eyes away. They fell upon the sword still in his hands, given a sinister sheen by lantern light. He watched droplets of blood fall from the sharp edge of the blade only to meld with the dark, withered grass at his feet. The sight disgusted him, and he bent a knee so that he could wipe the blood on the ground. Maybe with it, the feeling of revolt for himself.

And he met Gwait's eyes. For the longest time, they stared at each other, both revealing their fear to each other as if to eventually switch places. Link felt particularly horrified. Not only had he killed another living being, but he had done it before a child younger than him. What did that say about Link? That he was a killer? That making him mad was a sure way to commit suicide? He expected Gwait to start spitting out every vicious thing that a child could say to someone that had just scared them senseless. Link expected anger. Fear. Revulsion. Please, Gwait, don't leave me in suspense, he thought at the younger boy.

What am I?

"… h-hewo." The word came out complicated by Gwait's usual speech, and Link could not be sure what it meant. He must have stopped breathing at some point because the word felt like it drew Link's breath out, forcing him to inhale. What was Gwait trying to tell him?

Gwait swallowed. He stood back up with his weight mostly on his uninjured leg, giving the Bulblin corpse next to him enough of a passing glance to convince him to step away. Where he moved surprised Link; he took up the space beside Link, close to the sword in Link's left hand. Standing eye-to-eye with the older stranger, he had only this to say.

"Yeh saved me."

The full impact of Gwait's lone word finally hit him. To be thought of such… Even as he found his own actions deplorable enough that he wished he had never taken them.

Somehow, from there, everything just started pulling itself together in his mind. And he realized something so vital to his life that he could not believe his own stupidity at not seeing it before. It was the reason Meilont went to fight. And until he fell from the sky, it was the reason he had chased after the _Horizon's_ _Eye_. As he rose to full height (short though he may be), he felt his spirit gather from out of nowhere as the pure impulse to protect all he had in his life finally reached his heart.

"Link!" Lura's call snapped him out of his contemplation, and he spun around until he saw more lantern light wandering through the trees. She stepped out first, looked about the clearing, and scrambled over to Dissal's twitching body. "Doctor Beld, hurry! Dissal's hur'!"

"Ah'm comin'!" Beld hollered back as he stomped into the clearing flanked by two able-looking men, one of them the lean man wielding the blacksmith's hammer. Beld stepped over to Dissal as Lura helped him sit upright. After a quick examination, he dug into his bag while surveying the scene. "Wha' the 'ell 'appened 'ere?" he demanded from Link.

"It was amazin'!" Gwait declared as he hobbled over to Beld. "Fiwst, the Buwbwin jumped out o' the howe, an' he hit ma face with the wid. Then he hit the taw boy, an' he few. Then he gwabbed Wuwa, so I hit him with ma swowd. Then-then…" Gwait's voice started to give to hyperventilation under his excitement.

"Easeh," Beld demanded, holding up a hand to stop him. "Wheah's the 'ole?"

How could he be so weak?

"Over there," Lura pointed.

The two other men stepped through the crowd and examined the hole. "This is incredible," the hammer-wielder commented in an exhausted tone. "I' prob'ly goes back as far as the fron' o' the village. When di' they pu' this t'gether, do yeh s'pose?"

"If i's deep 'nough, could'a been years ago, an' we wouldna noticed," the other man answered. "We gotta close i' off an' star' searchin' fer more."

The hammer-wielder looked around until he saw Gwait's discarded lantern on the ground. "Does tha' ligh' have oil in it?"

"Y-yeah," Gwait replied.

"Tha'll do then." The hammer-wielder, setting down his own lantern, stepped over to pick up Gwait's. He pulled some kind of device Link could not quite see and struck the lantern into light. "We c'n se' fire in this one here an' seal it. The smoke'll have ta come out o' the others if there are any."

How could he be such a coward?

"We'll have the others with us fan out ta find the res'," the other man agreed, pulling out what looked like a water pouch.

"The lid's over here," Lura said, scampering past them to retrieve the hole's covering.

"Good," the hammer-wielder said. "We'll wedge i' in on 'em." He raised the hand holding Gwait's lantern as he approached the hole. It was a miracle that his swing did not put out the light as he threw it into the hole. Following the crash of glass, the other man began dumping the contents of his water pouch into the hole. Light emitted from the hole after a few moments, and they forced the lid into the hole. They each jumped on the lid to make sure it was fixed in place.

Link watched the whole scene with his mind somewhere else. He could not believe his lack of energy for the past few days. Even a punk like Gwait had brought him down to a level of pathetic that he just could not comprehend. It had taken putting his new friends in danger to make him see that, even without the _Island_ _Sonata_, he still had a force of will that would not allow anyone else to come to harm.

"Link!" Beld snapped for the third time. Calm and collected, Link's eyes fell upon the doctor. For a moment, Beld looked a little surprised. This did not look like the same boy Talein had brought home. Frowning, he asked, "Yeah no' 'urt, ah yeh?"

Link's reply was a silent shake of the head, barely noticeable even as Beld looked directly at him. Glancing about, he spotted the sword's sheath behind Beld and slowly walked over to retrieve it. Beld's eyes followed; Link could sense them pressing against his back. He picked up the sword, sheathed it, and glanced back at the group.

"Gwait, I going to borrow this," he said more to the group than to just Gwait.

For a moment, confused glances passed between the people who knew Link. "Wha's in tha' 'ead o' yeh's, boe?" Beld asked.

"Yeah," Gwait replied. "Wha' do yeh pwan ta do? Yeh can' jus' take ma swowd."

Link tucked the sword under the belt holding up his trousers. "It wasn't a request," he told Gwait with a stern tone.

"Don' yeh boss me awound again!" Gwait shouted at him, stamping down one foot. Unfortunately, it was his injured foot, and he collapsed to his knees from the pain.

"Now jus' wai' a damn minute," Beld began as he stood up.

Link gave his head a violent shake. "I can't wait anymore." He spun until he faced the light of the distant town under siege. Without so much as a glance back, he charged into the darkness. Where he got the energy from, he did not want nor need to think about.

He had a job to do.

He had a calling to take up.

He had a title to live up to.

Because Gwait had called him a "hero".


	24. Charge Into the Fray

Chapter 24: Charge Into the Fray

…

Link traveled as fast as his legs could carry him, blocking out the combined pain of his injuries and the invisible branches whipping across his body. Only one thing was on his mind: protect Whittleton. There was nothing else to think about. There was nothing else for him to do. His mind held the situation broken down into only two choices, no more and no less. The other choice did not even matter enough for him to conceptualize it; he had already decided the moment he had raised Gwait's sword. Inexperience be damned. Fear be damned. Pain be damned. No running. No hiding. Every breath he took meant something, and he would not waste anymore air.

The forest was thick. Fortunately, so was Link's head. As long as Whittleton sat in the distance, he ran with every ounce of strength he could pull from his tortured body. One hand held the top of the sheath tucked into his belt, grip tight in case he had to pull it in a hurry.

Time had lost its meaning to him. Rather, to be more precise, all but this moment had lost meaning to him. The past had left him. The present felt like a dream. The future stood too far away. This moment was all he existed in, and he would ensure that he still existed with the town before him.

He broke through the treeline, coming to a halt behind one of the homes. Pressing his shoulder against the outer wall, he peered into the light of the distant torches and bonfires spread about the town. So far, only a few people were in sight; they appeared to be some of the younger residents, straddling Link's age. They faced the large wall on the other side of the town, closer to the train platform. Link's eyes traced the brilliant outline of the wall itself. At best guess, it was the highest structure in town, towering over the houses it protected and even the improvised watchtowers set on either side. His first thought that the wall was too narrow, sitting just inside the train platform and about as wide as such. He ducked through the darkness to another house so that he had a clear view around the side of the wall. He realized that, where the wall ended, the trees bordering the town were far too thick for a large group to venture through with ease. Even then, this appeared to be where a lot of the defenders were gathered, their shadows dancing about the dead branches from the row of torches behind the line.

But the defenders of Whittleton did not appear to be doing anything. All was quiet in the town. He could read the tension in the air, but no open combat appeared to be taking place. Had they already stopped the battle?

Or had the Bulblins not started it yet?

Link realized that, if the Bulblins had built the tunnel under the town, they had meant to use it against the town in some way. Gwait's discovery, and the subsequent closing, of the hole might have delayed their attack, if not stopped it entirely. The outcome depended on whether they had dug more tunnels in the surrounding forest. His eyes skimmed through the darkness, hoping that the red gleam of Bulblin eyes would give them away. If he could only sight them, he would be able to get a warning to the rest of the town before they were ambushed. But when he failed to see any would-be attackers approaching from the north, he spun to look towards the south part of town.

He found the red gleam all right.

It floated only a hair's breadth from his face.

Link saw a reflection of his own stunned surprise on the face of the Bulblin he had just about smacked heads with. Neither one could believe how easily they had not noticed each other until they were nearly standing in the same spot. Link's mind spun with thoughts, but it felt as if he had to get through a net of panic before he could do anything else.

The Bulblin acted first, raising its club hand. Link saw the attack and broke his way out of his frozen state to duck under the blow. The club, this one decorated with rock spikes, bashed into the side of the house. Unfortunately, Link was too close to pull the sword for a strike fast and hard enough to keep the Bulblin from attacking again. Plus, the sword was ready to come out into his left hand, which would surely strike the house if he pulled it too fast. The stuck club having given Link the ample seconds he needed to realize this, he planted one foot in the ground and threw his shoulder into the Bulblin as hard as he could. The Bulblin, leaning back so as to dislodge the club with its all of its weight, lost its grip on its way to meet the ground. Link's hand pulled the sword out with a metallic _sheeng_. Before the Bulblin could get back to its feet, Link flipped the sword for a reverse hold, raised it above his head, and snapped his arms forward to drive the blade directly through the Bulblin's chest. In the dark, all Link could rely upon to tell him of the Bulblin's demise was the cold crunch of pierced meat and the dying groan leaving the creature's lungs.

Link held his pose for a moment, breath heavy from excitement. He could not believe how easy it was to kill another. _Him_! It did not make him happy; if anything, he felt a twinge of sadness for the deaths he had already caused. But almost as soon as the thought came to the surface, he automatically dismissed it as a simple life-or-death decision he had to make for himself and others.

Besides. He had another problem.

As his eyes gazed upon the south side of town, he realized that there were a great number of red dots crossing the field. Only two nearby had frozen to look for the commotion; the rest advanced towards the townspeople. Link, realizing that he had to warn them, tugged his sword out with a jerk. But instead of dashing around the house, which would have given him a chance to put distance between himself and the Bulblins while he warned the rest of the town, he charged out of his hiding place with the sword raised above his head. His lungs gave a great cry, alerting the closest Bulblins that something not of their kind was approaching. To their eyes, however, all they saw was a single Hylian barely of age to be a real hazard. As he approached, the two closest exchanged looks that asked "is this kid for real?" and only answered each other with the kind of shrug that says "oh, well, let's kill him anyway".

They brandished their clubs and charged Link. The first one to reach him brought his weapon down where Link's head would have been if he had not suddenly shifted to the Bulblin's right. Link did this with a full spin on one foot, bringing the blade of his sword swinging round in a dangerous arc that bit deep into the Bulblin's side. When Link yanked the sword back out, he angled the blade so that it slid further into the Bulblin's flesh as he tugged. The first dropped to the side just as the second came within range to throw his club. This, Link did not expect, and his exposed left shoulder took the brunt of the blow. Link cried out in pain, collapsing to a knee while he cupped his right hand over the impact site. This Bulblin maintained his focus on retrieving his club before the opponent put a finger on it, so when Link, after dropping the sword only to pick it up with his right hand, suddenly spun his torso and delivered a stab right into the Bulblin's neck, it was truly a surprise to him for the few seconds he could spare to think about it.

As he rose, Link saw that the other Bulblins had realized that someone was attacking _them_ from the rear. Before he could gauge their reactions, he tore off towards the defense wall as fast as he could. Pain slowly began to breach the barriers he had put up in his mind; he could not take them all on his own. Dodging past houses and nearly invisible trees, he thought of the only way he could get some serious attention in a jiffy. As soon as he was sure he was close enough that his voice would reach, he called out to the people protecting their home.

"All eyes alive and to the west! Attack from the west!" Normally, the standard variation of this command was used by Captain Alfonzo to call his airmen's attention toward another ship which meant to dock with them. It was convenient because it packed enough information for airmen to act as they should without having to worry that they needed to hear an explanation at the top of the captain's lungs.

Fortunately, the people of Whittleton were just as perceptive. A group detached from the line ahead of him, two carrying torches in their hands. Six people dashed past Link and collided with the pursuing Bulblins while two others grabbed Link. They hauled him to the torchlight as swift as possible while more, after a horn sounded from the darkness, ran to join the fighting.

Link was deposited on the ground just on the edge of the torchlight, and one of the adults that had been carrying him took a knee in front of him so as to meet him eye-to-eye. "Wha's goin' on?" he asked in an urgent tone.

Link took a moment to catch his breath; he was quickly losing the steam built up by the excitement back in the forest. "The Bulblins are attacking from behind," he said to the dark face in front of him. "They… they dug tunnels underneath the town; we found one in the forest."

The other adult grabbed his uninjured shoulder to spin him into a face-to-face conversation. "Are yeh sure?"

Link nodded. "I saw the hole myself. And I killed the Bulblin that climbed out of it."

"Link?" Responding to his name, Link looked up as a third shadow approached. He could vaguely make out Talein's form in the light behind him, both hands wielding his great axe. "Is tha' yeh, boy?"

"Yeah, it's me."

"I though' yeh were s'pose ta stay with the others hidin' in the forest," he growled.

"You needed to be warned," Link replied, brushing off one of the other men's hand as he stood to his full height. He took a step forward. "They're crawling all over the town. And the people in the forest are trying to locate any more tunnels leading behind your defense line."

Talein, his face a blank to Link in the dark, was taken aback. Only five days before had this fragile boy been found possibly dying in the wreckage of an airship fallen far from above. But now, that same boy acted as if he barely had a scratch. The man huffed and called over his shoulder, "C'mon! The Bulblins are behind us!" Link made to turn, but one of Talein's meaty paws had already grabbed his upper arm. "No' yeh, Link. Stay here in the light."

Link meant to protest, but Talein had already shoved him to one side on his way to engage the Bulblins. Another horn sounded from somewhere in the shadows dancing about the town, seeming to summon more fighters from the other side of the defensive line. Feeling fatigue cloud his head a bit, Link took a knee and wiped the dark blood from his sword onto the half-dead grass at his feet. Then he swung his left arm about, trying to work out the pain in his shoulder.

_WHUMP!_

The deep sound of something heavy being hit with something even heavier caused Link to start. His eyes scanned the darkness to find the source, but nothing appeared particularly out of the ordinary. Still, he had a bad feeling curling every nerve in his body.

_WHUMP!_ There it was again. Link realized that it had sounded from behind him, and he turned to look at the defense wall. As high as any mast he had seen and sporting logs twice the thickness of the kind of trees he was used to seeing, Link could see that they had been planted firmly where the train platform met the ground and braced up both from behind and on either side of the tree houses serving as lookout towers.

Wait a moment. He had seen people standing atop those towers not long ago. What happened to them?

_WHUMP!_ This time, Link jumped back in surprise. Something had struck the wall from the other side.

About then, he realized something both ingenious and horrible at the same time. A lot of the townspeople had left their station near the wall to engage the Bulblins emerging from behind Whittleton.

But was there not a force building up _outside_ the town, which necessitated the defense wall?

_WHUMP! Krrrrk!_ One of the supports holding two of the middle logs bent and snapped.

_WHUMP!_ _Krrrrrrk!_ There went another. Those two middle logs dislodged from the rest of the structure.

_WHUMP!_

_BAM!_

One of the logs fell, nearly crushing a pair of men trying to keep it erect.

Almost at once, a high-pitched whistle sounded from nearby. Link looked up to see Meilont leaning out of a window. He heard her call out, "Breakthrough! They're breakin' through!"

As if to confirm this, a large animal suddenly bounded over one of the logs and tore off into the town. Link could feel his heart sink with fright.

"Link! Look out!"

Meilont's voice commanded Link's attention just in time for him to realize that another large creature had just burst through the wall.

And this one charged straight for him!

"YAAAH!" Link dove to his left, leaving the mount to trample the ground he stood on only seconds ago. And mount was right, for Link saw that the creature had been harnessed like a draft horse and mastered by a Bulblin. He rolled to find the creature, but, having taken down a couple of the nearby torches in the process of its attack, it disappeared into the darkness.

"Run, Link!" Meilont shouted at him.

Link ran all right.

Right for one of the downed torches. He pulled it out of its stand, finding that it remained smoldering. Quickly, he ran to the other downed torch as more of the creatures continued to invade one by one. The stand to this torch had been smashed to pieces, and he took one leg into his hand. Having to stretch his arms out quite a bit, he touched the smoldering embers of the torch he held into the end of the leg. Then, with the embers on the leg, he dropped the torch and carefully blew on the large stick of wood. If he did this right, he would be able to find the sword he accidentally dropped.

"Wha' are yeh doin'?!" Meilont screamed at him. "Get movin'!"

The end of the stick suddenly flared up, nearly scorching his face. He pulled it away just in time to realize that another of those creatures was charging at him again. Lacking any other immediate option, Link swung his improvised torch.

"Rheeee!" the enormous bovine squealed, veering to get away from the moving fire that threatened to strike its face. Link watched as the animal, no longer heeding its rider's commands, steered itself towards the thick growth of trees nearby and smash head-first into one. _WHUM!_ _KRUT!_ The animal came to a dead stop, hurling its rider into the wounded tree.

Link did not have time to see whether the rider survived. He had to find his sword. Presently, the air filled with the sounds of men and beasts shouting at each other as full battle commenced in the darkness about him. The soft _tun_ _tun_ of bowstrings loosing their charges would have barely reached his ears if he had not been standing so close to the towers, now alive with archers.

Wait! There it was!

Link made a break for it, only to hear the battlecry of another mount as it hurtled towards him. He planted his feet firmly and swung the torch again. As the first, this one veered towards safety only to careen into the thick base of a tree house. The creature broke through in a crunch of wood, but its rider met the exterior wall with an unceremonious thud that took him clean from his mount's back.

Another horn alerted Link to the wall again, and he saw Bulblins on foot running in with all sorts of weapons raised. So he thrust the burning end of the stick into the ground at his feet to put it out, dropped it, and rushed to pick up his sword.

But what should he do now?

He did not have time to think about it. A Bulblin was already charging at him.

Link fit both of his hands onto the hilt of the sword and swung it level. The Bulblin raised its club, laden with what looked like shards of glass, to intercept the blow. But Link's strike had power behind it, and the Bulblin's wrist snapped backwards from the recoil. Link managed to recover before the Bulblin could raise the club again and stabbed his sword into its chest. Not wanting to listen to the creature's last sounds bubbling into its throat, Link withdrew the sword and rushed past it.

Another waited, and this one was already bringing down a weapon that Link almost did not recognize as a sharp and potentially dangerous shard of metal. He raised his sword and successfully blocked, choosing to then counter with a low blow towards the creature's legs. The Bulblin jumped back before the blade landed. To taunt Link, it gave off a snide, laughing snort while it brandished its weapon of choice.

Its mocking was short-lived, however, as the moment it stopped taking the battle seriously, an arrow impaled the crown of its head. In its last moments, it gave Link a confused tilt of the head before it fell backwards. Link, having seen the angle from which the arrow had entered, followed its path back to the tower. Meilont, in the middle of nocking another arrow, gave him a firm nod as if to say "yeah, that was me".

She immediately took aim at him. Link's eyes went wide, and his first instinct was to dive out of the way. This turned out to be the right course of action, as the arrow she released embedded itself into the shoulder of a runaway pig which had been barreling up behind him. The creature wailed in pain and crashed into the tree house Meilont stood in.

Link watched as the creature smashed through a sitting room. A torch somewhere inside the building must have fallen in the process because, just seconds after the impact, the house began to light up with flames.

Meilont immediately noticed the flames as they lit up the rest of the room behind her. "Link!" she called out.

Link dashed toward the house until he stood under the window. "Meilont!" he hollered. "Get out of there!"

Smoke filled the room, causing her to cough. "I can'! The way out's blocked!"

In response, Link dropped his sword to the ground. "Jump!"

Meilont leaned her head out the window to escape the building smoke. In the process, she took note of the fall Link was proposing. "Are yeh _mad_?! I'm no' gonna _jump_!"

Link held his arms out. "I'll catch you! Hurry!"

Meilont glanced back at the flames once more. Deciding she had no choice, she climbed onto the window sill and dropped almost immediately. Link had only seconds to realize that neither of them was in the correct position for him to catch her correctly. He could only widen his stance. Her weight suddenly fell across his arms and chest, and his legs buckled. She landed with little injury, while Link felt all of the air leave his lungs in the most painful way he had ever experienced.

Meilont pushed herself up and looked over her shoulder at the burning house. "Nice catch, Link."

"No… problem…" Link croaked in response. After she stood to retrieve the bow she had dropped, Link slowly climbed back to his feet.

"This is gettin' outta hand," she commented as she watched three of her peers jump into the nearby trees from the top of the house. "We _have_ ta do somethin'."

Link found his sword again. "There's only one thing we can do right now," he told her as he picked it up. "We have to fight."

"Ideas?" she asked him.

Link sighed and shook his head, scanning the surrounding for enemies.

And he saw one of the mount creatures wandering near the inside of the wall.

"I have an idea," he told her almost immediately, sheathing his sword.

She only followed him with her eyes questioningly while he rushed up to the creature. When she began to comprehend what he wanted to do after seeing him take the reins of the beast, she immediately asked, "Wait. Yer no' actually _thinkin_' of ridin' a Bullbo, are yeh?!"

Link clambered onto the creature's back and steadied himself on the patchwork saddle. "Why not?" he asked. "How hard can it be?"

Meilont opened her mouth to argue, but, once she thought about the humorous side of this idea, she found herself giving him a mischievous look. "Lead on, then."

Link smiled. He circled the reins around his right forearm once, pulled his sword with his opposite hand, and delivered a blow to the Bullbo's flank with the flat of the blade. The Bullbo gave a shriek in response, tearing off as fast as it could. Although he found that he could give the Bullbo some guidance by tugging the reins in one direction or another, the creature was more inclined to carve out its own path no matter what it ran over.

This suited Link for now, for he greatly intended for everything in its path to be one of the attacking Bulblins. His first strike was to a clothesline, though, ripping the poles holding the ropes out of the ground with little resistance and scattering clothing across the ground. Stupid, but incredibly lucky at the same time, because as the Bullbo steered past a Bulblin Link was trying to aim for, one of the flailing poles the bovine dragged behind it delivered a powerful smash to the side of the Bulblin's head just as it prepared to strike down a woman with her back turned.

The Bullbo managed to toss the ropes, giving Link enough of a chance to jerk it to the right. This time, the Bullbo obeyed and trampled a pair of Bulblins who appeared to have been arguing over a fallen youth instead of taking notice of the doom flying at them.

Link's hold on the creature was tenuous at best. With one hand commanding the reins, he had to use his other hand in conjunction with his thighs to keep himself from being thrown. He had already lost his sword again, his focus completely centered on trying to steer an animal which clearly did not even like him. The ride reminded him of trying to keep on his feet during a rough journey through the Sultry Sky Line; in particular, he remembered _not_ being able to keep his feet. Fingers jammed between the tight saddle and the beast's furred hide, Link continued to try jerking the beast into the direction he wanted. But other than a few buckets, a barrel, and another clothesline, he found the Bullbo was not quite as willing to run things over as planned.

Mounting the hill to the southwest of the town, Link at least coaxed it into turning about. He saw that one side of the wall now burned, casting orange light and tall shadows on most of the homes. The creature was descending the hill in a minute, keeping him from evaluating how well the battle was going. Gritting his teeth, he wrapped the reins around his arm once more. Approaching a pair of Bulblins who had just chased a pair of women archers into a house, Link gave a commanding jerk. The Bullbo's neck wrenched, and it steered as if to relieve the stress. Neither Bulblin saw the Bullbo until they were crushed under the bovine's large hooves with the horrifying sound of bones breaking. Link did not dare look back as another Bulblin ran for a man occupied with fighting. Link had to jerk left, forcing him to balance himself in the opposite direction to keep from falling when the Bullbo agreed. The Bulblin landed on the mount's face. The Bullbo, releasing an angry snort in the midst of its heavy breathing, idly tossed the nuisance aside, straight into the outer wall of a house.

And then Link had to cover his head as the creature barreled through a small patch of trees. As he had seen before, these trees were brittle and hollow, allowing the Bullbo to pass through unharmed. Link was saved from taking any injuries due to the deflection off the creature's aerodynamic face. He could not believe the amount of punishment this creature could take, pulling on the reins to turn it around again.

An arrow flew from a gap in the light and embedded itself into the Bullbo's flesh just above Link's right kneecap. The creature bucked in response, forcing Link to huddle against it before it threw him. Daring a glance to one side, he spotted another Bullbo being ridden by two Bulblins. From what little he saw, one commanded their beast while the other took aim with a bow. Link jerked his Bullbo back towards the middle of the village. Looking over his shoulder, he saw that they were pursuing him.

Link only had a second to look forward in time to spot Meilont. Surprised, he jerked his Bullbo to the right. Meilont's response to the pursuers demanded no further description past "swift" as she pulled an arrow from her quiver, took aim, and let it fly. The arrow pegged the Bullbo driver between the eyes, causing him to fall back on his passenger. This elicited a misfire before the Bullbo careened into one of the practice contraptions bearing the childish rendition of a Bulblin. The device tripped up the Bullbo, sending all three flying across the ground.

Link, stopped next to Meilont, looked down at her and said, "Nice shot."

But Meilont gave an irate huff as she prepared to nock another arrow. "I was aimin' fer the other one."

Trying not to smile, Link attempted to get the Bullbo moving again. When it did not budge, having taken an interest in the nearby water trough, Link pulled out the dagger Meilont had given him. Although he did not want to do it, he reached around and gently stuck the tip of the dagger into the creature's hide. The creature broke into a full run again, and Link was ready to steer this time, pocketing the dagger as he weaved the Bullbo through the houses.

Lacking any visible targets, Link scanned the area around him. He rode along the edge of the training field, where neither townsperson nor Bulblin had set foot. He had to steer the Bullbo back through the tree houses, where the fighting still took place. But the Bullbo was not running as fast, and two of the Bulblins he attempted to run over dodged just in time to avoid being trampled. Link decided that he could not use this beast anymore, but he was not sure how to stop it again.

Then, ahead of him, he saw a mounted Bullbo chasing down one of the men from the village. Seeing this opportunity, Link steadied himself with his free hand as he slid his left leg over the side. After finding that his Bullbo was rushing straight for the other, he unwrapped his hand from the reins. Only seconds before impact, Link slid from the saddle while one hand tugged out the arrow still in the creature's side. The Bullbo released an angry cry. Link hit the ground and tumbled forward, allowing his shoulder to take away some of the shock as he rolled. On a reflex he never knew he had, he stopped himself so that he kneeled and faced the Bullbos. He only saw the aftermath: both Bullbos were on the ground (one flipped onto its side), and the Bulblin stumbled about while trying to piece together what hit him.

"Kid, look out!" Link reacted to the shout given by the man he had just helped and turned to his right to follow the direction he was pointing. A Bulblin was nearly upon him, a dull, black-iron blade raised to strike. He just barely had enough time to get to his feet and jump out of range of the attack. An arrow found its way into the Bulblin's shoulder, causing it to wail in pain.

"Link!" Link spun in response to Meilont's call. She removed Link's borrowed sword from her belt and threw it towards Link. He had to reach out to catch it by the handle. As he spun back to meet the Bulblin, the sword's blade already sliced through the air in a horizontal strike that opened the Bulblin's chest. A returning, upward strike ensured that the Bulblin did not rise again.

Feeling his left shoulder protest, he switched to his right hand again. Seeing a Bullbo charging at him from the side, he jumped out of its way while flailing his sword. The tip found flesh, causing the Bullbo and its rider to broadside a house in the ensuing surprise. Link's attention was immediately on the next pair of Bulblins that had charged towards him, both wielding clubs. He intercepted one attack with his sword, deflecting it away from him, then took the opportunity to deliver an elbow strike with his free arm right into the Bulblin's jaw. The second one unwisely decided to swing its club at about head-level and clocked its retreating fellow in the back of the head. In the moment of confusion, Link whipped his sword across the second's back, sending it sprawling to the ground with a large gash across its spine.

Almost out of nowhere, a Bulblin charged from Link's side. Link only had seconds to respond, jumping out of the way as a stolen sword sliced through his shirt and cut his arm. Giving a cry of pain, Link spun so that his arm was not as exposed. He blocked with his sword at an odd angle, and the Bulblin's sword stung his hand when they made contact. Another of Meilont's arrows struck the Bulblin in the chest, causing it to rear back in surprise and pain. Seeing the opportunity, Link lunged forward and drove the end of his blade into the Bulblin's stomach.

"Link, look!" Meilont called out as the Bulblin fell.

Link followed her eyes towards the front of the town. The whole left side of the wall was ablaze, most of the remaining logs now orange embers floating to the clouds above. One Bulblin stood with its back to the wall, wailing on a horn as loud as it could. From all sorts of dark spots in the town, Bulblins made a break for the one calling on the horn. They filed out of the town as best as they could, pursued by the townsfolk. Both Link and Meilont gave chase as well. By the time they stood with the crowd, the Bulblins had disappeared through the opening in the wall.

Huffing their exhaustion, Link and Meilont looked to each other with a free hand raised. "Are you all right?" Link asked at the same time Meilont echoed, "Are yeh a'right?" Without answer, they turned back to the wall and watched with the rest of the townspeople for a silent moment only broken by the crackle of burning wood before them.

Then, a call of "huzzah" rose into the air. Link allowed his arms and back to relax as people cheered around him. He felt tremendous relief come from out of nowhere, seemingly forcing his body to return to his frail state.

Arms suddenly wrapped around him. "We did it, Link!" Meilont cried above the cheering around them. "We did it!"

Taken up by the relief, Link returned the hug. "Yeah!" he agreed. "We did it!"


	25. Little Voices

Chapter 25: Little Voices

…

~~Day 6.

~~I haven't been able to move all day. My body is stiff from last night. In addition to the wounds I received when I came down with the Island Sonata, I have bruises on both shoulders, the skin on my hands are raw, and Doctor Beld had to wrap up a large cut on my upper arm. I have barely had the energy to get out of bed to relieve myself. This morning, I tried to walk down the stairs, but I tripped on the first step and nearly fell the whole way down. Talein hauled me back up and dropped me in bed again. Even now, the pen in my hand feels like it's made of iron.

~~I gave Gwait his sword back when Dissal brought him by. I can't seem to recall much after the Bulblins ran off yesterday, but someone must have cleaned it for me. I'm still not sure how I feel about having to kill last night. Everything just went by in a blur, and I can't be sure it was even me doing all that. No, I know it was me. I'm not proud of it, but I find that I can only satisfy myself with the knowledge that I prevented a massacre which would have deprived me of another home. Talein keeps commending me on what I did. He told me that, when the Bulblins left, they did not take any of the Bullbos which they rode in on. Apparently, I missed a feast tonight. At first, I thought he meant that they roasted all of them, but he explained that they only ate the dead ones; the rest are being fitted with proper saddles so that they can be used to draw lumber carts.

~~So far, it looks like the Bulblins have given up on attacking the village again. I've speculated on why they attacked in the first place. Considering what's been happening with Whittleton and what Talein has told me about them, I think it's possible that they may have attacked for the supplies that Old Seventeen brings. If the situation is bad with the town, I imagine that the Bulblins may not be any better off. I suppose no one will ever know without asking one.

…

~~Day 7.

~~I felt a lot better today, so I decided to survey the damage done to the town. A lot of houses were damaged, and the one being used in conjunction with the wall burned completely to the ground. Part of the train platform collapsed; when I saw it, the men were still removing the damaged boards. The Bulblin bodies had already been burned in the field south of town. It amazes me, though, that everyone seems to keep going as if nothing had happened. There were plenty of injuries, but no one appears to have been killed. I guess we stumbled on that tunnel just in time.

~~I haven't had that dream in the past two days. It's left me curious, because it feels like there was something important in that dream, but I just can't remember what. I think—

_Puh._

Link's face formed a frown at the sound that had interrupted his thoughts. Looking around the borrowed bedroom with the lantern on his desk as his only light, he attempted to find the source. It sounded like something small bouncing off a larger object, but the only movement in the room was Link's shadow as he glanced around. He set down his quill and slowly stood up, eyes searching for what could have caused the sound.

The window showed him a black sheet of sky, broken only by the faint tree line in the distance. Meilont was downstairs, tidying up the kitchen after they shared a quiet dinner. Even now, he could hear her humming loudly to herself (unable to hold a tune for long) with the clatter of dishes framing her voice. Talein, he knew, was standing watch with some of the other men of the town, keeping an eye out for another Bulblin raid. The house should have been quiet; it was the type of environment he found he could write out his thoughts.

But just that one sound nagged at him. Nothing appeared to be stirring around the bed or the chest of drawers. He checked under the table he used as a desk only to find bare floor and some dirt.

There! Movement next to the window almost did not catch his eye. His head jerked in that direction when he saw light in the window duck just under the frame. He climbed onto the bed in his stocking feet and pulled himself up a bit to see outside. However, only the torches of the wandering night guard lit the town, and none of them appeared to be close enough to have thrown anything at the glass.

Link's mouth twisted with irritation as he stepped off the mattress. Surely he had heard something hit the window, now that he thought about it. Whatever it was did not appear to have left a mark. Indeed, replaying the sound in his head, he thought it sounded more like a small pillow had impacted the window. He could only speculate a reason; anyone who wanted to see him, despite being in the later hours of the evening (he assumed; he still had not gotten used to telling time), would simply have to walk through the door downstairs. Just in case, he listened for a moment. Meilont still hummed, her faint voice unbroken by anything unusual. No movement on the lower floor meant that no one had entered.

Deciding he was hearing things, he sat down and continued writing.

~~— it might have something to do with Irleen, maybe why Talein did not find her with me. My memory of the fall is still vague. I wish I knew what had happened to her; I'd hate to feel responsible for her death. This whole situa—

"Līnca!" The voice carried a high pitch that startled a scribble out of Link's writing hand. His gaze immediately darted over his left shoulder, expecting to see someone at the doorway. It was empty.

Whatever it was had already moved inside the room. It hovered over the doorway, a small, green ball of light supported by what appeared to be insect wings. At first, Link thought it might've been a ghost and jumped to his feet with his heart beating.

Then it spoke. "Káwūt ahà ō kákihūt!"

Link stood next to his chair, completely at a loss for what he had heard. To his ears, it sounded like someone trying to make many different bird sounds as fast as possible. He could only stare at the diminutive creature.

Until it charged at him.

Link did not have any time to react. When the creature nearly had him blinded, it latched to his face. The feel of small legs grabbing onto his skin sent an uncomfortable shiver up his spine. He used a hand to wipe the creature, some kind of insect he assumed, away from his cheek.

"Con kapòhu!" the creature called out in protest. Or, at least it _sounded_ like protest. Link's attention only acknowledged where the creature floated as he looked around the room. Then, as it approached him again, he ducked out of the way and slid towards the doorway. That was when he spotted what was sitting next to the room's entrance.

His left hand wrapped around the top of one of his borrowed, leather boots.

"Con ka—daaaaah!" the creature cried out as Link swung, attempting to smack it with the old boot. But the creature was fast, its wings jingling gleefully as Link attempted to strike it in midair. Link swung and missed again, clipping the edge of his desk with the thick sole. Another miss caused the footwear to rebound off the foot of the bed.

It sailed higher to get away, and Link jumped at it while swinging the boot in an arc over his head. Again, he missed, and the boot slipped from his fingers and collided with the wall above the chest of drawers near the head of his bed. The boot landed on the edge of the wash basin sitting atop the chest, spilling water across the bare wood floor. Link scrambled for his other boot and took a swing of opportunity when the creature dared to see what he was reaching for.

"Līnca, cápa!" it shouted at him as it floated back out of Link's reach. "Ħìrlīna táwa!"

"I'll get you yet!" Link declared as he ran for the bed. He jumped on it, feeling his feet sink into the mattress. Readying for a jump, he started bouncing against the mattress until it squeaked.

"Wha' are yeh doin'?!"

The cry turned Link's focus away from the insect just as he was about to spring at it. He only had a split second to recognize an irate Meilont standing in the doorway before he was looking at the floor.

_BAM!_ Link landed on the floor with the refinement of a sack of potatoes. The hard wood surface coaxed out the older soreness he thought he had finally rid himself of. He moaned both his pain and his defeat, and he chose to lay with his arms and legs spread across the floor, feeling much like the splat bug he had intended to create.

Meilont's glare melted into a grin which she hid under one hand. Never before had she seen such a display. What worse, of all the people to create such a problem, it wound up being poor Link. She squat next to him and ran her fingers through his hair. "No' much ta do, so yeh thought yeh'd make yer own game, eh?" she asked the back of his head.

"I… don't feel like commenting right now," Link replied through the floor, pressing his nose against the wood in the desperate attempt to hide his red face.

"I jus' hope yeh remember tha' the bed yeh've been usin' is _ma_ bed."

She giggled at him, and he could feel his face grow hot enough that it must have burned the surface of the floor. "S-sorry…"

"Now, jus' wha' have yeh been doin' to ma room?" As her eyes wandered about, she found the small ball of light pressed against the ceiling. "Ooh, wha' is _this_ now?"

"Līnca huk ħakù kácīh," the creature answered.

Meilont rose and held out a hand. "C'mon now. I won' hur' yeh." The creature, timid at first, fluttered down and settled into her palm. "There, there. Is Link bein' mean to yeh, li'l one?"

Link rolled so that he could sit up. He looked over his shoulder as Meilont appeared to play with the ball of light. "What _is_ that thing?"

Meilont gave him a confused look. "Yeh don' know? I's a fairy."

"Is it a kind of bug?"

She gave an irritated huff. "No, Link! I's a fairy! I's a bein' o' magic!" Both hands cupped around the fairy, she raised it above her head. "Da-da-da-daaaah!"

"Does it hurt?"

Releasing a sigh, Meilont appeared to release the fairy, who decided to float near her shoulder. "Only people who try ta kill 'em with old boots," she explained. "These cri'ers're harmless. The smaller ones like ta do nice thin's, like healin' wounds or lightin' the way for los' travelers. Stories say tha' if yeh find a Great Fairy, they'll give yeh some kind o' treasure. Bu' if someone tries ta harm a fairy, there'll be a curse upon yeh." At this, she gave him a smile. "Jus' so yeh know."

Link's expression switched to a concerned frown. "W-well, I-I didn't _really_ hurt it, though. So… I'm safe, right?"

Meilont crossed her arms. "If yeh apologize, she migh' no' say anythin' to the Great Fairies."

Link glanced down at the floor and used a finger to trace the dark wood grains for a moment. "Sorry…"

"Kaħác!" the fairy cawed at him in a fiery tone.

Meilont shrugged. "Looks like yer doomed."

"Oh, come on!" Link whined.

"Well, yer jus' gonna have ta be nice ta her," she replied as she turned around. "I'll fetch yeh a towel so yeh can clean up."

Link glanced over at the chest of drawers, finally realizing where his first boot had flown. After a sigh, followed by a forehead slap and a groan of "oh, no…", he stood up, collected his weaponized footwear, and dropped them next to the doorway.

"Līnca." Link stopped short of having the fairy smack into his face as he was about to survey the mess. "Kīt hì kanāh tā. Ħìrlīna táwa."

Link waved a hand in front of his face, certain to not hit the fairy. "Go away. You're making my evening miserable."

Although he passed it on the way to fix the position of the wash basin, it continued, "Kákirōl ahà ō. Àt kakòrōl ahà ō na." This was followed by a sigh from the creature. "Hòt káwū."

Link turned back to it with an irritated look on his face. "Look, I don't know what you're saying. Would you just go?"

A folded towel smothered his face from one side. "Yeh don' have ta be so snippy with her, Link," Meilont told him from the doorway. "If she wants ta, she'll go away on her own."

Link, after ripping the towel off his face, turned to reply to Meilont. But she had already disappeared down the stairs, so he got onto his knees and started mopping up the water on the floor.

"Con kápà ahà…" the fairy droned. It hovered close to the puddle slowly crawling along the floor.

Link ignored it as he spread the towel over the majority of the puddle. He pressed it against the floor, trying to soak up the water. The fairy moved in the corner of his eye, slowly at first. When he realized that it was doing something, he turned his head. The fairy appeared to dance about the edge of the puddle, dragging lines of water across the floor.

"No," he told it in a sharp tone, trying to shoo it with a hand. "Stop that."

The fairy back out of his reach, abandoning its game. "Kacápa!" it spat at him, its movements jerky. "Karōl tā! Kakònùl tā!"

"You're making it worse," he answered. "Just go away."

"Paħ." After a motion similar to a person kicking the ground, it floated away from Link. He shook his head and continued to mop up the water.

Meilont returned a few moments later. "I brough' yeh another towel."

"Thanks." Link accepted the towel and replaced the soaked one he had been using. He stood up and dropped the soaked one into the wash basin.

"I hope yeh weren' writin' anythin' important," she commented. Link looked up to question her, but decided to follow the direction her eyes.

"Oh. No!" Link's voice betrayed exhaustion as he stood and crossed the room back to his desk. Instead of doing anything, though, he watched with a tired expression as the fairy dragged his quill across the open pages of his logbook. "_Now_ what's it doing?"

Meilont giggled at him. "I think she's imitatin' yeh." She used a finger to draw her eyebrows into a frown. "Mister serious-an'-a'ways-writin'-in-a-book Link."

Link's head drooped. "A lot of help _you_ are."

The fairy suddenly dropped the quill. "Tàlpa," it said as it moved to the top of the page.

Both glanced at the page. "She's good a' makin' straight lines," Meilont remarked with a grin.

But Link reached forward. Then he sat down with his eyes close to the book. After a moment, he started shaking his head. "This… this…" he stammered.

Meilont leaned forward to look at his face. "Wha' is it, Link?"

Link slid the book for her to see. "These aren't just lines," he told her as his finger traced the fairy's marks. "I-I know this. This is… this is Sorian writing."

Meilont, however, could not share in Link's shock. "Wha' does tha' mean?"

Link brought his face close to the fairy. His breath ceased for a moment as he tried to work out the logic. But his mind gave; he could not be sure if he was right or not. So he said only one thing.

"… Irleen?"

The fairy jumped up from the page. "Līnca!" It jumped at him and latched to his face. Link jerked backwards in response, but withheld the urge to push away the affectionate Sorian.

Meilont gave them a confused look. "I don' ge' it. Who is she?"

Link stood up. "She's Irleen!" he told her. "It's, uh… Remember when I first woke up? That first day?"

"Yeah?"

"And-and I asked your dad if he found anyone with me?"

Meilont nodded, "I think so."

"That's because _she_ was supposed to be with me," he pointed to the green light on his cheek. "I-I don't know why, but… I think Irleen changed into a _fairy_."

Meilont blinked. "Uh… how?"

Link opened his mouth to speak, but the question left him stumped. "I'm not sure, actually."

Irleen pulled away from his face. "Līnca, klákù tā," she told him. "Līntána hūta?"

Meilont's eyes passed between Link and the fairy. "Do yeh know wha' she's sayin'?"

Link bared his teeth in nervousness. "No. Up until we came here, she was speaking perfect Hylian. I have no idea what she's saying."

"Hālpa ō," Irleen mumbled more to herself. "Tùħa kákirōl ahà ō. Līntána kláħál tā."

"Does… she understan' _yeh_?" Meilont asked.

Link offered a weak shrug. "I don't know." He glanced back down at his book. Then an idea came to him, and he sat back down. "Irleen," he said, patting the desk. With a swish, she landed next to the logbook. He turned to a blank page and pushed his quill towards her. "We can't talk, but I bet you can draw."

Irleen appeared to hesitate before picking up the quill. She took a longer pause with the quill poised to write. When she finally started, Link saw that she had to drag the quill behind her in order to make anything appear straight. His eyes traced the line she made until she closed it into a short oval. Then she pulled away and tapped the quill against the page. "Līntána," she told them.

Link frowned at the oval, one hand scratching the back of his blond mane. "This might be harder than I thought," he admitted to Meilont.

"I'll put on something warm," she answered, patting his shoulder before disappearing out the door.

Link scrunched his face. "You might have to help me a little more, Irleen. I… I just don't get it."

"Līn. Tá. Na." She tapped the quill against the page. "Kūl hì káwáh. Līntána hūta?"

Hands betraying hesitation, he gestured and asked, "R-round? Big?"

Irleen did not reply. Instead, she stepped to one side of the page and jotted something in Sorian script. When she finished, she drew an arrow from it to the oval. Then she pointed at the Sorian script with the quill. "Ħìrlīna. Ħìr. Lī. Na."

Link's face scrunched as he tried to follow her words. "I-ir?"

"Ħìr."

"Ir."

"Lī."

"L-lee?"

"Na."

"Nah."

"Ħìrlīna."

"Ir… Irleenah?" Link pointed at her. "You… you mean… _you_, Irleen?"

Irleen jumped. "Karōl, Līnca!" she shouted in excitement. Then she stepped to the other side of the oval and wrote more Sorian characters. After drawing another arrow, pointing from the oval to the new script, she pointed and said, "Līnca."

"Leenka," he repeated. He pointed to himself. "Me, right?"

"Karōl!" she said, jumping again.

Link nodded as he examined the page. "Okay, so… an arrow pointing from you to this oval, and then the oval to me. Uh… something left you?" He gestured, his hands sweeping to one side. But Irleen did not respond. Wrinkling his nose, he continued, "And then… that oval coming to me?" His hands swept back, touching his fingertips to his chest. Still, Irleen did not answer. So he shrugged, "I still don't get it."

Irleen rose and approached him, still holding the quill. "Tālpa," she said.

Link just shook his head. "I-I don't understand."

"Tālpa!" she said in a harsher tone, jumping closer to his face.

Link's neck recoiled. "W-what, you want _me_ to write something?" he asked, holding up one hand.

She placed the quill in the palm of his hand. But before his fingers could close around it, she took it up again. "Wá."

"Wah?" Link repeated as she fell back to the page.

She drew another oval under the first, but this one was thinner and had been drawn with a slant. She continued with a single line starting near the top of the oval and ending outside the oval near the bottom. Then she drew two more arrows, one leading from her name to the new drawing, one leading from the new drawing to his name. After depositing the quill to the side of the book, she hovered over it and said, "Nàncīhūl."

Link pointed at the quill and said, "Nan-kee-khool."

She bounded towards the book and hovered over the second oval drawing. "Nàncīhūl," she repeated.

His eyes jumped between the quill and the page a few times before he pieced it together. "Quill," he reasoned, pointing at both of them. "They're both quills."

Irleen returned to the quill, picked it up, and approached Link again. "Kūl hì nàncīhūl káwá."

When Link held out his hand again, she dropped the quill. "You… you're giving it to me." His eyes examined the page, and he realized what she was trying to tell him. "From you to me. You gave me the quill." He used the quill to gesture between himself and her. "You gave the quill to me."

"Karōl!" she answered.

Link looked down at the book again. "So, whatever this oval thing is, it was something else you gave me!"

"Karōl! Hūta?"

Link found that he had to think back for a moment. If she gave him something, when had it been? It had not been while they were at the library; they had both been absorbed in the books she had found. His face scrunched as he remembered her hitting him on the head with a mallet. But that gem had gone to Captain Koroul…

Gem… He remembered that he _had_ been given a gem. An oval-shaped amethyst. Irleen had given it to him just before the _Island_ _Sonata_ went down. His last recall of seeing it was examining it before stuffing it into the pocket of his trousers.

He needed his old clothes.

Irleen had to take a moment to process what had happened before following Link out of the room. At the top of the stairs, he looked down and called, "Meilont!"

Meilont stepped into view at the bottom, a cup in her hand. "Wha' is it, Link?"

"Are my old clothes still around? The ones I was wearing when your father found me?"

She nodded. "They're down here."

Link scrambled down the stairs into a kitchen lit with a single lantern sitting on the table. Meilont had stepped to the space under the stairs and was rummaging through the chest when he approached her. "We didn' know if yeh wanted ta keep 'em or no', so Dad had me pu' 'em in here." Shifting aside a number of sharp objects, she put her hands on a green bundle. She passed it into Link's hands, and he set it on the table to unfold it. He found his trousers wrapped in his undersuit, so he dug a hand into the pocket.

"Got it," he said, pulling out the gem.

"I understood that!"

Link found the fairy hovering next to his head. "Irleen, is it _really_ you?" he asked in an excited tone.

"Yes," she answered. "You can understand me, too, right?" Link gave a sharp nod. "Good." Link glanced down at the gem, marveling at how this little thing could suddenly changed Sorian into Hylian for him.

_Puh!_

"Ow!" Link complained, rubbing the top of his head. He looked up as Irleen pulled away from him. "What was that for?!"

"You tried to _kill_ me!" Irleen shouted back. "With a _boot_!"

"I thought you were a _bug_!"

Meilont giggled at them. "This is quite a surprise. I never though' I'd meet a _talkin'_ fairy."

"I'm not _exactly_ a fairy," Irleen replied.

"I s'pose tha's true," Meilont nodded. "I imagine the question now is how yeh turned into one." Link nodded his agreement.

"You two might want to sit down then," Irleen told them. She waited as Meilont pulled a chair closer while Link took the chair behind him. "First, the fairy thing. I… actually don't know quite how I turned into this. There were a lot of magic stones in my bag, so one of them might have triggered."

"Which one?" Link asked.

"I've been thinking about that for the past few days. But that's not important. I _think_ I might know what has happened to me, and I'm sure I can reverse the process. We just need to get back to the library at Kuruuk Nehai."

Link could already tell that the conversation was steering in an uneasy direction. He put his elbow on the table and placed a hand on his brow. "We have a small problem in that area," he confessed.

"What?"

He pointed a finger down. "We crashed. We're on the surface now."

Irleen jumped into his face. "Well, I already know _that_, Link. I'm not _dense_."

"Yeh have a plan ta ge' back ta the sky?" Meilont asked.

"Well," Irleen answered, pulling away from Link's face, "I figured that, if Hylians started out on the surface, then there must still be some airships around for us to use. Right?"

"No' likely, actually," Meilont admitted. "I's been some time since the las' airships were pu' tagether. Those se' sail fer the skies decades before I was born. Since then, no one really travels on airships 'round here."

"This is a big place, though," Irleen said. "Surely, someone must have left an airship or two behind in those decades. Or maybe just a ship hull we can convert into an airship."

"We would have to find an airship that's been serviced in those decades," Link answered her. "The ballast would need to be replaced with fresh Loft Steam or else it would never get off the ground. Even finding a ship we could overhaul, we would still need to find a good supply."

"Lof' Steam?" Meilont asked.

"It's a kind of gas that is much lighter than the air we breathe," Link explained. "They tend to come from vents in the earth, if not made by mechanical production plants up in the skies. We use it in what we call a 'ballast tank'. We can make a ship lighter or heavier by changing the temperature of the gas inside the tank using the same heat source that powers the ship's steam engine."

Meilont's lips pursed. "Wow. I didn' think yeh knew so much about airships."

"Part of my job."

"Well, how hard could it be?" Irleen asked.

"We can't just _take_ a ship, Irleen," Link said. "We'd have to buy one. And I don't have _any_ money."

"Then we build one," Irleen suggested, her tone telling Link that she had already solved the problem.

"We still don't have the money," Link said. "And we would need _months_ to put one together. I know how an airship works, but there's no _way_ I can put one together by myself."

"Yeh migh' no' have ta." Irleen and Link glanced at Meilont. She responded by shrugging. "I don' know how much i'll help, bu' there migh' still be some Architects here on the surface."

"Architects?" Irleen asked.

"Some of the original craftsmen," Link said. "They were the first of the surface-dwellers to put airships together, but they never ventured far from the ground. Even now, none of the original builders have ever set foot on any of Hyrule's sky kingdom."

"That's… ridiculous! Why would you build something that flies but never take it up yourself?"

Link shrugged. "I don't know. Even if they were still alive, it's not like we can just walk up to their house and ask them to build a ship for us."

"I migh' have a solution if yeh wan' ta hear it." Again, Link and Irleen turned to Meilont. "I told yeh 'bout ma mother, right? Tha' she wen' ta Library Town?"

Link nodded. "Yeah, why?"

"She works at the main library there. She migh' be able ta help yeh two find some Architects."

Irleen started shaking. "Oooh, I _like_ this idea!" She turned to Link. "Come on, Link, how bad can it be? We have to at least _try_, right?"

Link opened his mouth to state his hopelessness further, but his brain told him to wait up before he let his mouth run. If there was a chance that he could return to the sky kingdom, was it not worth it to try? What did he have to lose now? He had a home here in Whittleton; the past few days had made that all the clearer to him. Failure meant that he just might come back and see if he could make it as a lumberjack with people who already knew him. And if he succeeded…

"We still need money," he pointed out. "But… if we can get to Library Town, it might be worth it."

"I'll send to ma mother," Meilont said. Then she stood up. "In the mornin'. Fer now, yeh migh' wan' ta ge' some sleep."

Link nodded in agreement. In a few minutes after downing some tea Meilont had made, he returned to the room upstairs. Irleen chose to relax in the window while Link sat at his desk.

~~I finally found Irleen today! She's trapped in a fairy body, but she thinks she can reverse it. We have to get back to Forelight Island, though.

~~I've had my misgivings. I guess I was just ready to give up on going home and make a new one here on the surface. But it seems that the sky won't let me go that easily. I've had an interesting time here in Whittleton, and I want to come back some day. Whether that day is soon or later, I can't say which I would prefer. Soon means that we failed to get an airship. Later means—I guess I don't know quite what it means. I want to go home. I want to stay here. I know I have a place here now, but I can't leave Irleen like she is now. She's in trouble, and she needs help before something decides to eat her. I'm her only friend.

~~Meilont says that her mother might be able to sponsor our train ride out to Library Town. I have to make this work. If not for the sake of returning home, then at least for Irleen.

With that final thought, he stripped down to a pair of shorts (calling to Irleen to determine whether she was awake or not) and climbed into bed. Sleep evaded him for a while, although Meilont said that the tea was supposed to knock him out in a matter of minutes. His mind continued to buzz with the worry that he would eventually disappoint Irleen.

It turned out to be a very long night of worry for him.


	26. Embarkation

Chapter 26: Embarkation

…

~~Day 8.

~~Meilont sent out a letter to her mother this morning. She said that the postman was just arriving when she got to the mailbox, so it should get to Library Town by the afternoon. Whenever that will be. I still haven't quite caught on to how they tell time without a clock nearby. The only clock that I've found around here is a broken one near the train platform.

~~Talein told us that the Bulblins have been circling the grasslands to the south of the town in tanks. He suspects that they might try something again, so he asked the town elders to send for help from Library Town. Until the Bulblins settle down, he told Meilont that he'll remain in Whittleton instead of searching for more healthy trees to harvest. His bringing that up just reminds me of the haze in the air above. I wish I knew some way to help out.

~~I've recently discovered how impatient Irleen can be. I can't tell whether it's because of her new form or if she's always been like that. It makes me glad that she can't read Hylian; she won't stop hovering over my shoulder and badgering me about writing when we should be doing something more constructive. Even now she won't leave me alone. I just hope she'll allow me to sleep.

…

~~Day 9.

~~For the first time in days, I woke up feeling great! I don't feel sore at all, and the cut on my arm is almost healed. Doctor Beld still hit me on the head, though. He doesn't like the fact that it took me so long to heal in the first place because of all the "trouble" I've caused. In hindsight, he's probably right. Between getting beat up by Gwait and his friends and the battle with the Bulblins, I suppose that I've taken more punishment than—well, I was going to say "more than necessary", but I think the Bublin attack should be excused. I—

~~Meilont kidnapped me. She barged into my room excited, saying that her mother's response was here. She sent a package filled with rupees, totaling 1500. Meilont took me to buy a ticket at the small kiosk next to the train platform, which cost 1465 rupees, so I only have 35 rupees left for—I'm not sure. If money down here works like it does in the clouds, that's barely enough for a few hot meals. She sent along a wallet as well, which Meilont told me to use. But it's pink! I think Meilont's mom might've sent it for her.

~~The ticket we got is a morning train, the Twenty-Seven. I was hoping to get a ride on the Seventeen, but I guess it doesn't arrive that early in the morning. I'm really excited about riding on a train, so much that it's late at night and I can't sleep. At least, I think it's late; I still can't tell time. Irleen passed out on the desk not long ago. She probably wore herself out with all the worrying. It seems like I have to reassure her every five minutes!

~~I hope I know what I'm doing.

…

The air broke across the platform with the thick blast of a steam whistle. Link gave a start, having been thrown from his admiration of the emerald steam engine before him. A bearded engineer leaned out of the cabin, chuckling at him. Trying (and failing) to grin in the engineer's direction, Link straightened his posture and tugged down on the front of his green tunic in an attempt to reclaim a little dignity.

"He did that on purpose!" Irleen griped, jumping in front of Link's face as if to charge at the engineer.

"Just take it easy, Irleen," Link told her, using one cupped hand to pull her back.

She replied with a huff, slowly turning to look down the length of the train. "Well, it's here," she said. "Let's get on."

"Wait a moment." Link cast his eyes down the platform, towards the group of people gathered near the cargo car at the rear of the train. "I thought she'd be here…"

"Who, Meilont?" Irleen circled his head. "She probably doesn't want to see you off. A girl can only take so much heartbreak."

"W-what?!"

Irleen fluttered closer to his face. "Come on, Link, can't you figure it out? An exotic boy like yourself—"

"We're the same age," Link interjected, his face showing annoyance.

"—falling from the sky, lost and alone, helpless through his foolish inexperience on the ground." Irleen suddenly jerked to the other side of Link's vision. "And enter! An attractive, conniving village girl with a thirst for the alien, the _foreign_ flesh and soul of not just any boy, but the captain of an airship! She takes the boy into her lonely home—"

"She lives with her father."

"—But! The boy is too young for the cravings her older heart wishes to fulfill."

"We're the same age!"

"Then!" Irleen looped in the air. "Down comes the frightened girl of the sky, lost in her own ways and only capable of relating through the experiences of the boy. And thus, the sky girl, using the vast experience she's gained through the ages—"

"WE'RE THE SAME AGE!"

"Link, how do you expect to understand if you're going to interrupt me?"

A giggle sounded from nearby, and Link felt someone place their elbow on his shoulder. "Don' mind 'em, Irleen. Jus' keep goin'."

"I don't think I will," Irleen pouted, her form jerking as if she was turning away from them. "I can't remember where I was."

"Well!" Link received a playful shove. "Tha's no fun, Link. I wanted ta hear more. I like a good story."

Link glanced down at his boots. "It was meant to be an explanation…"

Irleen bounced against Link's forehead. "Don't pay any attention to him, Meilont," she said. "He was just worried you wouldn't see him off."

"Well, between havin' ta wake yeh two up an' makin' sure yeh didn' forge' anythin', I didn' have enough time ta do wha' I wanted," Meilont explained. "I though' I might've missed yeh."

"What were you doing?" Link asked, finally turning to her.

He immediately found something thrust into his chest, prompting a confused "ghuf". "Askin' fer some favors," she explained. "If it hadn' been fer yeh, Link, the town'd jus' be a dot on some old map. So I talked ta a few people."

Link realized that he was holding a sword and pulled it out of its sheath to examine it. The thick blade had a double edge, bearing the sheen of steel which had never seen combat before. The base of the blade curved outward and blended into the bronze piece forming a triangular guard. The grip felt like leather, and the pommel was capped by a disk of steel. The locket of the sheath was made of bronze, and Link saw that when the sword was sheathed, both bronze pieces formed a diamond. The rest of the sheath appeared to be leather with a steel cap on the bottom end.

"This… this is for _me_?" Link asked.

Meilont nodded. "Yer good with a sword. An' yeh never know wha' kinda dangers're ou' there."

"Is it all right for me to carry it around?"

She shrugged. "Everyone has ta protec' themselves somehow." She offered him something else. "This, too."

Link replaced the sword and tucked it under one arm so that he could accept the green bundle she offered. He let it unroll, revealing it to be a triangular cloth. "What is this? Underwear?"

"Oh, don' be stupid," Meilont replied in an irritated tone, snagging the item from him. She put a hand into it and turned out the opening, revealing a lime-green interior. "I's more fer Irleen, actually. No one travels with fairies, so yeh migh' wanna hide in this cap I go' from the seamstress."

"Is it dangerous for a fairy?" Irleen asked, watching Meilont stretch her arms past Link's head.

"I think no'," Meilont answered, pulling the hat as tight around Link's unkempt hair as she could. "Bu' it doesn' hur' ta be on the safe side."

"Ow…"

"Don' be makin' a fuss now," Meilont told Link as she stepped back. She gave him a wide grin, crossing her arms. "Yeh look like a hero now. Yeh jus' need ta do somethin' 'bout tha' silly look on yer face."

Link's confounded stare turned into an irate scowl. "For a moment, I thought that was a compliment." He fumbled with the belt on the sword for a moment before he put it on over his tunic belt. It felt strange to wear a sword. The belt would not hold level like his tunic belt, instead choosing to sag on his right hip where the sword hung. So he pulled up on the left side, hoping that it would remain in place. Then he tightened it until it almost hurt. "How's that?"

Irleen hovered next to Meilont. "Better," they both said.

The train gave another loud bellow. "All aboard for Library Town!" someone behind Link shouted.

"Yeh migh' wanna hide now, Irleen," Meilont said. "Link's the only one with a ticket."

"Right." Irleen approached Link and disappeared over his brow. He could barely feel her pressing against his hair inside the hat.

Meilont gave a sigh, placing her hands behind her back. "Well, Link. I hope yeh find somethin' ta help yeh."

Link scratched the back of his head. "Yeah. Me too."

"An' if yeh don', yeh'll always have someplace ta come back ta."

Link felt his face grow hot. "Th-thanks."

"Be careful ou' there."

"_We will_," Irleen said from under the hat. "Let's get going, Link!"

Link began to turn, but Meilont's movement caught his eye. He stopped for a moment, but she only met his eyes in the kind of stare that makes one forget the rest of the world.

Then she waved a hand at him. "Ge' on now." Link gave her a sharp nod.

"Ow," Irleen grunted from under the hat.

"S-sorry, Irleen," Link said to his brow. Then he turned and walked across the platform.

Behind the coal car was a coach sporting a green coat a few shades lighter than the rest of the train. As Link approached, he found that the coach had taken some serious beatings, dents and scratches deforming the exterior. It had been painted over numerous times, evident by the patches of mismatched green on the outside. Link remembered Luggard saying that the Bulblins attacked trains, and he began to wonder if walking would be any safer.

But he sighed, reaching into his trouser pocket as he approached. A large man stood by the coach, dressed in a blue uniform which looked to be a size too small for him. Link presented his ticket, and the man tore off one end before returning it. Feeling a little intimidated by the man's size, Link sidled into the car.

The exterior repairs to the coach hid the eloquence of the interior quite well. Treated wood paneling covered the walls as well as the ceiling, which sported two iron-black lanterns suspended from many small chains. A thin carpet of burgundy, worn from the possibly thousands of passengers the car had seen in its lifetime, filled every visible bit of floor. Link found his seat at about the middle of the car among the two dozen benches lining either side. He sat and took a moment to admire the lime textile used in the seat's construction. The feel of it led him to the conclusion that it was some kind of animal hair, as it had a similar feel to a pair of woolen trousers he often wore to bed when he overnighted at Skyrider Port.

He leaned into the walkway upon hearing a metallic slam from the door. The man who had taken his ticket allowed his eyes to wander over the seats. This action prompted Link to sit up and poke his head over the bench in front of him. After scanning the cabin, Link realized that, unless someone as short as him rode along, he was the only passenger at the moment. His eyes returned to the front of the car just in time to see the large man open an outer door and close it again as he left.

After leaning into the walkway again to double-check that he was alone, he said, "I guess you can come out, Irleen."

He felt Irleen squirm out of the hat above his left ear. "Good," she expelled in a relieved breath, her ball-like form hovering next to Link's head. "It's a little crazy in there. I had to float around just to keep from bashing into your skull. Do you realize how often you move your head?"

Link's face formed a concentrating frown. "No, I guess I don't."

"I'd ask for a chair in there, but…"

"But what?"

"Well… I don't know that I have a _butt_ to sit on!" Link bit down on his lips to keep from laughing aloud, her tone of voice telling him that it was a very serious concern. She rose towards the ceiling of the car. "Wow… there's no one else here."

"Luggard said that not many people travel since the Bulblins like to attack trains."

"Luggard?"

"He's an engineer for the Number Seventeen train. I met him a few days ago."

The steam whistle blew, and a moment later, the car gave a gentle quake as the train began moving. Link slid next to the window and glanced out.

He soon began waving as he recognized faces in the passing crowd. Dissal and Lura stood at the front of the group, flanked by Gwait and his crew. Doctor Beld mouthed something at him before waving, but Link had missed part of it due to a woman's head being in his way. A few more faces, some of the men around town who had been impressed with Link's performance during the Bulblin attack, called out to him only to be mixed with the rest of the noise on the platform. Talein stood outside of the crowd, doubled over as if he had just run upon the platform. He managed to straighten up just in time to give Link a quick gesture. Link turned in the seat to follow Talein for a moment, then he turned his attention in the direction of travel to see if Meilont was still on the platform.

The image of her on the platform branded itself in Link's mind and would resurface for a while before he ever saw her again. Every detail etched into his memory almost perfectly, likely because the train's speed as it left had picked up enough to only allow him to see her for just a heartbeat. _Almost_ perfectly, save one detail.

The details he was sure about were the way she stood. In a simple, off-white shirt and deep green, knee-length skirt characteristic of her usual wardrobe, she kept her posture straight and strong. She had to keep that posture because the wind had chosen that moment to blow. Her fiery mane, left untied that particular morning, blocked out the sight of the town behind her with the added service of emphasizing her face at that time. That was when Link saw something in her eyes he never thought Meilont was capable of expressing: loneliness. For once, those dark eyes of hers seemed to gloss over in expectation of tears, her brow drawn into an expression of longing. Her hands lay clasped over her chest as if to hold her heart back.

Link was sure that what she mouthed revealed more about her state of emotion at the time. Unfortunately, this was the detail which he would never be sure about. The scene before him did not last long enough for him to be sure he got the whole message, and, if she made any sound, the clacking of train wheels over the tracks drowned it out. He was poor at reading lips, too. His initial thought was that she said something which would make his leaving Whittleton so much harder if he had heard the words.

"Come back."

Whenever the sight of her on that platform would replay in Link's mind, he would always wonder if she might have said "good luck", "be safe", or perhaps a blatant "I love you". He was not sure which he would have wanted to hear. In times to come, he would wish that she had told him before he left.

Immediately after the event, however, he had another concern.

"Me—"

_PONK!_ "Dagh!"

"What is it, Link?!" Irleen cried, watching her companion fall into his seat with his hands covering his forehead. He had made to lean through the window to see Meilont as she fell out of sight, for no discernible reason forgetting that there was a pane of glass directly in his way. The speed which he achieved in the breath's distance between his forehead and the window provided enough impact to send a dull pain throughout his skull.

"Link!" Irleen shouted at him again, hovering close to his face.

"I'm all right," he replied half-groaning. "Thought I saw something, that's all."

Irleen floated towards the window to glance outside. "If you're worried about not coming back to Whittleton, it's not like we won't be a train ride away. Right now, we should probably focus on what we need to do. How much do you know about these Architects?"

Link sighed, relaxing against the seat behind him as he racked his brain. Finding it difficult to sit comfortably, he released the sword belt. "Well, they were engineering geniuses who first conceptualized airships," he answered, setting the sword on the seat across from him. Now comfortable, he leaned back and continued, "I know they discovered Loft Steam venting up from the ground, which, as I said before, we use to keep the ships floating."

"I think Sorian airships used something different," Irleen interrupted him. "Magic, most likely. But go on."

Link nodded. "They decided to base airships off of ocean vessels because they were designed to move with the wind. The problem they ran into was what to do when the wind wasn't strong enough to propel the ship. They looked at steam engines like the ones this train uses and eventually came up with the steam engines we use on airships. Since then, though, people living in the sky had to make a few adjustments to the way ships were built."

"How come?"

"The Sky Lines. There've been many improvements on Hylian vessels. Uh… stronger building techniques… mm, sails which could withstand heavy winds… lighter engines, too, those helped decrease the overall weight of an airship so that they could change altitude more effectively. So if we manage to find any Architects and they're willing to build us a ship, we might have to have them compensate for the use of the Sky Lines. Otherwise, the first time it enters a Sky Line, most of the rigging will be torn apart, and we'll just fall to the ground again."

Irleen gave a shiver. "Wasn't really fun the first time."

Link nodded in agreement. "I think our main problem will be finding any Architects who still might be _alive_. We've been in the sky for almost a hundred years. It may be a bit of a stretch to think that the original Architects are still alive. Most of them spent a long time working on the first airships, and they probably spent even more time working out the engineering for those."

"Ain't it the truth, boy."

Both Link and Irleen nearly jumped into the ceiling at the sound of a grating male drone from close by. Irleen dove into Link's cap. Link dove for his new sword. He drew it in an instant and pointed it in his line of sight as he looked for the source of the voice.

The voice gave a raspy chuckle in response. "Put away the sword, boy. I ain't gonna harm ya."

Link located the man behind the seat he had just been sitting in. He was an elderly man, long-faced, wrinkled, and bald. He wore gray rags simply draped over his scrawny frame, sitting cross-legged on the seat facing the rear of the train. The most striking feature of this man was the thin, black-iron plate fitted across his face, covering his eyes like a pair of glasses. To confirm what he thought, Link held his sword aside so he could wave a hand in front of the man's face.

The man chuckled in response. "That's right, boy. I'm completely blind."

"I-I'm sorry," Link said, sheathing the sword.

"Ain't no need t' apologize; I been blind for a while now."

"How did it happen?"

"Age. The years like t' get their money's worth."

Link took the seat across from him. "Do you know anything about the Architects?"

"One or two things."

"Do you know where to find them?"

"Hah!" the man laughed in a loud voice. "Can't much find anythin' these days."

"Blind, Link," Irleen said as she emerged from his hat.

"The gal gets a grin fer payin' attention," the man replied, revealing a mouth full of yellow, crooked teeth. Of course, this only applied to the teeth he still had left; half of his smile sported large gaps.

"So, what do you know then?" Link asked.

"Well, yer right 'bout them spendin' even more time workin' out the engineerin' behind airships. What ya _don't_ realize is they didn't just sit 'round thinkin' 'bout it all."

"They had jobs?" Irleen asked.

"I should say they did. They were Royal Engineers."

Link tilted his head. "Royal Engineers?"

The old man nodded, using a skeleton hand to push his metal spectacles back up his nose. "Engineers what served the rulers of Hyrule personally. Ran trains mostly, but they also ran errands fer the royal family. At least, they _used_ to."

"What happened?" Link asked. The old man gave a stupefied look. Then, with amazing speed, he laid a bony hand into the side of Link's head. "Ow!"

"The royal family left! Whaddya think?!"

"Oh," was Link's only response, rubbing the spot where the man had struck him.

The old man shook his head. "When the royal family went up, wasn't much call fer Royal Engineers anymore. Packed up their best doodles 'n left. Engineerin' companies took over."

"Is there _any_ indication of where they went?" Irleen pleaded. "We _have_ to get back to the sky."

"Yer _that_ determined t' find 'em, eh?" Link gave a sharp nod, and Irleen bobbed in the air. "Wish I could help ya. But if they were any smart, they'd left somethin' behind. Them airships were modern marvels. Hate t' think we'll never see 'em on the surface again." He paused to chuckle to himself. "Not like I got much choice."

"Where would we find them?" Irleen asked. "I mean, if they left anything."

"Heh. Nowhere obvious, I'd think. The Architects didn't much like people. Just their trains. But that in herself might help ya, d'ya think?"

"Maybe," Link agreed. "If they liked trains, they might live somewhere along the tracks around here. We'd still have to look around the library, though; we don't have the money to take every train to _every_ station."

"It sounds like a good start, though," Irleen said.

The old man gave a rough cough. "If ya 'scuse me, I gotta get some sleep."

Link watched, but the old man did not move.

Then he started snoring.

"How the hell does someone fall asleep sitting up?!"

"Shhh," Link hissed at Irleen. He stood, steadying himself against the train's movement, and motioned Irleen to follow him. He led her towards the front of the car and took a seat with his back to the old man. "Well, we know a few more things about the Architects. It might take a while, but we can at least try to find some of them through whatever records may be in Library Town."

Irleen gave a sigh. "This is definitely going to take a while."

Link grinned to himself, reaching into the large pocket of his trousers. He took out his leather journal, leaned back, and looked through the pages. First was yesterday, then the couple days before that. Back further and further, each paragraph reminded him of what his journey so far had led up to. The beginning read hopelessness and misery, but it ironed itself out halfway through. Link resolved not to put down any more depressing passages in the journal; after all, what would be the point in reading it later, remembering these days, if all he wrote down was his melancholy? Someone might even want to read this, like those ocean journals the old sailor Niko wrote which he enjoyed reading back at port.

His eyes wandered out the window to his left. They met a thick growth of forest, a sickly green color which Link had seen in parts around Whittleton. He wondered if that was the "Lost Woods" Luggard had mentioned. As the train continued, Link caught sight of a set of tracks leading into a dark opening in the forest.

So the tracks actually went _inside_ that forest. Link frowned, wondering if one of the Architects might've left a clue in such a dismal place.


	27. Library Town

Chapter 27: Library Town

…

Even if the sky above remained as dismal as ever, Link found some comfort looking at a new landscape. He had never seen such a vast field of grass as the plain the Twenty-Seven traversed, although the unhealthy color of the grass may have robbed him of the sight. It amazed him to see so much land untouched when there had always been such a large demand for the space in the sky above. The forest on the other side of the train seemed to never end, not even as the train pulled into another town. Fishington sat on the edge of a lake bordered by trees on one side and grass on the other. The town itself seemed to be about the same size as Whittleton, although the residents had chosen to build their houses of lumber instead of inside trees. As the Twenty-Seven pulled in, Link could see a number of land paths winding about the nearby plain. Some sported individual carts led by draft animals, one led a large caravan which seemed to stand out against the rather scant surroundings, and a few guided small groups of travelers on foot. There was nothing like a proper road visible from the train, nothing of the cobblestone or brick paths that always made up the large towns and ports which Link had come to know. But there were boats, most of them small sailing vessels. Two or three appeared to be large fishing trawlers the likes of which Link had never seen before. Irleen brought up the possibility of converting one of those trawlers into an airship, but Link shot her down, quick to point out that they needed something that could support a large steam engine. Even with that statement, Link noted the town in his mind as a place where he might want to stop anyway; as they left, he saw another set of tracks leading into the woods.

From there, the trip to Library Town felt like it took only half the time from Whittleton to Fishington. Of course, Link still had not found a working clock to tell time. He and Irleen were the only people in the passenger car; the old man, Link figured, must have gotten off at Fishington. Although it gave him and Irleen the opportunity to talk openly to each other, any conversation they attempted ended on a brief word. They had already discussed the Architects to the limits of Link's knowledge, and any other subject they could think of could not make it past six sentences.

This was likely because Link's mind wandered through the recent past yet again. Reading through his journal made him realize that he was missing memories. Of course, he remembered everything from that day Captain Alfonzo told him about the promotion and the journey and sinking of the _Island_ _Sonata_. But without the airship's logbook, it felt to Link as if he had lost the events of his first command. There was nothing left of the _Island_ _Sonata_ now, nothing which could make it into a library with the many other airships whose logbooks found their way into history.

If he could find another ship, he would be sure that the logbook would never be abandoned.

The Twenty-Seven's whistle gave a great wail, breaking into his thoughts as his hand stroked the journal. Startled, he shoved the journal into his pocket and looked out the window.

For a moment, Link was not sure what he saw out the window. It looked like a pier made of white stone. A scarlet awning stretched along an occupied walkway lined with maps and food carts before a sheer cliff of brown earth. The stone walkways stretched towards a mess of tracks between the "pier" and the Twenty-Seven. Despite the train's slow speed, Link could feel the car shift under him as the train moved closer. Then the train finally turned. Link saw the tracks and walkways they had passed, but the plain beyond was obscured. Finally, after days among nature, he found a civilization again.

The train gave a subtle lurch as it stopped. The large uniformed man who took Link's ticket at the beginning of the journey opened the side door from the outside. Irleen quickly dove into Link's cap. The man gave Link a crisp gesture to get out, which Link followed immediately. He put his sword belt back on and crossed the car to the door.

Stepping outside, Link met the smell of metalworks, of burning coal known to steam engines, and of cooking food. His eyes examined the cliff face directly behind the train platform (marked 9 by a single post where the platform met the rest of the walkway), and he noticed a number of openings in the rock face, covered mainly by glass. Under the awning, he saw a mix of doors, stairwells, and signs of various sorts. He came upon one of the maps he saw, finding it to be a map of the "Western Railroad Platforms". Following the directions given, he finally laid eyes on a large stone wall to his right some distance away. "Central Library Town", the map told him. Link fished in one trouser pocket until he found the directions Meilont had given him.

—"From the West Platforms, go to the center of town where you will find a fountain. Turn to your left, and you should see the old Hyrule Castle. Go there. ~Meilont"

Link nodded, adding to himself, "Because the castle is now the library." Having memorized the directions, he shoved the note back into his pocket and started walking.

It was almost a relief to him to see so many people again, although he had to admit that there was an absurd amount of foot traffic on the train platforms for a place where people did not travel so much. Looking at the signs in the cliff, he soon realized that not all of these doors and stairs might be businesses after all. They just might as likely be residences. Yes, now that he saw it, laundry lines hung outside some of the doorways unmarked by signs. One particular spot appeared to be some kind of hostel, like the shared apartments of the Skyriders' office building where Link stayed while at port. His ears met mostly the voices of the locals talking to one another, a dialect which he had never heard before on the islands above. There were also sounds of forging going on, along with the sizzle of something cooking over a fire. The air felt warmer than back in Whittleton, making him wish he had brought something other than the lime-green undersuit he wore.

Link felt his stomach growl. "Irleen, can you hear me?" he tried to ask in a low voice. But she did not reply. "Irleen?" Again, no response. Abandoning his idea of getting a quick snack, he continued towards the stone wall.

He found that, on the other side of this stone wall, Central Library Town looked particularly old. The ground switched to a path of red sand cobblestone lined with limestone. With the exception of a few wooden sheds (which seemed to be in disrepair and barren of any contents besides rats), the surrounding buildings had been built of a combination of red brick and white stone with three stories at most. Although these buildings were inhabited, their aged construction had left a few walls fallen, holes where bricks used to be. The higher floors looked newer to Link, and some of them connected with their neighbors. Foot traffic in this part of the town was lighter, although the main road which Link walked sported a fair amount of travelers. Train whistles broke the air on occasion; if Link had read the map right, there were another set of train platforms on the east side of the town. Other than that, the town seemed to go about the daily bustle that Link had seen in many ports in the sky.

He soon came upon a white stone fountain, although the fountain itself seemed to have been shut off for some time. Leaning over the side, he saw that the water was polluted with mud and strands of brown plants. So, he thought, even in abundant water, these plants still suffer without light.

Then Link looked left after remembering what the note said. He was surprised by the library, looking nothing like the Hyrule Castle he knew from the sky. This castle was decidedly square, not having the odd angle or branching design like the sky kingdom's version. The towers in the back sported blue roofs in a strange offset of the white stone walls and faded red banners. There was no outer wall like the other castle; as his eyes followed a small trench dug just before a bare patch of ground in front of the castle, he saw the remains of a wall in between the old buildings.

What caught his interest, however, was the singular tower far to the right and in the distance. Colored a dull grey, the tower looked to disappear in the haze above. Link was not sure he had seen a structure that tall before, not even they sky kingdom's castle. If, indeed, it reached beyond the haze, he might be able to get a good look at the sky kingdom some time.

If he could find a telescope. There was no way the sky kingdom was _that_ close.

He walked to the library. The people who seemed to wander what little remained of a garden wore robes of earthen colors with the waist held together by rope, each one carrying at least one book. They all appeared to be somewhere within Link's age range: some older, some younger. Adults wore similar robes to the younger people, although theirs were of brighter colors and more elaborate designs. No one took any interest in Link as he walked across the path to the front doors of the castle. He put a hand on lacquered wood, recently refinished by the looks of the doors themselves compared to the battered frames which held them in place. His hand slid down to a brass handle of the door in front of him.

The door then proceeded to bash him in the face.

Link took a moment to realize that the grey haze in front of him was only the sky as seen from the surface world up. His forehead and nose hurt from the impact with the door, and the back of his head felt as if it had taken some pain from the ground beneath him. He sat up, both hands pressing against his forehead as if to hold the pain back. Almost on an afterthought, he released an ungracious, "Ow!"

"Oh, saah!" came the voice of a boy barely older than Link. "I-I'm vehry sohry fah that! I'd no idea anyone was behind the dooh!"

"Maybe if you'd try opening it _slower_," Link suggested, looking up at the young man.

He wore a brown robe without sleeves or any other decoration from the cord of sky blue around his waist. His thick, brown hair looked to not have been well-groomed in some time. Apologetic eyes of dull grey cringed at the sound of Link's heated voice. He swallowed hard and replied, "O-of couhse, saah."

Link reached around and picked up his cap. "Irleen, are you all right?" he asked as he tugged the cap back over his head. When he did not hear a reply, he asked, "Irleen?"

"I-I'm sohry?" the boy asked.

Link picked himself up and looked around the garden. "Irleen?" he called out. With the exception of a few of the library-goers looking up in confusion, no one responded.

"Did you lose something, saah?"

"Oh, no," Link groaned, starting back towards the town. "Irleen?"

"Saah, y-you wouldn't happen to be… _Link_, would you?"

Link spun. "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"Madame Seilon sent me to find you," he replied. "J-just this second, actually. She wanted me to bring you to meet haah."

"In a bit," Link replied. "I've gotta find my friend first."

The boy gave him a confused look. "Youh friend? I'd the assumption you'd traveled alone."

"No. D-I mean, _yes_, I was supposed to travel alone, but… it-it's complicated. I have to find her right away."

The boy nodded. "What does she look like, saah?"

Link's eyes passed over the garden again. "Uh… small… green… flies."

A little confused, Link's conversation partner scratched his head. "Um… a pet bug, paahaps?"

Link froze before spinning on him again. "What? _No!_ She's a Sorian!"

The boy drew back in fright. "A-a what, saah?"

Link growled in frustration, remembering that no one on the surface had probably ever _heard_ of the Sorians. "She's-she's a, uh… a fairy! A little, green _fairy_!"

"Oooh," the boy droned. "Well then, I imagine she can't be tehribly hahd to find. But I'm afraid I hadn't notice a fahry fall from youh pehson."

"I must've lost her back at the western platforms. She didn't say anything after we got off the train."

"Shall I come with?"

Link shrugged. "It'll make things easier."

…

The two boys walked to the western platforms within the hour and split up to search along the main body of traffic. Link took the area closer to the cliff while his companion (whose name he still had not heard nor really thought to ask for) searched along the tracks and individual platforms. Link was not sure if calling her name would help, so he resorted to uttering her name every few steps.

This side of Library Town held a lot of peculiarities now that he was able to examine them closely. One booth claimed to sell magic potions, although the one man Link saw trying to take a particularly long drag on supposedly a strength-enhancing potion immediately keeled over and scurried away on all fours whimpering like a wounded animal. Another sold goods in glass bottles, and, for a moment, Link thought someone had captured Irleen and imprisoned her on the back shelf. Fortunately, the fairies the man sold for 50 rupees each were all red. A stall near an awning support halfway down the main platform sold Ropes. Link had just half a moment to retract his neck before realizing that the Ropes resting in the basket were alive, narrowly avoiding having his nose bitten off by a particularly irate red serpent. Similarly aggressive creatures were kept in iron cages up and down the platform, although the presence of broken cages suggested that a few might have escaped.

No one said anything to Link. It did not trouble him because Link was not sure if he wanted to announce that he was trying to find a fairy wandering about the platform somewhere, especially after seeing the booth holding fairies for sale. Not many of them seemed to be in the mood to talk as it was, bustling about trying to take care of the day's business. Link's shoulders never hurt more, having bumped into a number of things trying to avoid people charging past him. Unlike towns in the sky, Link saw no outward signs of militia, the local policing forces of each individual island. Instead, the residents wore some kind of weapon openly (men mostly), often a sword or knife. Children ran about like Link had become used to seeing in Whittleton, although these ones did not wield anything more elaborate than the occasional stick.

"… kàwoot oh. Hook! Hook kool hih 'akuh, tah nolàk hih kahnaach? Pa!"

Although Link's exposure to untranslated Sorian had been brief, he recognized enough of the sounds made by this deep, male voice to identify it after some thought. His hand felt the outside of his trousers, his fingers curiously finding the translating stone where he had left it. If this was the case, why would he be hearing Sorian right now?

Regardless, where audible Sorian was to be heard, Link felt it likely that an actual Sorian might be there as well. The voice was boisterous and carried quite well, so Link took a bit of time locating the source. He eventually found an open area on the edge of the platform not too far from where the Twenty-Seven had settled, which might have explained why Irleen had noticed it while Link had not. A large, circular rug lay at the head of the number 11 platform. There, a man wearing a brown cape and hood sat in the middle, a dark-skinned, bony hand wrapped around a tall, coppery block. Although his face was hidden from direct sight by the shade caused by the hood, Link could see a sharp, prominent nose in the shadow.

Link's eyes passed over the heads of the crowd until he saw a green ball floating near the awning. He stepped under her just as the boy he met earlier drew up beside him. "Psst. Irleen."

"Link," she replied, floating down to him. "Where'd you disappear to? I couldn't find you anywhere."

"Where did _I_ disappear to?" Link asked in a confused tone. "I went to the _Library_. Where'd you go?"

"I thought I heard someone talking in Sorian, so I came to check it out. It was a little hard to find them until I lost you, so that just made it easier."

Link craned his neck so he could see the hooded speaker through the crowd. "Do you know him?"

"Afraid not. Whoever he is, he _isn't_ a Sorian."

"How can you tell?"

"His dialect's too weird. Nothing sounds right."

"Know what he's saying?"

At this, Irleen sighed. "I've been trying to make out what he's saying. Either he's telling a story, or he's raging against the deities of Hyrule. It would help if his language didn't suck."

Link moved his head around a little. "What about that thing he's holding? It looks like it has Sorian writing on it."

"I think he's mistaken it for a piece of ancient ruins."

"You mean it isn't?" the boy next to Link finally spoke up.

"If anything, it's probably a piece from a failed island. Either it never got off the ground, or it fell. I wouldn't call it 'ancient', though." Irleen's form gave a small jerk as she realized that she was not speaking to Link. She turned and asked, "Who are you?"

"Oh, I-I'm Cale," he replied.

"Uh, yeah," Link said, scratching the back of his head. "Irleen, uh… Cale. Cale, Irleen. I met him at the Library."

"Oh, deah," Cale said. "Yes, I'm afraid we must retahn soon; Madame Seilon still expects you."

"Who?" Irleen asked.

Link shrugged. "If I had to guess, it's probably Meilont's mother."

"With all haste, saah," Cale implored, using a hand to indicate the central area of town.

Link sighed as Irleen ducked back under his cap; he was slowly getting hungry.

…

Cale led Link through the double doors at the front of the Library. The front area sported narrow passages which might have been passable if not for the bookshelves on either side and the tables in the middle. They turned left just after the entrance, walking among the bookshelves until they reached a door of bare wood. Cale paused before this door to knock.

"Come in," called a female voice from beyond.

Cale opened the door into a stuffy, office-like room. Link was sure he smelled mildew from some source. The wall was lined with a long, wooden desk mounted to the wall. The room's occupants, three men and five women, sat at small stations along the desk, divided by the piles of books between them. One woman, seated on the wall directly in front of the door, looked over her shoulder. "Who is this, Cale?" she asked in a scratchy voice.

"Saah Link, Madame Vean."

"'E's fer me, Ma'am," said another voice in a dialect Link knew for certain to be no one other than a Whittleton resident. His gaze turned as another woman stood. She wore a robe of bright green with the name "Whittleton" sewn into the left breast below embroidery of three leaves. On first look at her face, Link could swear he had just met an older Meilont; this woman had the same bright red hair, albeit cut to about shoulder-length and tied back, and dark eyes behind a pair of circular spectacles sitting on the end of her nose. He was surprised to find that, as she stood, she had the height of Captain Alfonzo as well as his strong presence despite her slenderer form when compared to the captain. "Ma daughter vouched fer 'im. 'E's jus' 'ere ta learn."

Madame Vean gave a nod. "Very well."

She approached both boys and ushered them back out of the office. "Come now, let's ge' yeh taken care of."

But once the office door had closed—

"Hagh!"

"Yah!"

"Huh?"

"Oh, yer jus' the cutes' little fighter I ever _seen_!"

—Link found a pair of arms cutting off his circulation. Madame Seilon's strength had surprised him when she decided to hug him, pulling his feet off the floor for a moment. The sudden jerk backwards surprised Irleen as well, and she dove out from under Link's cap only to bounce off the back of Cale's head. Cale could only look back on the sight in confusion, feeling his head for that bug he thought he had felt.

When Madame Seilon let go, Link leaned against the nearest bookshelf to catch his breath as she spoke. "Sorry, Link, bu' Meilont asked me ta give yeh tha' when yeh go' 'ere."

"When?" Link rasped.

"Letter came a few minutes ago. Reminded me yeh were comin'. Now, where's tha' little Irleen she told me 'bout?"

"Up here," came the Sorian's response.

Madame Seilon looked up at her and grinned. "Well, o' course. An' she was righ', too; yeh go' yerself turned inna a fairy right."

"It wouldn't have been my first choice," Irleen said, dropping to eye-level.

"No' very convenient, I'd say," Seilon nodded in agreement.

"Was it a cuhse?" Cale asked.

"An _accident_," Irleen answered in an irritated tone.

"And, in order to correct it," Link said now that he had his breath, "we need to return to the sky kingdom."

Madame Seilon nodded. "An' ta do tha', yeh need ta look fer the Architects, right?"

"Ahchitects?" Cale asked.

"Ship builders," Link said. "The ones who put together the first airships. We know they used to be Royal Engineers before the Royal Family of Hyrule moved into the sky."

"Ooh," Madame Seilon replied, a look of surprise on her face. "Tha' information sure makes a difference. Been tryin' ta find 'istory o' the airship builders when lookin' fer the Royal Engineers would'a been easier."

"Really?" Link asked.

"O' course. In case yeh hadn' noticed, Library Town's a central location on the whole land's railway. There're a number o' records abou' the trains an' such aroun' 'ere."

"This is true," Cale added. "A lot of ouh librahry featuahs many facts and histohries of the railways. If these Ahchitects had anything to do with the trains, we should find them there."

"Come on, then," Madame Seilon said, ushering the boys back down the hallway.

"So, have you found anything concerning the Architects?" Irleen asked, fluttering above Link's head so that she was directly in Madame Seilon's path.

"No' really," Madame Seilon confessed. "An' because I been the only one doin' the research, I didn' ge' much chance ta find anythin' before yeh showed up."

They came to the junction towards the front of the Library, and Cale led them down the center path deeper into the old building. "Madame only infohmed me today," he said.

"I didn' think it'd be such a pain," Madame Seilon replied. "So many books 'ere, an' no' one o' 'em can give a straigh' answer."

The group stepped through a set of doors into a larger room. Shelves here formed individual rows which could easily be navigated. Reading tables, mostly empty at the moment, sat on either side of the door. Link also noticed that this was the only place with enough height to require ladders for the higher shelves.

"Right," Irleen said, starting forward. "How hard could this be?"

"All these books concehn the histohry of trains, famous people in trains, manuals of train opehrations, directohries of trains, train models… you know, stuff like that."

Irleen froze in place. "This… this'll probably take a while, won't it?"

Link craned his neck to get a count of the bookshelves. "Yeah, probably."

Irleen's form dropped a bit as she replied, "Aw, crap…" Link could only sigh in agreement; he had been thinking the same thing.


	28. This Is Why You Should Explore More

Chapter 28: This Is Why You Should Explore More

…

Link, for the first time since falling beneath the haze, was grateful for his inability to tell time. He did not want to know how long he had been searching through books whose language threw him a tough word or two every paragraph. The main cause of this could only be hunger, but it appeared that food was not allowed in the Library. Even a bread crumb caught between the wooden slats that made up his bench would give him enough energy to make it through this session. Alas, all he could scratch up was dirt and a particularly gruesome-looking ball of black hair. He slowly became miserable, so he propped up a book and laid his head down on the table and stared at the same page as he tried to think of how he was going to get something to eat.

"How's it going?"

"Gyah!" Link sat upright with enough force that the bench underneath him tilted backwards. The legs of the bench then slapped to the stone floor as Link's weight shifted, and another lift dumped Link onto the floor.

Irleen jumped over the book. "Are you all right?" she asked in an amused tone.

Link gave a groan. "Yeah…"

"What were you doing? Sleeping?"

"No," Link replied as he picked himself up, "I was reading."

"What about?"

Link scrunched his face; he could not even remember what the general subject of the book was. "Okay, I was just staring at it."

"Uh huh."

Link gave a frustrated sigh. "Look, I'm _hungry_. I haven't eaten anything since this morning, and I just don't have the energy to do some serious research right now."

"Tha's too bad," Madame Seilon broke in as she emerged from the shelves to Link's right, arms full of books. "There's no eatin' in the Library."

"Can I at least go out for a snack?" Link asked, one arm indicating the door.

"Madame Seilon!"

Madame Seilon rolled her eyes and turned to the table on the other side of the room. "We're righ' 'ere, Cale."

"Oh, uh…" Cale stood up from the table, thought for a moment, and grabbed the book he had been perusing. "I think I may have found something."

"You said the same thing seven times since we started," Irleen said as he approached their table. "I'm still wondering where the development and subsequent failure of underwater steam trains ten years before fits in with people who supposedly lived over a hundred years ago."

Cale froze in place, book almost on the table. "Oh, um… well…" He contemplated the pages for a moment. "I-I suppose the development of the three-tone train whistle would not be of interest, then."

"'Ow old?" Madame Seilon asked.

"Uh… about fifty yeahs."

Link scratched his head. "Iiii don't know, Cale. If I was an Architect, I don't think my achievement would include something so… weird like a three-toned train whistle."

"Yeh can' deny i's no' a bad invention, though," Madame Seilon said with a shrug.

"It'd be like calling someone great for-for inventing the _board_," Irleen said. "Right, Link?"

"I-duh um…" Link scrunched his face. "Ah… maybe more along the lines of the hull plank… I guess. You know… not… uh… it's important, just… mundane."

"Nice work with the association," Irleen told him.

Link gave an exhausted sigh. "I think I'll quit similes for a while."

"Well, it would help had you given us some names…" Cale groaned.

"Maybe you guys are just trying too hard," Irleen said.

Madame Seilon dropped the books she was carrying onto the table. "Yeh care ta direc' workflow, Irleen?" she teased.

"It wouldn't do much good; I can't read Hylian."

"What kind of achievements would these Ahchitects have made?" Cale asked Link.

Link groaned as he took his seat again. "That's the thing. I really wish I knew. If I'd thought about it, I'd've asked that old man on the Number Seventeen this morning. He seemed to know plenty about the Architects."

"He didn't disembahk heah?"

"We didn't see him anymore after Fishington," Irleen answered. "He probably got off there."

"We need a listin' o' the Royal Engineers through the years," Madame Seilon said, snapping her fingers. "Gotta be some yearbooks aroun' 'ere somewhere."

"Wait, wait," Irleen said, fluttering just in front of Madame Seilon's face as she turned back to the bookshelves. "How many Royal Engineers would've been operating in a single year?"

"I think the regulah figuah I found eahliah said about twenty five," Cale said. "And we don't precisely know what yeah to look foh, do we?"

Link nodded. "Add the fact that the Architects went into seclusion after the royal family left, and we would have to weed out which engineers died from the ones that just went into seclusion."

"The Library Town Couht Recohds could give us the death dates, but it would take a ludicrous amount of time. And that assumes _all_ Royal Engineehs on recohd died in the realm."

Irleen growled. "It would be easier if someone could just _tell_ us."

Link settled his chin on the table in front of him. "I don't mind doing the work, I'm just hungry right now."

Cale heaved a sigh. "I feel the same. Suahly, we might rest foh a moment, Madame?"

Madame Seilon smirked at Irleen. "Men an' their stomachs, right?"

Irleen gave a huff. "If Link had any kind of stamina, he could do without food. _I_ haven't eaten since I woke up like this."

"You have _not_?" Cale asked.

"I don't even know if I have a _mouth_."

Link frowned at her. "Then… how have you been talking to us?"

Irleen's form froze in place, the gentle push of her wings softly dropping her to the table. "Uh… actually, I, uh…

"I don't kn—Hey! Listen! Letsgogetsomethingtoeatbecau seImstarvingandLinksstarving andthefoodmustbegoodhere! Right?"

"I don't think I followed any of that…" Cale said.

"All righ', yeh bunch o' babies," Madame Seilon conceded. She motioned away with one hand. "Le's go ge' somethin' ta eat b'fore yeh drive me loony."

Cale and Link exchanges glances between each other and Madame Seilon as she ushered the two towards the door, Irleen fluttering along as if she was tethered to Link. "Go, le's go," she said every time they slowed to talk to her. "Don' star' goin' agains' it now; yeh've already determined ta ge' some dinner." The other library users were treated to the sight of the Madame pushing them through the main corridor (forcing them to bump into the tables in the middle of the floor) and out the front doors.

They stumbled into the grey evening thanks to Madame Seilon. Some of the locals were setting up torches in the library's garden. Further into the town, lights showed which of the buildings actually supported life. From Link's point of view, this meant that about half of the town was abandoned. The traffic from earlier in the day had dropped, giving Library Town an eerie feeling. Even the grounds around the Library looked deserted compared to the afternoon.

"Where is everyone?" Link asked.

"Home, I believe," Cale said.

"No' many people lookin' fer a fun time a' night," Madame Seilon added. "Now. Where should we eat at? Some place close, I 'ope."

"We're new in town," Link said, "so we don't know any places to eat."

"Cale?"

"Ah. Well… I suppose we might try the tavehn just inside the Eastehn Platfohms. It might be the closest."

"Lead the way, then," Madame Seilon said, smacking Cale on the back.

Cale gave an audible groan of discomfort, but he slowly trudged into the center of town with Link and Madame Seilon in tow. Irleen, remembering at the last moment that she was better off hidden, dove under Link's hat just as they stepped onto the town's cobblestone path. People continued to light torches along the road, their sparse placement reminding Link of how Whittleton looked in the evenings as each household set up a torch outside the house just far enough away to keep the flames from setting their homes alight. Meilont had asked him to set out the torch once or twice when he was feeling well enough, although lighting it turned out to be tougher than he had expected with just the striker pieces she gave him. She had made it look easy when she had done it herself after watching him for a few minutes.

As they continued, Link started to grow concerned for the small town again. Sure, the townsfolk were on alert in case the Bulblins tried to attack again. But would they be able to handle another attack out of the blue? And did they ever find all of the tunnels under the town?

Was Meilont all right? He thought about her standing on the end of the platform. Had she… _really_ been fine with him leaving to find the Architects? He wanted to believe so, but… somehow, the thought of her wanting him to stay felt… well, he was not entirely sure. Would he have really stayed if she asked? Would she have _even_ asked?

"Link? Where are yeh goin'?" Madame Seilon's voice interrupted his thoughts, causing him to jerk to a stop where he stood. He did not believe he had been daydreaming for too long, but they had already left the center of Library Town. He turned around, finding that they were just outside on the Eastern Platforms. Madame Seilon and Cale had already stopped in front of a door built into the thinner cliff side.

As Link approached, he read on the exterior sign "The Rusted Boiler". It struck him as odd; very few bars or taverns in the sky kingdom ever had such imaginative names, only ever being referred to as "bar" or "tavern" or whatever service they liked to offer. He was not even sure it was a tavern until his eyes fell upon a wood carving of a frothing mug hanging next to the door. Light danced about behind a pair of large, frosted windows. The sounds coming from inside reminded Link of the rowdy establishments he had had to enter just to retrieve drunken members of the _Grand_ _Sails_' crew. That only drudged up the memory of being stuffed into an empty barrel and sent rolling down the road until colliding with a metal lamppost. Twice, and at the same bar.

"Well then," Madame Seilon said, tugging open the door.

All sound immediately stopped. Link and Cale stared in at over two dozen older men wearing blue uniforms glaring back at them. Most of them sat at tables distributed across the floor. Those at the bar on the far side were only just turning to see who came in. Even the bartender and the young girls wandering about in shirts and aprons paused.

"I' ya see yar smoke a-chokin' 'n yar spokes a-shiv'rin' 'n yar fo'ks a-holl'rin', ya feed or ya bleed?" one man lounging next to the front door asked. His address of the newcomers was curious, as he seemed to be partly asleep with a flattop cap over his face, chair leaned against the wall, and arms crossed. Confused looks passed between Link, Cale, and Madame Seilon. They understood it to be a question, but the man's dialect threw off their comprehension of what exactly the question was asking.

"Ya feed," came a voice from behind Link. "Cuz yar fire needs a-stokin' 'n yar fo'ks need a-goin'."

Link spun upon recognizing the voice, prompting a confused yelp from Irleen under his cap. "Luggard!" he cried in surprise.

"'Ow yah been, Link?" Luggard said with a pleasant grin on his face. "Didn' 'spect yah for a while yet, I 'ad." Link made to answer, but Luggard quickly held up a hand. "No time for intros now. Le's get ya fellas somethin' t' eat." As he ushered them in, he called across the tavern, "I vouch for these 'uns! And I'll pay 'em!"

"Nice ta know there's still some gentlemen in this world," Madame Seilon said with a smile.

"Ya might wanna wait t' eat b'fore ya thank me. 'Ere, ge' tha' table there, Link. Mel! Four o' them Boiler Soups o'er 'ere!" Luggard pushed them to a scarred, wooden table close to the bar, receiving a slap to the back of the head in the process due to his elbow meeting the left ear of an engineer he was trying to squeeze by. Link grabbed the chair facing the bar. Cale sat next to him while Madame Seilon took the chair across from Link. Luggard stepped to the bar and leaned against it, watching the man he had addressed as "Mel". Link craned his neck to see past Madame Seilon, finding that the bartender was filling out four bowls with liquid being kept in what looked like the cylindrical component of a steam locomotive. He passed these to Luggard on a tray, and Luggard took the empty seat next to Link.

Cale leaned forward and sniffed at the steam billowing from the bowl Luggard placed before him. "What is this?"

"Boiler Soup," Luggard said as Link glanced at the green liquid in his own bowl. "Mel puts it in 'is boiler 'n keeps it ready for the nex' engineer who wants some. Recipe's been with 'im since b'fore 'e retired, it 'as."

"It's… green," Cale said, watching Madame Seilon take up a spoon.

"Ya shoul've seen it yes'erday; it was blue." Cale visibly paled at the response.

"Yeh migh' as well eat it," Madame Seilon said. "Yeh both were so inten' on eatin', so go 'head."

"I recognize _tha'_ accent," Luggard said, a finger pointing at Madame Seilon. "Whi'leton, right?"

"Yeh've been to Whittleton?"

"Hrk!" Link, Madame Seilon, and Luggard glanced over at Cale, who had just frozen in place with the spoon barely out of his mouth. His hand locked in position, the spoon slipped from his fingers and landed in his bowl. His face held a pained look. Then, without warning, he tilted to one side and made an audible thud against the hardwood floor after falling off his chair.

Link made to stand, but Luggard already had the shoulder of his tunic pinched between his fingers. "'E'll be fine," Luggard told him in an indifferent tone. "Needs t' ge' used t' it, tha's all."

Madame Seilon glanced down at her fallen student. "He's unconscious."

Luggard shrugged. "It 'appens."

Link picked up his own spoon and dipped it into the soup. He decided to sniff it before putting it in his mouth. As he had already figured, the soup had the faint traces of liquor hidden among the scent of boiled vegetables and some kind of meat broth, neither of which he could identify except as things Meilont might have fixed him at one point. After a sigh, Link put the spoon his his mouth. He frowned at the dull taste; even with the liquor in the mix, it barely tasted stronger than the grog he had to endure on his voyages with the _Grand_ _Sails_. But he felt obliged to finish what Luggard had given him. At least it was something to eat.

The meal was slurped in silence. As the group ate, Link's eyes explored the tavern. The wall directly behind the bar looked like metal, and Link could see that someone actually _had_ placed a steam locomotive there. The rest of the wall was cut out of the cliff and given wooden supports. Various forms of train memorabilia covered the rest of the wooden wall behind him, ranging from photographs to small train models to large pieces of locomotives; the largest Link saw appeared to be a v-shaped cattle guard he had not noticed was hanging above the front door. The ceiling sported a number of large, disk-shaped lanterns which cast a soft light over the floor. What struck him the most peculiar about this place was the lack of shenanigans. Sure, there appeared to be drinking and smoking; the air in the tavern swam in the thin cloud provided by the couple of tables of smokers, and the presence of alcohol in his soup served as proof of the other. But conversation did not rise above a shout unless it was in the bartender's direction. Everything kept to a dull drone with the exception of the occasional bubbling whenever Mel opened up the boiler to get another bowl of soup.

Madame Seilon was the first to finish, setting her spoon in her bowl with a gentle click. "So, when were yeh in Whittleton?" she asked.

Luggard, trying to drink out of his bowl, coughed and leaned over so he would not spill the bowl's contents across the table. "Agh… sorry," he croaked. After wiping his sleeve over his mouth, he continued, "There usually every ten days; I run the Ol' Seventeen."

"The Seventeen?" Madame Seilon ran a thumb across her jaw. "Las' I knew, it was the Number Three."

"Number Three 'ad t' switch tracks 'bou' four years back. She was built for 'orrible weather, so she wen' t' the Snow Realm. Only few trains can ge' through tha' mess now'days, wha' with the ol' runners breakin' down for one reason or 'nother."

Madame Seilon nodded her understanding. "Thin's jus' seem ta ge' worse an' worse."

"Are things really so bad here?" Link asked, setting his spoon into his half-finished bowl.

Luggard gave him a grim nod. "Ya migh've fallen ou' o' the sky a' a bad time, t' tell the truth. Jus' no' very stable down 'ere anymore. Weather's been the bigges' prob'm, it 'as."

"For how long?"

"No one remembers," Madame Seilon said. "Children like Meilont are born inna this world knowin' jus' like i' is now."

A groan sounded from the floor next to Madame Seilon, and she glanced over as one of Cale's hands grasped the edge of the table. "Still alive, is ya?" Luggard asked with a bemused grin.

Cale dragged himself back into the chair. Even with the dull light, Link could see the imprint of the floorboards on the left side of his face. "How—h-_rup_!" He paused with a fist over his mouth. When his ailment appeared to subside, he gave a sigh. "How long have I been… unconscious?"

"No' _too_ lon', I imagine," Luggard said. "Don' worry; ya didn' miss much conversation. Ya can prob'ly ge' back t' tha' bowl, too."

Cale, however, used a hand to push the bowl away. "Can I just have something else?"

Luggard chuckled. "Oi, Mel," he called at the bar. "Solid meat o'er 'ere."

"On its way, Luggar'," Mel replied in a deep-throated voice.

Link became aware of movement across his scalp. "Okay, I'm coming out now," Irleen announced to the table, part of her light showing from underneath Link's cap.

"Yeah, it should be okay," Link replied.

Irleen's green form emerged from Link's head and settled down next to his bowl. "I was waiting for the signal to come out, _Link_."

Link blinked for a moment. "I… I was supposed to give a signal?"

"When it's okay for me to _come_ _out_?"

"Don' 'ave nothin' t' worry 'bou', Miss Fairy," Luggard said. "We engineers 'appen t' think seein' fairies is good luck."

"Hmph. At least someone shows me some respect. And my name's Irleen."

"Luggard."

"But… you're not a fairy," Link pointed out.

"I'm small. I fly. I give off light. Can you really explain me otherwise, Link?"

"You did have to explain haah as a fahry to _me_," Cale said.

Link shrugged at him. "I was in a panic."

"It makes things easier anyway," Irleen said. "What's for dinner? I think I have both a mouth and a stomach; both are making noise."

Link picked up his spoon. "Is this safe for fairies?" he asked Luggard.

"Prob'ly no'," Luggard said with an uncertain shrug. "Never 'ad one try it, though."

Link decided to set the spoon on the table next to her anyway. "Try it. It can't hurt you _that_ much."

He watched her approach the spoon until the glow of her body hid the soup. From his perspective, it looked like she was just standing there waiting. After a brief moment, she said, "Wow, this isn't too bad. It's just weird being this small and having a single drop of this stuff fit into my hands."

All four stared down at her unmoving form, having noticed that the tone of her voice lacked conviction. Finally, Link said, "You can't eat it, can you."

Irleen jumped back into the air. "I _still_ don't know if I have a mouth!"

"Yeh migh' jus' have ta wai' an' see if yeh actually _do_ ge' hungry," Madame Seilon said with a grin.

"I wanna be back in the sky! I wanna be full Sorian again! I haven't eaten in… uh… how long have we been—"

"Ten days," Link said with a groan as he stood.

"Ya goin' somewhere?" Luggard asked.

"Just to look." Link then wandered away from the table.

He could feel his depression surfacing again, spurred by Irleen's mindless rant against her predicament. But knowing that he was having depressing thoughts brought about irritation, irritation because he could hear Meilont's voice chastising him for even daring to think about his angst about being stranded on the surface. He took his cap off and furiously scratched his thick, blond scalp. He was not sure what to think, not sure how to just let the depression go. Repeating "forget it" to himself every time this had happened had not done anything for him in the past five days. The only time it never really bothered him was when he was busy doing something. And being under Meilont's care made that particularly difficult since she took every opportunity she could to keep him from doing anything. Except anything that had to do with fighting. Link's hand touched the hilt at his hip. Was that what he was turning into? Someone who had to fight just to keep from being depressed? Just what kind of therapy was that?

He sighed and glanced up. He had wandered to the wall next to the door, one which sported train models on a shelf near the ceiling and photographs closer to eye-level. Now that he stood closer to them, he found that many of them were engineers, each one standing in front of their train. Their pride. Like airship captains, they let the engines they commanded speak for them, standing with pride and joy as if… no, precisely because those very engines were family. Family which grew with them until they practically became a reflection of each other like children.

Well, maybe with the exception of one. The color photo Link examined closer was of a short steam engine with an amazingly uncoordinated color scheme of brown, blue, and gold. A young man, maybe the same age as Link if not a little younger, leaned out of the cabin and had a look of utter confusion at the photographer recorded for posterity. He could not help grinning at this dork, wearing a green tunic and a green, pointed hat… Okay, Link decided he might not be _too_ much of a dork. But that expression was definitely stupid-looking.

Link's eyes passed to the next picture.

In seconds, he suddenly shouted over his shoulder, "Luggard!"

Activity in the tavern froze for a moment. The engineers around him gave him perplexed expressions. The man sleeping by the door gave a start and flopped onto the floor with a dull thud which no one noticed.

Luggard, in the middle of standing from his chair, peered around at the other engineers. Then he huffed and said with an exaggerated tone of admonishment, "Don' shou' like tha', Link. Ya only do tha' if yar in trouble or somethin'." He gave a chuckle to the other patrons. It appeared to do whatever Luggard had in mind because they returned to their usual buzz in the next minute. Luggard then stepped over to Link. "Wha' is it?"

Link tapped on the picture's glass with a finger. "That. Who is that?"

"Can' say," Luggard said as he removed the frame from the wall. He stared at the man in the picture, a husky gentleman with a black beard obscuring most of his face. He wore an older style of blue engineer's uniform, even featuring the red cap with a dove design on the front. "Royal Engineer, 'e 'as t' be; no one else wears tha' style o' cap."

"His name, though. What's his name?"

Luggard frowned at him. "Why is ya so interested?"

Link's hand indicated the background above the man's head.

"Because that's an _airship_ behind him."

Luggard's eyebrow raised as he looked at the hull of a floating ship behind the man. He turned the picture around, revealing a name and date. "'Is name was Ryain. Picture 'as t' be 'bou' nine'y years ol', though. Yeah, 'bou' nine'y-two by now."

"He built that ship, right?"

Luggard's frown deepened for a moment. "Yeah, I s'pose."

Link grabbed the picture to look at the photo again. "If that's the case… Luggard, this man was an Architect!"

"A wha'?"

But Link was already across the bar. He reached their table and nearly slammed the picture on Cale's hand. "Cale. Did you find anything about a man named Ryain? This man here?"

Cale, only inches away from a bite of the steak in front of him, paused and glanced down. "I hadn't seen any pictuahs of him, but I remembeh the name. He was the one who invented the three-tone train whistle I mentioned eahliah."

"Was he an Architect?" Madame Seilon asked.

"We _have_ to find out," Link said. "Come on!"

"Where are we going?" Irleen asked, following Link as he made his way to the door in an energetic step.

"C'mon, Cale," Madame Seilon said as she rose.

She slapped his shoulder as she stepped past him, making him stab his own cheek with cooked meat. "B-but… m-my dinneh…"

"Later," she called back to him. Cale gave the steak a fleeting look before following them out.

Luggard, in the excitement, had gone unnoticed at the side of the table. He watched Cale disappear out the door. Then he reached over and picked up the plate that Cale's steak had been left on.

"Luggar'!" Mel at the bar suddenly shouted at him. "I wan' all tha' stoff back!" Luggard turned, a bite of steak already in his mouth. He indicated the steak with the hand holding the fork. "Ea' the steak, jus' brin' back all the stoff yar'oll takin' from me, or I'll 'ave yar butt!"

Luggard raised a thumb at Mel and ran to find Cale before he lost them.


	29. Biographers Are Stalkers

Chapter 29: Biographers Are Stalkers

…

"'Became a Royal Engineeh an unknown amount of yeahs afteh the Spirit Tracks weh restohed, although he lateh resigned from the Royal Engineehs befoah the Royal Family of Hyrule declaihed the sky as the new seat foh the kingdom. Still, in spite of his shoht-lived careeh, he is noted as having invented a numbeh of devices used on steam trains today. Of note, he is responsible foh the hydraulic braking system which allows the transfeh of brake poweh to all cahs, the ash collectoh which filtehs unbuhnable ash from the fiahbox, and the pressuah-release valve for venting excess steam.'"

"Personally like the firebox idea." Link, Cale, and Madame Seilon looked at Luggard as he held his fork between his teeth, his face over Cale's shoulder. Catching the pause, he leaned back and asked Link, "Wha'?"

"There's no eatin' in the Library," Madame Seilon told him.

Luggard took the fork out of his mouth and set it, along with the plate, on the table in front of Cale. "Finished two books ago, actually. I can' believe it took so long jus' t' find 'im."

"It's a ratheh imprecise aht, finding the right book," Cale said. "We wouldn't have had a clue if not foh the pictuah."

"Is there anything about airships, though?" Link asked.

Cale shrugged. "It's a book about trains. I don't think they had that paht of Ryain's life in mind."

Link stood up straight and pressed his hands into his face. "This is turning out harder than I thought."

"Yeh _could_ try readin'," Madame Seilon said.

"Ghof!" Link breathed when she thrust a book into his stomach.

"There anymore?" Luggard asked as he leaned next to Cale again.

Cale shuffled away from him. "It's… only a primeh, actually." He closed a finger in the book to show Luggard the cover. "'Introduction to Famous Train Engineehs'. It was the tenth book I checked eahliah."

Luggard pinched one open corner of the book, eliciting a pained look from Cale. "Bu' it's _thick_."

Cale wrenched the book from Luggard's fingers. "Theah weh a _lot_ of engineehs."

Luggard crossed his arms. "Easier t' jus' ask 'nother engineer. Tha's the kind o' 'istory we is s'pose t' know, we is."

"You didn't mention anything concehning the Ahchitects befoah," Cale pointed out.

Luggard leaned forward so that his nose nearly touched Cale. "Ya. Didn'. Ask."

"Then do yeh know anythin' abou' Ryain?" Madame Seilon asked.

"'Bou' as much as ya. No' really a very exci'in' life. Improved a lot o' stuff, bu' mos'ly jus' a snore."

"That book said that he resigned from the Royal Engineers _before_ the Royal Family moved to the sky," Irleen said. "I thought they disappeared _after_ the Royal Family left."

"It says here that he actually didn't _want_ to be a Royal Engineer," Link spoke up, eyes blazing across the pages of the book Madame Seilon gave him. "He was an inventor from Aboda Village who did some work on trains. When he started improving on the technology which drove trains, the Royal Family recruited him to do more work exclusively on trains."

"'Recruited'?" Luggard scoffed. "Ya mean they _drafted_ 'im. Engineers isn' s'pose t' be soldiers."

"Bu' if tha's the case," Madame Seilon said, craning her neck to glance at the pages Link read, "then 'e migh' be willin' ta give yeh a hand, Link."

"Assuming his still alive," Irleen added.

"Positive, isn' ya?" Luggard said.

"It says that he still spent most of his time inventing for things other than trains," Link continued. "He probably got involved with building airships just to keep his mind off a job he didn't like. Even if he died, we might still be able to find inventions for another airship."

"An' tha's why we should _all_ help," Madame Seilon said, holding a book out to Luggard.

Luggard took the book and sat down next to Cale. "Wha' is we s'pose t' look for?"

"Anything that says where Ryain might have gone after he resigned," Irleen answered, jumping from Link's book to Luggard's.

"Would he _not_ simply retahn to Aboda Village?" Cale asked her.

"Apparently not," Link said. "This book says that he never returned to the village; that's where the other engineers went to look for him. They checked all of the towns in the realm."

"In _this_ realm?" Luggard asked. "There's more than one."

Link shook his head. "It doesn't really specify."

"I guess that means we know wheah _not_ to look," Cale said.

"Yeah, nowhere with a population," Luggard said. "Tha' could still be anywhere."

Cale leaned over. "Luggahd, you ah holding the book upside-down."

Luggard flipped a page. "I only read upside-down. It's 'ow me parents taugh' me."

"To read upside down?"

"Didn' say they wasn' strange like tha'."

"Focus, boys," Madame Seilon said. "Gonna be a long nigh' if yeh don' ge' ta readin'."

…

Indeed, it turned into a long night, even when all four of them read while Irleen bounded from one to another trying to collect information. Link's only indication of the night was the dwindling number of people visiting the back room of the Library. Granted, that was not very many people in the beginning, but they stopped coming in pairs, stopped coming at regular intervals just to see if they were replacing every book they took out, and finally just stopped coming. From whatever rooms were on either side of their reading room, fresh candles had been slid into the glass bulbs mounted over slots cut into the old castle's walls. This only served to keep any sense of time Link had developed during the sum of his stay on the surface confused to the point that he believed he had been awake until midnight on seven separate instances of realization. He muttered these realizations to himself, but his companions heard him anyway. And none of them really had the heart to tell him that it had fallen well past midnight before the first time he had said something.

Luggard had been right about Ryain's life. Not many details existed beyond what the first few books told them. Other than a surly, short-lived career as a Royal Engineer, he had spent time as a fisherman, a logger in Whittleton, a mailman, an excavator in the Fire Realm, and a deep-sea diver after inventing a water-tight suit and an air pump that will allow a person to stay underwater at potentially dangerous depths. He had been middle-aged by the time the Royal Family recruited him as a Royal Engineer, but he still continued his work in other areas. Of particular interest to him appeared to be navigation; one of the texts Cale found indicated that he had challenged the Lost Woods to the west five times before successfully navigating to Diggerton using the Spirit Tracks and a kind of compass which had not been affected by the curse on the woods. Unfortunately, this was towards the end of his career, and the compass he had put together never saw any sort of production beyond what Ryain had put together.

"It says heah that he put togetheh some of the composite materials which ah used in constructing trains as well as Goron items," Cale said at one point.

"I the only one disturbed by the 'moun' o' detail these book go'?" Luggard asked.

Madame Seilon shrugged. "Biographers go' ta be detailed. Tha's how books are written in the firs' place."

"Yeah, well, I think I'd like t' go through life 'nonymously. Tha', or kill whoever follows me."

Irleen let out a high-pitched yawn. "But for all the creepiness of these authors, no one knows where Ryain disappeared to."

Link shook his head, trying to refocus his eyes on the text in front of him. "We must be missing something. Maybe we're just too tired."

Madame Seilon closed her book and set it aside. "Well, wha' do we know, boys?" she asked as she laced her fingers together.

"Tha' biographers is stalkers?" Luggard asked.

"Well, Ryain hated his job," Irleen said. "In fact, it seems like he'd rather have been doing _everything_ _else_ rather than work on trains."

"I remembeh a biography on a man called Linebeck the Foahth," Cale said. "He had taken over the Linebeck Trading Company from his fatheh, but he seemed ratheh opposed to the idea. So he hiahed wohkehs to run the company while he stole away. But no one knew what Linebeck did because he was a recluse."

Luggard shrugged. "So?"

Cale stuttered for a moment. "Wha, uh… I-I am just pointing out that, if Ryain behaved in a similah manneh, he might have simply gone into hiding to get away from othehs."

"Okay, so he went into hiding," Irleen said. "Where?"

Luggard snapped his fingers. "'E pu' a lo' inna deep-sea divin'. Maybe 'e lef' somethin' in the ocean?"

"Hmmm… that may be too fah away," Cale said.

Link blinked at the text for a moment. Although he was only half-focused on the conversation and losing a battle with sleep, something in the book he was reading set off a signal in his mind. He rubbed his eyes and re-read the passage which had caught his interest.

"Wha' abou' the Snow Realm?" Madame Seilon asked. "It hasn' seemed ta have been the only place he did anythin' in."

"But then, we still have the same problem, Madame," Cale said. "It is much too fah."

"S'pose tha' leaves out the Fire Realm," Luggard said, setting his book down. He planted his right elbow on the table and cupped his cheek in his hand. "If 'e's 'ere, where is 'e?"

"He was an excavator in the Fire Realm, right?" Link asked, one hand waving at Cale for attention.

"Jus' ruled _ou'_ the Fire Realm, Link," Luggard told him with a tired drawl.

"No, I know. But did any of your books mention what he discovered in the Lost Woods?"

Looks passed among the others. "Ostensibly, the Forest Temple," Cale answered. "Although its existence is not entiahly unknown."

But Link shook his head. "Yeah, he found the temple. But he also found some kind of crypt on the temple grounds."

Luggard nodded as he picked up on Link's train of thought. "Tha' makes sense. If 'e did more excavatin' after 'e go' ou' o' the Royal Engineers."

"And he nevah allowed the compass he invented to go into production," Cale added. "What bettah place to hide than a place no one else can navigate?"

Madame Seilon clapped her hands together. "An' we have an answer!"

"Wait, wait!" Irleen said. "If he took the only means of navigating the Lost Woods… well, how are we supposed to find this place?"

Link joined in the fresh round of confused looks shifting around the table. "Uh…"

Luggard threw his arms up, accidently slapping the back of Cale's head in the process. "Tha's it! We're through!"

"Maybe he left behind instructions to make anotheh," Cale suggested, rubbing the back of his head.

"Ya mean in the stuff we's s'pose t' be lookin' for?"

Cale let a pained look flash across his face. "Right."

Madame Seilon put a grin on her face. "Don' yeh boys think yer overthinkin' this whole Los' Woods business?"

"No, we's _definitely_ screwed," Luggard told her. "Withou' tha' compass, might as well be walkin' through those woods blind."

She tilted her head. "Yeh can' tell me tha' the Los' Woods confuses _everythin'_."

Luggard started counting on his fingers. "Compasses, dead reckonin', instinc', sunligh', maps, _markin's_… ya can' make markin's on trees b'cause even _they_ ge' los'."

Cale's eyes darted between Link and Luggard in the brief silence. "H-how do—"

"It's a curse," Luggard said. "No' s'pose t' make sense."

"Wha' abou' the Spiri' Tracks?" Madame Seilon asked.

Luggard's face twisted into stupefied realization before he smacked himself in the forehead. "O' course! Ya can' ge' los' if ya jus' follow the Tracks. If ya jus' go slow 'n keep track o' how far yar in, ya can' ge' _tha'_ los'."

Link snapped his fingers. "That's right! Ryain did it using the Spirit Tracks. Even without the compass, it might be possible."

"But… we don't have a train," Irleen said.

Link groaned and let his forehead hit the table in front of him. "Right, that's gonna be a problem."

"I migh' be able ta hire someone for freelance work," Madame Seilon said.

"Ya is gonna 'ave a 'ard time findin' someone who wants t' go through the Los' Woods," Luggard warned. "'E'd 'ave t' be pre'y crazy." Madame Seilon stared at him, a smirk slowly growing across her lips. Cale followed her gaze and caught on to her idea. Link rolled his head to look straight at Luggard. Even Irleen turned in his direction. After a moment, Luggard snapped out of his thoughts when he found his companions making their latest suggestion apparent. "Whoa, now, wai' a minu'e!"

"Yeh do freelance, don' yeh, _Mister_ Luggard?"

"And, quite cleahly, you _ah_ a navigatoh."

"It'd be for a pretty good cause."

Luggard waved his hands. "No, no, ya don' understan'. I can' jus' _switch_ t' freelance. I go' a rou'e t' follow!"

Irleen hovered closer to his face. "Please, Luggard? If you don't help us find the Architects, I might be stuck in this form _forever_. I need to return to my people in the sky."

Luggard sighed, raking a hand through his thick, black hair. "Well, I _s'pose_ I can let me boss know I found me some freelance work… Bu' I take twen'y-two 'undred in advance."

Madame Seilon nodded. "I can draw up the funds an' have yeh paid later in the mornin'."

"Madame, how ah you going to justify this to the Boahd?" Cale asked.

"The same way I justified bringin' Link ou' here," she told him. "In the name o' research."

Cale indicated Link with a hand. "But, he is not a reseahcheh heah, noh a student."

"No, he isn'," she agreed with a nod. Then she pointed at him. "Bu' _yeh_ are."

Cale gave an audible gulp. "M-me?"

"Yeh migh' wanna have yer writin' supplies ready fer t'morrow, Cale," she said. "Yeh'll be goin' with Link."

"B-but… c-couldn't we find anyone moah qualified? Like Bixley?"

"Nope. He'd never make it pas' the door."

"W-what about Valley?"

"Ou' sick. I's yeh an' no one else, Cale."

"B-but… what about… Oh, no." Cale planted his elbows on the table and hid his face in his arms.

"Look a' it this way," Luggard said, nudging Cale with his shoulder. "Ya ge' t' ge' ou' o' the Library for a bi'."

"You ah not helping," Cale groaned through his arms.

"I'll have yer assignmen' drawn la'er," Madame Seilon said to Cale. Then she turned to Link and asked, "Do yeh have a place ta stay yet?"

Link sat up straight and shook his head. "I only came in on the train this afternoon. I haven't had the time."

"Do either of yeh have some space ta lend him?"

"'E can have me passenger car s'long 'e don' snore," Luggard volunteered. "Me boss don' like people sleepin' in there."

"I may be able to ask my landlohd foh a spaeh cot," Cale suggested. "I have the room. Do you have any needs, Lady Ihleen?"

"Not really."

Madame Seilon rose to her feet. "Well then, all o' yeh, better ge' off ta sleep. Yeh'll have a busy afternoon."

…

~~Day 10—Well, Day 11 now

~~I met Meilont's mother and one of her students, Cale. We spent most of the night and a good part of the morning trying to find everything we could about the Architect Ryain. It has probably been the only time I've ever been grateful about not knowing how to tell time down here. Even as I write, I keep drifting off. I'm staying in Cale's place on the east side of Library Town near the Eastern Platforms. He lent me some of his writing stuff while he's out talking to his day-sleeping landlord. Irleen collapsed only a moment ago; I'm using her light to write with since Cale doesn't have any more candles.

~~I'm surprised by the amount of luck we had tonight. I fear that, if Luggard hadn't let us into that tavern, our finding out about Ryain would have been much further into the future if even at all. Unfortunately, the revelation that Ryain may have spent his last years hidden in the Lost Woods has caused me some misgivings. I want to be confident that Luggard will navigate us safely to this crypt on the temple grounds, but I'm daunted by his claims of what the Lost Woods do. He said that dead reckoning was one of things that gets lost in the woods, but that, and the hope that the Spirit Tracks can't become lost, are our only means of making it through. If it's a puzzle, I hope it has some kind of solution before we find out just how many of the stories Luggard has heard are true.

~~Again, I've found myself torn between the idea of going home and of just staying on the surface. I think it might have something to do with Meilont. When I saw her as the train left, it felt as if I was leaving her to misery. Maybe it was just my own illusion. But if it wasn't, was it possible that I might have hurt her?

Link frowned at the page. He dipped the pen again, but his hand hovered above the page as he considered that last statement. His need to write lost, he sighed and set the pen down with the nib over the inkwell. He left the journal open, staring at the page.

The door groaned, and fresh, yellow light crept into the room. "Does the pen wohk?" Cale asked as he entered, a candle inside a cup-like holder cradled in one hand.

"Yeah, it's fine."

Cale closed the door and crossed the room to his desk. "My landlohd lent us a candle so you could write."

Link's hand swept the journal closed. "Actually, I'm already done."

"Oh, I see." He indicated the bed at the end of the long, narrow room. "If you like, you might find the bed moah comfohtable."

Link shook his head. "I don't want to run you out of your own bed, Cale." He nodded at the wood-framed cot they had set up earlier next to the desk. "I'd feel better on the cot anyway; I used to sleep in a hammock when I was the captain's assistant on the _Grand_ _Sails_."

"The _Grand_ _Sails_?" Cale asked as he moved towards the bed.

"The largest vessel of the Skyrider Company."

Cale started pulling his robe over his head. "You mean that theah ah companies in the sky kingdom, too?"

"I guess it's standard for transportation nowadays."

"It also makes reseahch much easieh. Most train companies down heah allow public access to theih recohds foh… well, a numbeh of things, I wageh. Public inquiry does not come up too often; they mostly just let us of the Library copy them foh safe-keeping."

Link stood and unfastened his belts. "Would something like that be helpful to us?"

Cale dumped the robe next to his bed, revealing a white, stained, sleeveless chemise and loose trousers of dark green wool. He heaved a sigh. "It is ratheh nice to be rid of the robe at the end of the day."

Link shook his head as he took off his tunic. "How can you stand wearing that heavy thing all day? Doesn't it get hot?"

"I do not experience much physical activity during the day. And the Library manages to keep itself comfohtably cool during even the day."

Link started emptying his trouser pockets. "Especially since the sun never shines on the surface."

"Yes, it is ratheh troublesome," Cale said as he began to take off his chemise. Then his eyes fell to Irleen's illuminated form on the desk next to Link's journal. "Uh… is-is she…?"

"She's asleep."

Cale nodded and continued to pull the shirt off. "When she spoke to Luggahd, she indicated some kind of problem."

Link gave a slow nod and started talking in a lower voice. "When we fell from the sky, something caused her to change into a fairy. She's actually a member of an older race known as the Sorians. I think they populated the skies before Hylians arrived. They've spent many years confined to Forelight Island. That's where I met her."

Cale stared at Link in silence. Then he climbed onto his bed. "Fascinating. I should like to see the sky kingdom sometime."

Link leaned over and blew out the candle. Then, by Irleen's light, he found the cot next to the desk.

"So do I."

…

He watched as the blue-clad young man hung against the bulwark, his grieving form shaking. He wanted to step forward, to say something to comfort the airman. But knowing that a sword lay ready to run him through at a moment's notice gave him cause to hold back his urges. He felt his own need to grieve, watching through the lightning as the distant shadow fell through the Sky Line and into oblivion below. He had only known the captain of that vessel for a couple of days, and now that captain's life was forfeit.

Line's form rose slowly, his back facing the crew gathered on the weatherdeck. His fists clenched and unclenched. The wind tossed his red hair about. When he spun around, it aided in the wild appearance his face took as rage overwhelmed him.

"You sonova—"

Line's charge at the creature standing near the mast came to a halt when Flower and one of the Sorian airmen suddenly grabbed him. "Chief, cool your head!" Flower shouted. "Come on!"

"Killing one of my shipmates wasn't enough for you!?" Line continued as he struggled to slide out of their grip. "Come on, you bastard! Let's see how tough you are man-to-man!"

"Let him go," said a cold, male voice from the dark creature Line accosted. "He is eager to try his luck with me."

He could see the scowl form on Flower's profile by the light of a lantern above. "Don't tempt me, freak," the airman growled. "If any one of your crew is going to die before we're all slaughtered, I guarantee it's gonna be _you_."

Then, in a lower voice he could barely hear, Flower said to Line, "You can hate my guts later."

Just as Line turned to question Flower, one of Flower's fists drove into Line's stomach. Line's body jerked, and, like a puppet relieved of its strings, dropped to the deck in an unmoving heap.

To his left, there came the sound of Captain Koroul's even voice. "Was that necessary, Airman Flower?"

Flower's eyes remained locked on the dark creature as he replied. "Sorry, Captain. But some of the damnedest things get said in anger. It's not an airman's duty to condemn his whole crew in a moment of carelessness. I don't know how you Sorians do it, but we Hylians just don't work that way."

"Hylian?" the creature asked. "Is that what you call your naked race?"

Leonard stepped closer to Flower, prompting his captor to tag his shoulder with a curved blade. "This 'naked' race will see justice by the end of this idiocy. Your order is now your call for death."

"And when the Sorians, along with _this_ creature—" A single, scaly finger pointed through the darkness at him. "—are corpses to be swabbed from the deck, what will you do?"

Flower balled one hand and cracked his knuckles. "_You_ fill in the blanks."

He knew it, too, that both airmen would attack. So he held up a hand. "Leonard, Flower, please don't do this."

"Agreed," Captain Koroul said. "Threats will do nothing for our situation. Would your captain be so inclined to have you die like this?"

"You know he would not," he said before either airman could speak up. "Captain Link is not the kind of person to turn towards violence in this situation."

"Yeah, well, Death's blade will not find us cowering in a corner when the time comes, Your Highness," Leonard said.

"Nor should it expect such," he agreed. "However, now is not the time for a fight."

Flower turned and walked over to him. The airman's height intimidated, but he held his ground as he waited for Flower to say something.

One hand latched to his upper arm. Suddenly, he felt fear as it seemed that Flower would strike.

Link suddenly sat upright, inhaling hard as if he had not been breathing at all this whole time. His surroundings were almost pitch-black save for a single, green light hovering nearby. Sweat coursed across his face. He used one hand to wipe his forehead.

"Linca?" the light above him asked. "Con tùkħah?"

Link let out a sigh. He sat up and leaned forward with one hand reaching across Cale's desk. When his fingers found the gemstone Irleen had given him, he leaned back and asked, "What were you saying?"

"I was asking if something happened," Irleen said. "You suddenly jerked awake; you scared the hell out of me."

Link groaned, pressing a palm to his forehead. The memories of the dream still felt fresh in his mind, but he was already losing his grasp on them. "I-I don't know. I think I just had a nightmare."

"What kind?"

But Link only shook his head. "I don't know. I… I think I saw something."


	30. The Lost Woods, No Stops Here

Chapter 30: The Lost Woods, No Stops Here

…

Link found he could not sleep for what little of the morning remained. The dream, although long vanished from his memories, still haunted him with the feeling that something bad had happened. The best he could remember was Line, that his best friend had been angry. He toyed with the notion that he had a dream similar to the vague memory he had had before of the _Horizon's_ _Eye_ being attacked. But he dismissed the possibility almost at once. He remembered the first dream clearly, if at a later point in time; he had all but forgotten this one instantly. His last memories of that dream had shown Captain Koroul unconscious at the end. Would the captain be awake to show him the aftermath of the fight that had claimed his ship? No, this dream, in all its vagueness, did not sound like the kind to show prophecy.

Although he wished it would. He would like to know whether or not he would return to the sky kingdom.

He lay in the dark of Cale's windowless apartment room for what felt like days while Cale and Irleen slept peacefully. The night's fatigue had given way to fear of another nightmare, forcing him awake for most of the morning. Cale's brass alarm clock started ringing at one point and immediately stopped when Cale's hand swatted it across the shelf at the head of his bed. This also silenced the clock's ticking, leading Link to believe that he had broken it. Although Cale did not get up afterwards, Link decided to get up and wander to the bath hall behind the apartments. He bathed while one of the women running the bath hall washed his clothes, and he found the warm water to be one of the most relaxing experiences he had had in a long time. Of course, this was only after reflecting on some of the torment he had faced on the _Grand_ _Sails_. The bath loosened his muscles, and his body felt a little more comfortable when he finally stepped out. He put on his cleaned clothes and returned to Cale's apartment just as the scholar was dressing.

First, Cale took Link and Irleen back to the Library. Madame Seilon was already waiting in the office, looking about as awake and active as the evening before. She gave Cale a thick journal with a slip of folded parchment tucked into the cover. Link did not get a good look at the parchment when Cale opened it, but the audible groan seemed like a good indication that it contained the details behind his assignment. She also informed them that Luggard, having arrived before them, was already paid and should have been waiting for them at the Western Platforms. After wishing both boys and Irleen luck (and nearly squeezing Link's organs out through his mouth in another hug), they set out through the busy midday streets of Library Town.

Cale chose not to wear his scholar's robe on the excursion, instead electing to put on a blue waistcoat over a clean, white shirt and black trousers with the legs rolled up into cuffs. His writing utensils, along with the assignment journal, rode clattering in a tattered satchel slung from one shoulder. His shoes did not appear very appropriate for the kind of off-the-path walking they might be doing, but Link still had the impression of having an airman flank him based on the clothing choice. Link still wore the green tunic over his lime-green bodysuit and brown trousers. His right hand rested on the hilt of his sword while his left thumb tapped on the journal in his pocket.

Link then pulled the journal out. "Cale, can you do me a favor?"

"Yes?"

Link passed the journal to him. "Would you put this in your bag? It'll probably be safer with you."

"Of coahse," Cale said as he accepted the book. "What is it?"

"It's a log I've been keeping since I came to the surface."

Cale opened the top flap of his satchel. "I'll keep it next to my assignment book. It should be safe theah." After stashing it, he pointed out towards the individual platforms. "Look, theah's Luggahd."

Link followed Cale's finger to the black Number Seventeen engine. It kept its tender, bearing the engine's number in a gold script on the side, but the trailing cars had been reduced to a single passenger car with no cargo car as Link had seen it before. Luggard leaned out of the cab as they approached, having exchanged his blue uniform for an open, padded waistcoat of bright red on top of a grey shirt and black work slacks. He had washed his face, so it surprised Link to find that his skin was actually very pale.

"Mornin' there, fellas!" he greeted with a wave.

"Good morning, Luggard," Link replied. He glanced down at the passenger car. "Are we going to need that? I thought we would be riding in the cab with you."

Luggard nodded. "Ya is. Tha's a special car we freelancers like t' use. It's an office car."

"Yes, I've heahd of those," Cale said. "They'h paht sleepeh cah and paht office with enough desk space foh detailed wohk."

"It's go' berths for three people. Figured we could use it if we stop for anythin'."

"Are you okay to drive, Luggard?" Link asked.

Luggard shrugged. "I think I go' me plen'y o' sleep. No big deal." He waved at them. "'Op on."

Link stepped on first. The cab was just large enough for three people to move about with enough space and had no overhead protection, leaving the upper half of the cab exposed to the sky. In front of a complicated instrument panel and running the length of the cab on the side opposite the entrance was a bench with a suitcase stashed underneath. Link could feel the heat from the open firebox door at the base of the instrument panel, and a shovel rested next to it.

As Cale boarded, he looked to his left just on the inside of the cab. "What's this?" he asked, pointing out a thin, metal pipe strapped to the barrier.

"A pipe," Luggard replied as he reached out and pulled the door closed.

"What foh?"

Luggard reached up and tugged down a lever. "For anythin' tha' wants t' ge' close 'nough t' look a' us. We's goin' in the Los' Woods, bu' _I_ ain' goin' in unarmed."

Irleen jumped out from under Link's hat as Luggard continued to work the controls. "What kind of creatures could we run into?" she asked.

"I ain' really in the know," Luggard said. "Jus' assume anythin' tha' _lives_ in those trees ain' tha' friendly 'n bea' it t' death; tha'll do for me."

"Well, what about people living in the Lost Woods?" Luggard paused his operations to join Link in a confused stare at Cale. "W-what?"

"Who in _the 'ell_'d be daffy 'nough to live _there_?"

Cale stammered for a moment. "Wha-I-d'a… well, _someone_ had to build this crypt we'h looking foh! Oh, _and_! Ah we _not_ looking foh someone who spent a lot of time theah? What if he built a house?"

"I don' give a loogie's pre'y li'l _'at_ if someone's livin' there!" Luggard told him. "If they ge' near _me_, I's gonna break their _shins_!"

"Guys, can we just _go_?" Irleen shouted.

"Ya two jus' si' there 'n shu' it," Luggard said, pointing them to the bench. He stepped to the back of the cab and picked up a large log book hanging off a chain bolted to the end of the bench. He perused the pages before finding what he needed. Then he pulled a pocketwatch from his waistcoat to reference it. Then he dropped the book, stuffed the watch back in his pocket, and jumped back to the front to grab the shovel leaning against the instrument panel. He crossed again to thrust the head of the shovel into the tender. The coal he drew from the tender flew across the cab and into the firebox with amazing accuracy. One, two, four… six frantic shovels later, Luggard slammed the door back over the firebox. After double-checking the gauges, he reached up and tugged on a thick cord twice, eliciting two wails from the whistle mounted on top of the boiler.

He threw forward a lever built into the floor, and the whole train jerked in response. Link and Cale looked over their shoulders as the train began to pull away from the platform backwards. The locomotive gave a few hefty _chu-chugs_ as it drew back. Luggard leaned out of the cab to see behind the train. Link stood and leaned out, too, holding his hat to his scalp. Another, longer train looked as if it would bash into the office car, but it suddenly jerked onto a different track and rounded the Seventeen without problems. The Seventeen turned onto a track perpendicular to their line of travel. Luggard waited until the whole train was settled onto the new track before throwing the braking lever. The Seventeen's undercarriage squealed to a stop. Then Luggard blew the whistle twice again. A distant whistle answered once, and Luggard started throwing levers on the control panel before releasing the brake. The train started forward, the chugging of its engine slowly gaining in frequency as it drove faster.

"If ya wanna turn back, now's the time!" Luggard called over the sound of the locomotive.

Link glanced back into the cabin to watch him monitor the gauges. He spotted Irleen's light lingering on the underside of the overhang above the instrument panel. One hand tightened its grip on the wall next to him.

It already felt too late to turn back.

…

~~Day 11, afternoon

~~We stopped for a late lunch in Fishington before continuing to the Lost Woods. It was weird eating fish. I've had it before, but the fish they have here on the surface are unusually spicy. And the oil reminds me of the kind of grease they use to polish cannons. Maybe it's just me.

~~I've come to the conclusion that I just might not stay on the surface. It's not for a lack of interest; I imagine I could manage a very happy life down here if I had no other choice. But these events lately have me convinced that simply settling down might not be an option. I think it might be my years onboard airships somehow manipulating things around me to make sure I don't stay in one place too long. Then again, maybe it's just something wrong with me. What kind of insane world would compel me to move around all the time, anyway?

Link wrinkled his nose at the page, having already forgotten what else he wanted to write. He still suffered from a lack of sleep, but he could not get a nap in the berths at the back of the office car. Cale did not seem any more capable, so he just lay in the bottom berth reading his assignment over and over again by the grey light of the open windows. Link still had yet to see the parchment bearing the actual details, but he could tell that it was something Cale did not want to do.

Link felt a change in the train's movements, and a high pitched squeal caught his attention. He set down the pen he had found in the desk he sat at and looked out the window in front of him, pushing against the arms of the chair he used. Cale did not respond until he saw Link's reaction. "What's that? What's happening?"

"We're stopping," Link replied as he stood. The window only showed him a view of a vast field, so he walked over to the car door and, after wrenching aside the rusty handle, slid it open. The door gave him a view of a dead forest, looking eerily similar to the half-dead trees which surrounded Whittleton. At least, that was how it looked from the _outside_; Link could barely see beyond the trees due to a fog contained behind the trees. The train stopped on a straight track, allowing Link to look forward at the locomotive. But he did not see any sign of Luggard or Irleen calling them up. So Link leaned back into the car. "Come on, let's see what's going on."

They stepped out of the train, and Link fought with the door until it closed and locked again. Then they strode across the barren ground, Link with a hand on his sword in case he had to draw it. The locomotive gave a hiss. When they came closer, they could hear Luggard working in the cab. "Is everything okay, Luggard?" Link asked the top of the cab's outer wall.

"Yeah, come on up," Luggard huffed. Link fit his feet into the small ladder suspended under the locomotive's running board and stepped up to the running board so he could reach the door. He pushed it open and set foot in the cab so that Cale could follow him. Luggard was shoveling coal into the open firebox again. "Sorry 'bou' tha'," he said after he finished, closing the firebox door with the shovel's head. "Jus' occurred t' me wha' I's doin', so I stopped."

Cale climbed into the cab, and Link shut the door behind him. "It just now occahed to you what you weah doing?" Cale asked him. "That you weah about to drive youh train into the most dangerous forest in Hyrule?"

"I 'ad a momen' o' sanity, a'right?"

"That's okay, Luggard," Link said. "I'd prefer if you knew what you were doing before you went and did it."

"Don' much like it, though. The though' made me forge' t' feed the firebox."

"Do you have an idea of how you'll navigate?" Cale asked.

"I 'ope so. I talked it over with Irleen 'ere, bu' she don' say much."

"There wouldn't have been much of a point," Irleen told him. "Link left. I can only talk to you guys when he's nearby. Everything you told me on the way here sounded like complete gibberish to me."

Luggard rested a hand on the brake lever. He gave a shrug and told her, "Was talkin' more t' meself, anyway. Ready?"

Link glanced out over the side of the cab. The pit of his stomach churned at the sight of the Lost Woods this time, every fiber of his being suddenly telling him that something was very wrong with this place. He frowned at that; on the subject of turning around, he found that he simply did not want to. It reminded him of traveling through the Undying Storm. Could that have been dangerous? Yes. Had he been afraid of it? Maybe, in some small way. He had still ordered the _Island_ _Sonata_ into it.

So he took in a deep breath and said, "Let's go, Luggard."

Luggard released the brake, and the Seventeen started forward. Cale sat down on the bench near the instrument panel, staring at it just to keep his eyes away from the trees. Luggard leaned over the right side of the cab's wall, his left hand hovering near the brake lever.

Irleen moved over to Link and disappeared under his hat. "What are you doing?" Link asked.

"I think I'll just stay in here for now," she answered, only a fraction of her light protruding from the hat.

"Why?"

Irleen's voice seemed casual as she answered, "Oh, just having that feeling of approaching my impending doom, that's all. I thought I'd acknowledge it in a more… personal… spot…"

"My head?"

"Hey! It's the only personal space I have right now."

"But it's _my_ head."

"Get over it!"

Luggard looked over his shoulder at them. "Ya jus' lose yar 'ead t' a fairy girl?"

Link reached up to scratch his head, thought better of it, and just answered, "She seems to enjoy doing things to it."

"Luggahd?" Cale asked. "What weah youh ideas foh navigating the wood?"

"Mos' I figure is no one ain' tried this for years," Luggard said. "We jus' stay on this track 'n don' change any switches, we either find Ryain's las' dig or go righ' t' Diggerton."

"What happens if we reach Diggehton?"

"We turn 'roun'."

The train crossed the edge of the Lost Woods, and all three shifted uncomfortably, feeling like they had been thrown into a pot of hot water as the train moved into the woods' humid atmosphere. Between the chugging of the Seventeen's engine, the boys could hear rustling in the dead brush near the tracks. Although there was very little said between them after first entering, they all hoped that it was only wind or draft caused by the locomotive (the second one exclusive to Luggard). Cale and Link, who did not have to focus on the path ahead like Luggard, looked at the trees. The inside was a dusk-like dark, caused by the thick growth around the tracks as well as the fog. Still, they thought that they could see the glare of eyes in between the surrounding trees.

The four passed through the trees in silence. Luggard kept his hand on the brake, occasionally applying it when the train felt like it was going too fast. After a few moments, he decided to throttle back the regulator a bit to slow the train instead of wearing out the brakes. He then decided to keep his hand on the regulator in case the need arose to throw the train into full steam. Cale kept to the bench. His shoulders remained hunched, ready to duck behind the cab's wall the moment something looked wrong. Link wandered to the instrument panel. He saw that one of the bulbs close to the regulator controls was a compass. And, true to Luggard's claim earlier that morning, the disk inscribed with the cardinal directions spun around as if it had lost its mind. It would switch between bouts of mad revolutions then stop and indicate many different directions as north.

Luggard reached for his pocketwatch at one point. After checking it, he told Link, "Jus' a few minu'es in. Mus' be barely a quar'er o' the way through." He paused to watch a junction in the tracks pass. "Straigh' track all the way through, it is."

"Should it be?" Link asked.

Luggard shrugged. "Couldn' tell ya. Bu' tha's the secon' junction we passed. Should be clear t' Ryain's las' destination."

Cale's eyes shifted forward. Then he stood and said, "I see light."

Luggard leaned out of the cab. "Tha's weird. We can' 'ave gotten through _tha'_ fas'."

"I can live with that," Irleen said from under Link's hat.

But Luggard shook his head. "No, this ain' righ'." Cale shrunk behind the cab's wall.

Link stepped in front of Cale to look over the side. "Keep going."

"If ya say so," Luggard muttered, nudging the regulator so that the train sped up.

Passing through what appeared to be a large door made of light, the Seventeen emerged into a lighted plain which blinded all three boys for a moment. Luggard, once he had his vision back, glanced at the compass on his instrument panel.

Then he threw the brakes on with such ferocity that Link's face almost collided with the edge of the metal plate framing the right side of the instrument panel. Link spun, one hand clamped to the wall, and banged his elbow against a spot of bare iron on the panel.

"Ow! Agh…"

"Sorry, Link," Luggard said. He glanced out over the plain for a moment. "'Ow 'ave we done _tha'_?"

"Done what?" Cale replied, sitting up to he could look outside the cab.

"We's on the same side we wen' in."

"What?!"

Link slowly rose to his feet, cradling his left elbow. "Are you sure?"

Luggard pointed across the cab. "Tha's north there. Three rails enter from the east side, 'n it looks like we switched from the middle tracks to the southern tracks." He indicated the south. "Tha's the coastal hills, tha' is. We's well south o' Whi'leton."

"But… but that's _mad_!" Cale shouted.

"It's worse than tha'," Luggard continued. "We only traveled for…" He checked his pocketwatch again. "… no' even a 'alf-'our. Bu' we managed t' make twice tha' distance in less time than it should."

Irleen emerged from Link's hat. "So. Lost Woods, huh?" She sighed. "This isn't going to be easy."

"So, what now?" Link asked.

Luggard released the brake, allowing the train to roll forward. "Well, obviously, we can' jus' take a straigh' line through the woods. We 'ave t' switch tracks." He groaned. "Means we go'a stop the train."

"Is that bad?" Cale asked.

Luggard shook his head. "It ain' somethin' I was lookin' a' doin'. We go' lucky nothin' wanted t' ea' us, bu' tha's b'cause we didn' stop."

Cale gulped. "E-eat us?"

"Then, if we have to stop," Link said, flexing the fingers of his left hand, "we'll just have to make it fast."

…

This setback slowed down the boys' progress horribly. Luggard drove them back to where they had entered the woods, eating through daylight until the sky outside the woods had died to a dark grey with a hint of red peeping through the treetops. The evening's lack of light made the woods even worse to see into, the fog now thick enough that only the trees lining the perimeter could be seen with any sort of clarity. This forced Luggard to stop the train just outside the woods again, giving another pause as he decided between chancing the trees again and returning back to Library Town as he strode to the front of the locomotive.

He returned to the cab about a minute later, idly sparking the striker he carried. He walked past the cab toward the back of the tender. Link, Cale, and Irleen watched him disappear behind the tender.

"He's been quiet," Irleen said.

"He's probably thinking," Link said. "We don't have any means of navigating now that we know that the straight track won't take us to either Diggerton or the Forest Temple."

"Yes, but," Cale spoke up, leaning forward on the bench with his hands steepled in front of him. "Now that we've detehmined that much, how do we navigate from theah? And what's keeping us from simply running off the tracks? It's _mad_ to travel in a straight line and not find ouhselves on the opposite side. Who's to say we'll make anymoah progress making tahns? Luggahd's already made it cleah that stopping in the middle of these woods might invite trouble."

"Thanks for getting that out in the open," Irleen said in an annoyed tone.

"I just wish _I_ hadn't been given this assignment," Cale said, pressing his thumbs to his forehead.

"'Ate t' dis'poin' ya, Cale," Luggard said, his voice startling both boys as he clambered up the side of the cab with a lantern in his hand, "bu' I don' much like the job, either."

Link shook his head. "I don't want to force you two to do something you don't want."

"I won' say I'm 'ere jus' for the money," Luggard told him as he placed the lantern on a hook on the overhang protecting the instrument panel. "Bu' tha' _is_ part o' the reason I came. The other's tha' ya would try this with or withou' us, Link."

Link scratched the back of his neck. "Somehow, I think I agree with you."

Luggard released the brake and slowly opened the regulator. "We'll give tha' firs' junction a try."

Both Link and Cale nodded as the train entered the woods again. Link blinked at the sudden sensation of being blind from the darkness inside. His eyes adjusted after a moment, and he could see the trees and scrub around the tracks dyed a subtle grey against the black of the unknown beyond. Link looked up, but the canopy prevented him from confirming if it had turned to night the single minute they had traversed the trees. Again, Luggard drove the train at a slow pace with a hand resting on the brake lever. But Link watched Luggard, saw him drumming his fingers on the brake lever while shifting his gaze between the track ahead and the trees beside him. Link had seen airmen on the _Grand_ _Sails_ act in a similar fashion, usually when something like rough winds or fragile cargo made their job a little harder. They had been nervous, and Luggard was nervous. And, well… Link could not see Cale, huddling under the wall with his satchel clutched against his chest, being anything _except_ nervous. Irleen was a harder read because she did not have any features. She hovered near the lantern Luggard had hung in front of the instrument panel, occasionally circling it. The three of them made Link nervous. So he took in a breath and leaned out the cab to avoid watching them.

His eyes narrowed as he realized something about the track they followed. "Luggard? Is… is the track _glowing_?"

Luggard released a sigh and glanced at Link. Link met his gaze, so Luggard shrugged. "Yeah, it glows sometimes. The Spiri' Tracks isn' same as the iron rails tha' ge' laid these days. They's go' magic or somethin' in 'em. 'Ard t' see in the day, bu' it 'elps a' nigh'. Mos' say it's energy travelin' b'tween the temples 'n the Tower 'o Spirits t' the northeast o' Library Town."

Link looked over the edge of the barrier at the blue glow from beneath the train. Then his eyes swept forward, locating the switching mechanisms at the junction further down the track. "Luggard. Keep us on this track."

"Wha' for?" But just as Link opened his mouth to answer, Luggard suddenly held up the hand previously holding the brake to stop him. He glanced out in front of the train, and then he crossed to Link's side. Link moved out of the way so that Luggard could lean over the side. "Aaaaaaaah," he droned, nodding as he turned to Link. "The track glows a straigh' line t' the temple. We-we jus' go'a follow the tracks. No one else'd think it b'cause only an idio' would ride the woods' rails a' nigh'!"

"Isn't that what _we_'h doing?" Cale spoke up.

Link pointed a finger at Luggard. "I'll bet the energy turns up ahead. If we follow it—"

"We're a' the Forest Temple in a _flash_!" Luggard said.

"B-but… we still have to stop," Cale answered in a nervous voice.

"'O _cares_?" Luggard told him. "We can navigate!" He returned to the other side of the cab and opened the throttle a little more.

A few minutes later…

"Well, we knew _this_ was comin'."

The train slowing, both Luggard and Link leaned out of the cab as the Seventeen approached the second junction. Although it was not absolutely clear, they could tell that the illuminated track turned to the right. The brakes began to squeal when Luggard applied them, and the train came to a stop.

Luggard slapped Link's shoulder. "C'mon. Ya can watch me back."

Cale shot to his feet as Luggard opened the door. "W-wait! What about _me_?"

"We can stay here and keep an eye on them," Irleen said, fluttering away from the lantern.

"Wai', wai'," Luggard said. One finger pointed between Link and Irleen as he asked, "If ya stay 'ere, 'ow's ya gonna warn us? Ya can' tell Cale."

"Oh, I'm pretty sure screaming's universal." Link shared a stumped look with Luggard, certain that the remark had been accompanied by a grin.

Luggard clapped a hand on Cale's arm, a grin of his own visible in the lantern light. "Well, if anyone knows 'ow t' talk screamin', I's sure it's ya, Cale." Cale's only response was a silent stammer as Luggard grabbed the pipe attached to the wall.

He and Link descended to the ground, Luggard already wielding the pipe ready for an attack. But other than the low rumble of the idle train and their feet crunching in the gravel along the rails, Link could barely hear anything. He maintained a cautious eye on the trees nearby, believing that anything interested in them would jump from that direction.

They did not share any words until they entered the cone of light at the front of the train. "I go' the switch," Luggard said. "Keep watch. Soon as I ge' the track switched, we run for it."

"Anything I should watch out for?" Link asked.

"Yeah. Me runnin'."

They approached a triangular junction with two tracks (one of them glowing blue) curving in a perpendicular direction to the rail they had been using. At each point of the junction, set back far enough that passing trains would not hit them, were mechanical posts. The one closest to them looked to be covered in green rust, most of its moving parts melted together. It was capped by a square sign with an arrow pointing up.

Luggard put a hand on a crank near the thick base of the post and tugged. His shoulder popped, but that appeared to be the only thing to happen. "Figured it rusted over," he commented to Link with a half-grin. "Jus' needs a li'l more pull." He set the pipe next to the post, placed both hands on the crank handle, and jerked as hard as he could. Still, the crank refused to budge.

"Luggard…"

"Jus'!" Luggard replied to Link, holding up a rust-covered palm. "I go' it."

Then he picked up his pipe and struck it against the base of the crank, eliciting a loud _clang_ from the metal-on-metal impact. One, two, three… Link lost count after five. He could see cracks forming in the green surface, likely what Luggard intended to do. But most of the cracks formed along the body of the post; the crack remained solid. Luggard then set the pipe down and tried again, grunting and grumbling his luck. Not wanting to interrupt, Link glanced down the path they needed to take.

In the few seconds of silence Link had before Luggard struck with the pipe again, he became aware that the woods were not as quiet as he first thought. Away from the dull groan of the train's boiler, he could hear an infrequent scratch of an origin he could not really place. The best comparison he had was someone ripping a dry leaf in half, a crisp sound if almost hard for him to hear. He wished he had borrowed the lantern Dissal had used when the Bulblins had attacked Whittleton; its directed light would be useful for seeing what lurked in the trees around him.

_Clink!_ _Clink!_ _Clang!_

"C'mon, ya stupid…" Luggard's voice devolved into a growl as he leaned over to press his shoulder into the crank handle.

_Khiut. Khiut._ Link's attention snapped back to the unidentified sound, aware of how loud it had become. His left hand crossed to grab the hilt of his sword, his eyes searching the dark for the source.

_Cruncha._ _Khiut, khiut._ _Cruncha._

"Luggard?"

Luggard, about to kick the crank's handle in frustration, leaned his raised boot on it instead. "Yeah?"

"Do you… hear anything?"

Luggard's eyes wandered the area around the junction. "No, no' _now_," he said. They spent a moment listening for movement. When no other sound presented itself, Luggard reared up again and kicked the crank handle. This time, the handle jerked loose, and Luggard quickly set to turning it. "Jus' a bi' longer, Link. Then we can be gone."

_Cruncha._ Link felt a shiver traverse the length of his spine at the sound he heard just above Luggard's grunting. The rails nearby gave an irritated screech as they shifted. Link stepped around Luggard to get a better view of the opposite side of the clearing in search of the sound's origin. Still no sign of the source.

Luggard's work concluded with a _clank_ and a huff. He glanced up to confirm that the arrow had rotated to point at the new direction. "Go' it," he told Link's back. Link turned to face him.

_KHIIIIIIIUT!_

"Look out!" Link caught Luggard's waistcoat and hauled the young man to the ground with him on impulse.

Because the large spider behind him had been just seconds away from taking a bite out of Luggard's head.

"Wha' the—" Luggard started to say.

"RUN!" Link shouted, already scrambling to his feet.

Luggard then caught sight of why Link panicked. The spider hanging in the air next to the track switch was taller than any other man Luggard had met. The most prominent feature of this monstrosity was the grotesque, white markings on its large abdomen, appearing as if someone had tried painting a milk-white skull on its body while being eaten. Its eight, spindly legs, black like the rest of its body save for spots of yellow at the cap of each joint, writhed as if trying to reach for both of them.

Link pulled his sword and, in the same movement, delivered a strike to the side of the asymmetrical skull in front of him. The sword bounced off with an annoyed _tink_, sending the creature swinging backwards. The toughness of the creature's shell caused the hilt of the sword to sting Link's hand, and he switched hands so he could shake the pain off. He had no idea that the spider swung back until its hard body slammed into him, sending him sprawling face first onto the non-glowing tracks. He caught himself just before his face dug into the gravel base of the rails.

_KHIIIIIIIUT! KHIIIIIIIIIUT!_ _KHIIIIIIIIIUT!_

And when he looked up, he saw more skulls descending from the treetops just outside of the Seventeen's head lantern.

"Time to go!" Luggard said. Link felt a hand seize the back of his tunic, and he grabbed his sword from the ground before Luggard hauled him to his feet. Luggard then used his opposite hand, now armed with the pipe again, to deliver a blow to the spider swinging to meet him. The blow bounced the spider against the track switch, causing it to spin until it fell from its thin perch onto its stomach on the ground.

Luggard and Link did not wait around for anymore, already running at full speed for the train. "What _are_ these things?!" Link shouted.

"Skulltulas! Pu' shor'? _Bad spiders_!"

_KHIIIIIIIIUT!_ One suddenly descended right in their path. Luggard jumped around it, one leg taking scratches from the sharp branches of a nearby shrub. Link swung his sword, landing it against the head of the Skulltula. The Skulltula swung, having survived by the tough skin on its head, but Link still continued to run past it since the blow had cleared it of his path.

Both of them heard a girl scream from the train. "Irleen!" Link cried out, picking up his run. He overtook Luggard (much to the engineer's surprise) and leapt up the ladder to the running board, holding himself there with one hand on the wall next to him.

His eyes only took in a split-second of one Skulltula reaching past the overhang at the front of the cab while another had terrorized Cale into the corner opposite the brake lever. Link swung for this one first since it had actually set foot in the cab. His sword caught the Skulltula's face in between its reaching mandibles. Link drove it backwards into the coal pit and pulled up on the sword to jerk it out of the spider's face. The Skulltula was surprisingly light, and the force of Link's withdrawal had it standing straight up for a moment. Link took that moment to swing his sword into the softer exoskeleton of the Skulltula's underside, opening the spider in a display of green guts.

Link then spun to find Luggard beating off the other Skulltula with his pipe, his hand unable to get near the brake lever due to the sharp appendage guarding it. He immediately crossed the cab, swinging his sword. The blade caught one of the Skulltula's limbs against the top of the cab, cutting off about a third of its foremost segment. This caused the Skulltula to lurch forward. Its face, flat and bearing four green eyes just barely visible in the lantern beneath it, caused Link to duck down in response. But this was where Link wanted to be, as he stabbed his sword from below into a sliver of unprotected exoskeleton under its head. The Skulltula jerked in surprise. Link then pushed it to the left side of the train. It flopped off the top of the locomotive, and Link pulled his sword out just as it disappeared over the wall.

Luggard immediately set the train into motion, opening the throttle to half. Then, after grabbing the shovel, he crossed to the back of the cab. The Skulltula Link had sliced open lay with its back on the coal pile. Luggard dug the shovel underneath its abdomen and hauled it over the side, causing the fatally wounded spider to meet the ground in an unceremonious _splat_. Then he whipped off the Skulltula's entrails in a single swing of the shovel and started moving coal into the firebox.

_KHIIIIIIIUT!_

"Luggard, look out!"

Link's call alerted Luggard to the Skulltula descending towards the rear of the coal pile. He jumped backwards as Link dashed forward, mounting the coal pile. The loose coals caused him to trip, and he fell forward onto the pile. Fortunately, the Skulltula, as it tried to grip the edge of the moving tender, was not any more graceful. Its head _thunk_ed against the trailing office car, and it detached from its web to settle on top of the car. Link managed to find firm footing on the coal pile and moved towards the back of the tender. Using the train's gathering speed, he jumped the gap between the tender and the office car.

Only to have his stomach land into the edge of the car's roof, knocking the air out of him. His sword dropped onto the flat roof, Link reached for a metal joist in the car's top structure. One hand caught just as he began to slide off. Catching a glimpse of the Skulltula recovering from its landing, he pulled himself onto the roof of the car as fast as possible. The Skulltula charged, raising its front end to show its fangs to Link.

Link, lying flat on his belly, reached for his sword. In the next moment, the Skulltula fell on top of him.

"Link!"

"No, Link!"

The Skulltula shifted, falling off the side of the car. Link lay unharmed, the green body juices of the latest arachnid attacker slowly crawling down the blade of the sword. His head rose for a moment to look at the blade.

Then both his head and the sword fell against the metal roof in exhaustion and relief.


	31. One Misty Night

Chapter 31: One Misty Night

…

The Number Seventeen steam engine continued across the glowing rails of the Spirit Tracks at a brisker pace than her engineer had expected to use in the Lost Woods. The engine chugged strong, taking a feeding from Luggard only once after the encounter with the Skulltulas. Of course, when Luggard fed it, he wanted to make sure that the train was ready in case they had to stop again.

However, the night had ended its cruelty after the crew ran. The Skulltulas, after the train had left the junction clearing, could not chase the train from the ground. Nor did they seem interested anymore, apparent to the boys since they stopped descending from the trees trying to intercept the steam locomotive. Their luck held out for a while afterwards as well because the track they rode continued in the direction of the glowing Spirit Tracks, the following two junctions already set to send them further towards the Forest Temple.

Link remained sitting on top of the office car, agreeing to keep lookout just in case more Skulltulas wanted to try their luck. He sat between two of the beams running the length of the car, his feet and bottom bracing him between the joists against the car's shaking. He held his sword, resting the point at the base of the joist near his feet. The blade still bore some of the green juices from the Skulltula attack earlier, as well as one leg of his trousers which had taken some of the collateral carnage. The muscles in his left arm felt a little weak, and his hand was almost recovered from the sting it took. At one point, he considered his hands and determined that he might need to find some gloves. The air around him felt moist from the surrounding fog and smelled of burned coal from the locomotive. These two factors somehow reminded him that he had not gotten much sleep earlier that morning. After a while, he felt his eyelids taking on weight.

Even thought the pull on the whistle was brief, the sound still startled Link out of his trance. His eyes swept over the trees around the train. That was when he realized that the train had exited the Lost Woods. Fog still blanketed the surroundings, but Link could see that the train had emerged into a field, the grass below illuminated by the cab's lantern. He looked up, finding only a curtain of pure black over his head. No stars, not even a hint of celestial light. He wished he had a little more to see with. Or just a little more to see.

The train shuddered as Luggard applied the brakes. Holding his sword backhanded, he crawled forward so that he had a clearer view into the cab. "What's going on, Luggard?" he called.

"Can' see a thin'," the engineer replied. "I's slowin' so we don' hi' anythin' on the tracks."

Link's eyes swung toward the rear of the train only to find that the trees they had emerged from had already fallen to the black somewhere behind them. All he could make out dwindled to just a few lengths of the Spirit Tracks before the thick fog swallowed their glowing form. Feeling that the danger had passed, he allowed himself a relaxing breath and gently set the sword on the roof of the car. "What about the temple?" he called down.

"Can' see it anywhere," Luggard called back. "If this fog go' any thicker, we'd smash inna it."

"Do you think we might have to camp for a night?"

Luggard waited a moment before replying. Link could see him leaning out of the cab to look in front, his face not visible to Link. "Yeah," Luggard said.

"Cale. Do you know anything about the Forest Temple?"

Cale stood so he could approach the back of the cab. "I believe it has a small receiving bay just inside the entrance. But, otheh than what's common to most temples, theah isn't much to say."

"A'ready 'eadin' for the bay," Luggard called up. He turned back to the office car just as Link stood. But before Link could jump, Luggard spoke up, "B'fore ya do tha', there's a ladder on the back side ya can go down. Ya'll wanna wai' 'til we stop."

Link nodded and retrieved his sword. He frowned, wishing he had something other than his clothes to clean the blade. He wiped both sides of the blade against his left calf, blotching out the bit of leg that had not already been spattered. After sheathing it, he slowly stepped across the office car, his feet trying to keep him standing against the car's rocking. His eyes could barely make out the metal rails of the ladder against the mist beyond.

Just as he hunched low to board the ladder, the locomotive's whistle sounded. Link swung his head towards the sound. The forward light revealed a circle of wall closing around the locomotive, and Link quickly hauled himself onto the ladder and ducked beneath the car's roof before the wall reached him. The train's brakes squealed, and Link felt the momentum thrust him against the ladder. He held on a moment, looking back towards the entrance. Light from the cab showed the black hole in the wall slowly receding, simply a brown mass fading from sight.

The Seventeen ground to a stop, allowing Link to set foot on the ground. After a quick glance back to see the wall swallowed by darkness as well, he rounded the car and approached the locomotive. Luggard was busy with the train's controls, so Cale opened the cab door. "Where are we?" Link asked him.

The locomotive gave an angry hiss, causing Cale to jerk in surprise. "I-inside the Forest Temple," he said, edging to the ladder hanging from the running board. "We-we should be safe foh now."

"Maybe," Luggard said, finishing his handling of the controls. He turned and rested a hand on the wall of the cab. "I'd feel much be'er in the office car."

"I don't think we have much to worry about right now," Link told him, eyes scanning the air above. "If there were any Skulltulas hiding in here, they'd probably be after us by now."

"No' wha' I's worried 'bou'. If it was jus' Skulltulas 'roun' 'ere, I'd feel fine."

"What else could be out here?" Irleen asked, emerging from a pocket in Cale's waistcoat.

"Insects. And plen'y o' 'em. Ya saw those Skulltulas. Wha' else do ya think might ge' so big? I s'pect mos' things 'ere is born t' kill somethin' else."

"And quite possibly poisonous," Cale said as he reached one foot to the ground. "We have little idea since no one's been through the woods foh some time now."

"And it's dark," Luggard said. "Makes 'em more dangerous."

"Soooo… the office car?" Irleen concluded, indicating with a sideways slide.

"Tha's an idea," Luggard said. He turned and grabbed the lantern hanging above the control panel. Then he stepped around to the cab's running board just as Cale dropped to the ground.

Cale's eyes searched through the darkness towards the spot of light cast at the front of the locomotive. He pointed. "Theah ah supposed to be lahge rooms fuhtheh into the temple. Don't you suppose Ryain left something behind in theah?"

Link sighed, his eyes following Cale's gaze to the rock platform resting in emptiness before the locomotive. "I don't know. I have a feeling that anything useful in the temple is already gone. Besides, Ryain seemed more interested in the crypt in his last few recorded moments. I'd prefer to try starting there first."

"Well," Luggard said, dropping to the ground. He turned so the lantern he held shone on all three of them. "I don' plan on doin' much withou' some sleep."

Link gave a weary nod. "Yeah, me, too. Let's go."

…

~~Day 11, night

~~After getting lost, we realized that we can follow the energized rails of the Spirit Tracks straight to the temple. Unfortunately, that required us to stop and get attacked by Skulltulas. We're resting inside the temple right now using the office car for shelter.

~~I'm covered in Skulltula blood. I can't wait to get out of here.

Link shook his head upon finishing his last thought. His hand moved to scribble the line out, then he changed his mind and set the pen down on the desk beside him. Eye wandering to the ceiling, he listened for other sounds. The car was silent save for a writing utensil scratching against paper.

Link glanced down at the desk. Cale occupied the chair in front of it, stroking a stick of charcoal against his assignment book as he bent over it. His head was tilted to one side with a relaxed expression focused on his work. Link pushed away from the wall of the car and leaned over to see the contents of the book. He had to shift to keep his shadow out of the lantern light behind him.

"That's very good," he told Cale. Cale looked up with a puzzled expression, allowing Link to pull the book away from him. One open page had been decorated with a sketch of a Skulltula hanging from the top, outlined in white against black surroundings. Although he had emphasized the skull-like body coloring on the Skulltula's back, he has still made it apparent that the creature he drew was a spider.

"Oh, thanks," Cale answered. "I-I could not bring myself to just describe what I saw. This… well, it seemed easieh."

"I like it. What do you think, Irleen?"

Irleen dropped down from the warm lantern to have a look. She backed up after a short look. "Ugh. I could stand not seeing these things again for long time."

"S-sohry…"

Irleen quickly shook from side to side with a strange ringing sound. "No, no! I mean it's good! It's good. You could be an illustrat—You _should_ be an illustrator!"

Cale's cheeks flushed in the dim light. "Th-thank you."

"Where'd you learn how to draw?" Link asked, sliding the book back.

"Nowheah in pahticulah. I… well, when I'm studying, I tend to staht drawing on my notes. I'd expected to grow out of it, but… it's a habit I just can't break."

"I spen' time doodlin' on me trousers when I was twelve," Luggard spoke up from the topmost bunk at the back of the car. "Couldn' make money off it, though."

"How many people are willing to buy used, dirty trousers?" Irleen asked, her tone speaking of a joke.

Luggard shrugged the shoulder he was not leaning on. "Me mother."

"Your mother used to buy used trousers?" Link asked, astonished.

"Same story anywhere," Luggard said. He paused to take a bite of biscuit. "Me father spen' a lo' o' time in the Fire Realm minin' with the Gorons. He could only send us back so much. So I go' in the Blun' Comp'ny 'n became an engineer. 'Alf o' me pay goes t' me mother 'n brothers."

"'Brothehs'?" Cale asked, raising his eyebrows. "How many?"

"Four." Luggard held his hand up, palm open until he realized he had miscounted. After switching his thumb for a moment, his eyes rolled up as he counted in his head. "Yeah, four."

"Is that a lot?" Irleen asked.

"Ah, well… it's-it's a… um…" Cale stuttered.

"For a family livin' in Library Town, it's too much," Luggard said. "Me 'n me brothers, we's always fightin'. Me mother spends 'alf o' 'er time layin' one o' me father's belts 'cross our butts. I's the oldes', so I grew ou' o' it firs'." He paused to take another bite of biscuit. While he chewed, Link could see an almost nostalgic gaze in Luggard's eyes as the engineer examined his half-eaten food. "Wha' 'bou' ya, Cale? Wha's yar family like?"

Cale pursed his lips while he appeared to think. "Not pahticulahly remahkable," he answered, gaze falling to his assignment journal. "Parents. One little sisteh."

"Hovela?" Luggard asked.

Cale glanced up, surprised. "H-h-how…"

Luggard pointed to his own throat. "Accent."

"Hovela?" Irleen asked.

"My home," Cale said. "On the shore cliffs fah south of Whittleton."

"Good livin'," Luggard added.

Cale shrugged his shoulders. "I suppose. I hadn't the fondness foh it."

"How come?" Link asked.

"My fatheh owns trade in some of the majoh rail companies. A… well, soht of a tyrant without a kingdom. My sisteh and I weh raised moah by the housekeepehs than him."

"Wha' 'bou' yar mother?"

Cale scrunched his face, closing his journal. "I… don't know. My sisteh and I have brought the subject up to Fatheh a numbeh of times. He… he's refused us satisfaction time and time again. I've leahned not to bring the subject up anymoah, but my sisteh… well…"

"She still asks?" Irleen said.

Cale nodded. "But Fatheh doesn't relent. Noh will any of the housekeepehs. I suppose that may be the reason I decided to become a librarian."

"T' find yar mother?"

"I could think of no betteh place to seahch. Most of Hovela's public recohds ah stohed in private access in Library Town." He glanced up at Link. "What about youh family?"

Link shrugged. "I actually don't know. I've only known the Skyriders Company for most of my life; I was practically raised _by_ the company. Whatever time I wasn't in housing on Skyrider Island, I was usually on the _Grand_ _Sails_. Spent time at other ports, too."

"No' even any siblin's?" Luggard asked.

"I guess the closest I've ever had was my best friend Line. When I made lieutenant, he was my Chief of the Deck."

"Chief of the Deck?" Cale asked, going unnoticed by Link as he scribbled frantically in his journal.

"The _Island_ _Sonata_ was too small for a command crew," Link answered, his explanation directed towards Luggard. "While I commanded the ship, Line directed the individual workings and dealt with the crew."

"Like a conductor on a train," Luggard said. "Directs the crew and passengers, bu' the engineer says where it goes."

"Sort of."

"Sohry, what was the _Island_ _Sonata_?" Cale asked.

"It was my first shi…" Link, having finally glanced down at Cale, cast a confused glance over Cale's shoulder. "What are you doing?"

"Huh?"

Link reached past Cale and snatched the journal. "Are you making notes about _me_?"

"I-I-I-I—"

"Is 'e?" Luggard asked with a grin on his face, shifting so that his arms could drape over the edge of the bunk. "Writin' a biography on our fallen captain, Cale?"

"Looks like it."

Cale piled his arms onto the desk with a heavy sound. Despite this, his forehead still met wood when his face fell in embarrassment, producing an unsympathetic _thunk_. After a groan, he said, "You wehn't supposed to find out. Madame Seilon made gathering infohmation about you paht of my assignment, but she didn't want me to try anything oveht because it would take too much time. I was only supposed to gatheh the facts wheneveh they showed."

"So you were spying?" Irleen asked. "I'm surprised. I didn't think you could be sneaky like that."

"I-I wasn't trying to do _that_! It's just… well, it just happened that way. Link, I'm reeeeeeeally sohry."

Link offered the journal back. "I'm not mad, just a little surprised. You could've asked; I'd tell you what you needed to know."

Cale shook his head. "N-no, I can't. She told me that I can't lead the convehsation. It has to flow _naturally_."

"Ya was askin' ques'ions, though," Luggard said.

Cale's jaw open and shut as his mind flailed for words. "Wa-I-I, well, I, uh… I…"

Link put the journal on the desk. "Don't worry about it, Cale. We'll try not to tell Madame Seilon."

"Weeeell," Luggard drawled. He pointed a finger at Irleen. "Tha's us boys. Wha' 'bou' ya, Irleen?"

"Only child. My parents were theater performers, but they sent me to school. I guess they wanted me to do something different."

"Theateh pehfohmehs?" Cale asked. "What soht of theateh?"

"Is that going to go in your book?"

"Uh… n-no…" Irleen fluttered closer to his face as if to stare him down. Cale used a hand to find the journal and close it. "R-really. I-I won't write it if you don't want me to."

"Comedy." Link's and Cale's faces blanked, neither able to provide any reaction other than confusion. Luggard, however, had no problem expressing his thoughts through a light chuckle that quickly evolved into a powerful guffaw. "Oh, come on!"

"I-I can' 'elp it," Luggard managed through his laughter. "If-if I tried t' 'old it—ha ha ha… me breath would bus' me teeth ou'!"

"They didn't strictly do comedy! They did serious performances!"

Luggard pushed himself up on one arm while he pointed at the lantern with the other. "'Ark! Doth I see a gallows, or is tha' a cucco with a long neck? Either way, I's in ser'ous trouble."

"Yeah, that's the _last_ time I tell you _anything_ about my life!" With that, Irleen turned to the car door. But after approaching it, she seemed to think better and fluttered back to the lantern. Then she dropped down at Link.

"Hey!" he cried out as she dove under his hat. He pulled his hat off, and Irleen quickly jumped from his hair into the end of the hat. "Irleen."

"Leave me alone!"

Luggard gave a sigh. "Oh, c'mon, Irleen, I didn' mean anythin' by it. I's jus' playin'." Irleen huffed in response, and Luggard scratched his head. "I's sorry."

Irleen did not reply, so Link set the hat on the desk as gently as possible. "Maybe we should just leave her alone for now."

"I's jus' jokin'."

Link pulled one corner of his mouth back. "It's been rough for both of us. She's the only Sorian on the surface right now…" He hesitated for a moment so he could consider his words. "We're… the only people that she has, that she can rely on."

Luggard let his head droop for a moment. Then he rolled so that he was lying inside the bunk with his face to the ceiling. "I said I's sorry…"

Link ran a hand through his hair. "Maybe we should just go to sleep. Get to work in the morning."

Cale stood up. "Do you know wheah that crypt is supposed to be?" he asked as he removed his waistcoat.

Link unfastened his tunic belt. "It's supposed to be outside the temple, so we'll wait until the sun comes up before we start searching."

"For wha'ever ligh' tha' gives us," Luggard mumbled before he rolled towards the back of the bunk.

Link scrunched his face as he pulled his tunic over his head. "It'll have to be enough," he said, tossing the tunic on the desk chair.

Cale added his waistcoat to the chair. "Which bed do you want?"

Link shrugged. "It doesn't matter; I'm going to stay up for a bit." Cale nodded, kicked off his shoes, and climbed into the bottom bunk. Link reached up and turned the lantern down until he could see his hat glowing.

Then he sat in the chair and rested on the desk, his face peering into his hat. "Irleen?" he asked in a whisper. "You still awake?"

"Yeah," she answered in a small voice colored with a sob.

"Are you all right?"

"… No. I-I don't like people making fun of me."

Link managed a small smile. "I know what you mean. I had a hard time when I was on the _Grand_ _Sails_. I couldn't sleep sometimes because I was afraid my crewmates would try to fire me out of a cannon."

Irleen coughed out a laugh. "Sounds horrible."

"It was worse when they _did_ try it." Irleen broke into a short bout of laughter, causing Luggard to glance over the edge of his bunk. Link's mouth formed a bigger grin. "Look. Things are probably going to be a little hectic for a while."

"It's not that, Link. It's just… whenever I was made fun of, I was always able to defend myself. Being… well, being like _this_… I just feel like I don't have that power anymore."

"So we'll just have to make you big again. We'll get you back to Forelight Island.

"I promise."

Link tried to imagine that, in Irleen's silence, she gave her head a nod before saying, "Thank you."

…

The toss to the deck knocked the wind out of him. But instead of finding his feet, he remained flat against the deck boards as the ship began to list in the opposite direction again. The whole weather deck had gone black after the lights on the masts had disappeared. He could still see some of the bulwark towards what he thought was the rear of the ship. He had to get down there like the captain had said, but walking had been a challenge since the vessel came under attack. His hands felt raw from having one of the ropes yanked out of his fingers by the turbulence, so he propped himself up on his elbows to look around.

Crewmen, bare to the abdomen but wearing slacks of mostly earthen colors, lay strewn about the deck, tossed about like a child leaves toys scattered in a room. None of them appeared seriously injured, but most of them were slow returning to their feet.

Then he noticed that the ship had stopped its violent flight. He stood up, slowly, trying to let the feeling of blood rushing to his head alleviate before finding himself on the deck again.

A number of heavy items thudded against the deck; he could feel the impact through his boots. When he looked in the direction he was sure they had come from, he could see in the frantic light of the storm around them a number of ropes hanging seemingly out of nowhere.

Then he saw the cannons in the blackness and looked higher. What he first took to be the dark clouds of the storm turned out to be the black-clad hull of another airship, much larger than the ship he stood on. The ropes had been thrown from the bulwark high above, and things were already descending.

A hand grabbed his wrist. "Come on!" someone shouted as he was pulled towards the stern.

"Ah… Line?!" he cried out upon recognizing which of the Hylian airmen had grabbed him.

"Getting you to safety!"

He heard shouting behind him and looked over his shoulder. The Sorian airmen, along with Airman Albert, were ambushing the creatures descending from the other ship. "Goddesses Above…" he swore to himself. "What is happening?"

"Pirates with a bigger ship!" Line said. He stopped and wrenched open one of the doors to the aftcastle.

Line shoved him into a dark room and slammed the door shut. He immediately found his feet and ran to the door. "Airman Line!" He pushed on the door, but someone on the other side was bracing it shut. "Airman Line, open this door! Open the door no—"

_Phah! Phah pha pha pha phah! Pha pah!_ He felt his heart sink from the sounds outside as some of the shouting died out, allowing thunder to sound once again. His breath caught in his throat, and he backed into a wall away from the door. This was a wise move, as someone wrenched the door open and pulled it shut just enough that a soft sliver of light showed through. The figure hunched low, peering outside.

"Airman?" he asked.

"Shh, keep it down," Line replied. "They've got guns out there; we don't wanna be found."

"Guns?"

"Yeah, big ones. Kind I've never seen before. Not flintlocks, though; it looked like they were lighting them with their breath."

"With their… how?"

"The ones using them were breathing fire."

He dared a step towards Line. "Fire? What are they?"

Line's voice came out a little frustrated as he replied, "I don't know; I didn't get a good look at them."

"What of the crew?"

This time, Line hesitated before responding. "I think they're dead. Whatever these pirates are, I think they just had the last word."

"And the capt—"

Line hissed at him. "Someone's coming. Get back."

He turned and felt along the walls. But all he could determine was that they had hid in a shallow room with no other exit. "Ah… Airman, where are we?"

"Huh?" Line stood up and disappeared from the doorway. Line's shoulder brushed his arm as the airman put his hands on the nearby walls. "Oh, crap. It's that f—"

The door to the storage closet flew from its hinges before Line could finish talking, pulled off by pure strength and flung across the weather deck just as easily. A silhouette formed by the flash of lightning behind it dominated the doorway, its form tall and bulky. In the instant both turned to look at it, it had grabbed Line and tossed him outside.

He felt a large hand, covered in calloused skin, wrap around his slender forearm. But instead of being thrown like Line, he was pulled to the door, although his feet did not touch the deck.

In the light, he spun and met a pair of metal eye sockets empty of all but a tiny glint of blue reflecting in the steel around it. He felt his breath well up for a scream.

In the instant that Link jerked awake, he reeled from a heavy impact to the head. The sound of his skull banging against the top of his bunk startled both Luggard and Cale into slamming their own heads. Luggard growled a number of incomprehensible sounds, as if his mouth was not awake enough to properly pronounce the cursing he had intended to do. Cale merely joined the other boys in moaning as his own head began to develop a large lump.

"What's going on!?" Irleen cried, rising from her sleeping place in Link's hat.

Luggard pulled himself to the edge of his bunk. "The 'ell, Link!" he shouted as he peered over the side, one hand holding his head.

"Agh!" Link growled in response, waiting for the pain in his forehead to go away. "Sorry."

"Another nightmare?" Irleen asked.

Link shook the pain from his head. "Yeah, I guess."

Cale glanced over to the window above the desk. "It's light out. I guess."


	32. The Forest Crypt

Chapter 32: The Forest Crypt

…

Cale's hedging of his comment served to remind Link of how relative the term "light" was on the surface. After a few minutes of waiting for their headaches to subside, Luggard, Link, and Cale dressed and stepped out into the temple. A beam of smoky, grey light revealed an entrance of stone blocks of a slightly gold color. Luggard had to light another lantern so they could see where they had parked the Seventeen. This showed them a long room which had space enough for twelve trains the same length as the Seventeen, provided that there were two extra rows of tracks to accommodate them. The floor on either side of the single rail had been raised to provide a pair of suitable platforms; Link was glad that he had not fallen onto the tracks the previous night. The platforms spanned about half the length of the receiving bay and led to a short set of stairs at the head of the Seventeen's locomotive.

They stood at the base of these steps, Luggard's lantern showing them massive slabs of rubble blocking the floor above. "Well, no' goin' _tha'_ way," Luggard commented with exhaustion in his voice.

"It may be foh the best," Cale said. "Some of these old temples ah _packed_ with wild creatuahs and _many_ sohts of monstehs."

"Where are we supposed to go then?" Irleen asked.

"The book I read said the crypt was found outside the temple," Link said. "We'll have to go outside."

Cale and Luggard exchanged concerned looks. "Uh… Link…" Cale said. "Wha-uh, what about the Skulltulas?"

Link turned and cast his eyes down the length of the entrance. His eyes then wandered to the deep black of the distant ceiling. "I don't think we have to worry. If there were any nearby, they might've attacked us by now."

"No' worried 'bou' them findin' us in 'ere," Luggard said. "It's ou' _there_ tha' worries us."

"All four of us will be out there," Link said.

"Four?" Luggard pointed as he counted in his head. "Four?"

_Puh!_

"Ow," Luggard barely responded to Irleen dropping on top of his head. He looked up at the spot of green hovering above him. "Oh. Sorry, Irleen."

"I _hope_ so."

Link shook his head. "Come on, guys," he said, waving one hand.

"I go' a question," Luggard said as he and Cale followed. "No one's crazy 'nough t' live in these woods. So who's cryp' is we lookin' for?"

"That's a good question, actually," Link answered over his shoulder. "The book I found didn't really say. I suppose Ryain never told anyone."

"Oh he didn't know," Cale added. "Hyrule hasn't been heah foh very long, maybe just the past few centuries. Who's to say what otheh races weah heah befoah us."

"I been all over the place," Luggard said. "Ya sayin' wha'ever buil' this cryp' thin' didn' wanna associate with us?"

"Ah-w-well… w-we neveh heahd of the _Sorians_ befoah Link arrived. They'eh small, but new discoveries ah being made every day. In a month oh so, the existence of the Sorians will probably become common knowledge. Like the deseht dwellehs, the Gelto."

"Yeah, bu' they's common knowledge for _other_ reasons."

Link jumped off the platform and leaned forward to look outside. The first apparent thing he could make out was the dried grass on the ground just outside, looking brown and even more dead than the growth beyond the woods. A pair of large, shaped blocks of stone sat on the edge of the mist on either side of the Spirit Tracks, their surfaces worn of any kind of point or edge. Above, the sky looked even greyer than the rest of the realm. Nothing moved, not even the air. Scrunching his face, Link stepped outside. One step… two steps… four… Link put a few paces between him and the temple entrance before turning. Other than the chipped, weathered, gold-colored wall before him, the rest of the temple extended maybe two stories before ending in a sharp edge. A large, black shadow loomed over the entrance somewhere behind the curtain of mist.

Irleen fluttered out of the temple to meet him. "Well?"

Link broke his concentrating stare for a blank look. "Seems all right. Nothing's come after me yet."

Luggard came out next, putting out the lantern. "It's quie'," he said, placing the lantern on a hook attached to the back of his belt. "No' sure if I _like_ it or no'."

"I tend to see quiet as good," Cale said, stepping from behind Luggard. "It means nothing is looking foh us."

"Ain' tellin' 'ow long tha'll be lastin', so le's find this cryp' 'n ge' ou'a 'ere. Where is it?"

Cale's and Luggard's eyes fell on Link. Link opened his mouth for a moment, clapped it shut, and passed his eyes over everything visible to them. Nothing had changed, nor did it appear that anything _would_ change for a while. "I-I don't know."

"You brought us out to a spooky forest without knowing where an ancient crypt is?" Irleen asked.

"Ryain didn't share a whole lot, okay?" Link snapped at her.

Irleen shook from side to side. "No, I mean that just makes it interesting. It wouldn't be exciting if we knew right where it was."

"Wha' ya call 'excitin', t' _me_, is a brown pants momen'," Luggard said.

Cale cast his eyes around. "Soooo… Wh-wheah do we begin?"

Link sighed. "I… guess we should spread out. Look around for something unusual."

Luggard glanced from side to side. "We's in the Los' Woods. Wha's 'unusual' look like?"

Link put a hand over his face and groaned. Irleen said, "Luggard. You're not helping."

"Just… don't lose sight of each other," Link said. "We'll move along the Spirit Tracks; they might help keep us safe. If someone gets lost, just stay put and keep your ears open."

"No' a prob'em," Luggard replied, tugging on the point of his left ear. He started walking, stepping across the raised ground that bore the Spirit Tracks. Link and Cale exchanged a shrug, and Cale moved in the opposite direction towards one of the stone blocks. After a glance back at the temple, Link began walking in parallel to the tracks.

Link felt unusually calm. So far, the trip to the Lost Woods had presented him with a serious threat he was sure would be giving him nightmares for a while. And he could tell that Luggard's nerves were quickly fraying; he had seen enough airmen go through a similar phase before they decided to vent their frustrations on Link. The memory of almost being thrown into the _Grand_ _Sails_' boiler after one airman expressed parenthetical dismay with being told to swab down the deck a second time by Link (punctuated with a salute that started life as a fist swinging only a hair's breadth from Link's nose) caused Link to audibly swallow. Unfortunately, Link had already sized up the door covering the firebox on the Seventeen. If Luggard lost whatever composure he had left, there was no Chief of the Engine Deck to stop Link from becoming train fuel. And although Cale did not seem to convey the same kind of blunt openness as Luggard, Link could tell that the scholar also had a problem with wandering about a cursed wood. Cale had a number of good points about the sanity (or rather, the _lack_ thereof) regarding the exploration of the temple grounds, namely the shortage of knowledge which caused Link to simply give instructions off the top of his head. Irleen seemed to be the only one who enjoyed herself, although Link could not be sure if that was a good sign or not.

And then there was Link himself. He could feel his own semblance of sanity slipping. The nightmares he had had for the past two nights had compromised his sleep. And the constant bickering between Luggard and Irleen was taking a toll on the friendship they all had developed before leaving Library Town. Link guessed that the excursion to the Lost Woods was not quite the thing one wanted to ask new friends to help with, especially considering the danger that they had already heard of beforehand. He had come from a life where friends kept an eye on each other in very real, very inherently dangerous jobs. He had also come from a life where he had grown accustomed to giving people directions, although very rarely were they his own. In short, Link had concluded that his life as a captain's aide had turned him into a bit of a jerk. Without realizing it, Link started scratching the back of his head.

"Are you okay, Link?" Irleen asked.

Link felt his mind suddenly jarred out of his thoughts and stopped walking. "Wha-what do you mean?"

"You're scratching your hair. Scalp itch?"

Link shook his head. "No, just thinking."

"About what?"

He gave a sigh. "I don't know. I think tha—"

_Shoofh!_ "YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh…" _Thup_.

Link's head spun towards where he had last seen Cale. But the field was empty of movement. So he called out, "Cale? Cale!"

"Wha's goin' on, Link?" Luggard shouted from behind.

Link started moving towards the block near where Cale had been, his pace a steady jog. "Cale's gone!" he shouted back. "Cale!"

"He's _wha'_?"

"I'll look ahead," Irleen said, fluttering ahead of Link. "Cale?"

Link cupped his hands around his mouth. "Cale! Cale!" Link stopped in the middle of the field and used his eyes to look around again, trying to find anything moving. Nothing, and the lack of evidence caused Link's heart to speed up. "This isn't good."

"Link!" Luggard shouted. Link turned as Luggard slowed his run. "Wha' happened?"

Link shook his head. "I-I don't know; I wasn't watching him."

"Jus' take it easy," Luggard told him. "Where ya las' see him?"

Link pointed. "Just over there."

"Hey, boys!" Irleen called out. "Come take a look at this!" Luggard and Link located Irleen hovering near the stone block and hustled in her direction.

Then Luggard came to an abrupt halt, taking a fistful of Link's tunic from behind to stop him. Link turned his head to ask Luggard what was wrong, his leading foot held suspended in the air. Instead, Link caught the frown on Luggard's face and looked forward. His foot hovered over bare, cracked earth which circled the stone block at a radius comparable to the length of the Seventeen's locomotive. Irleen hovered over a large hole just a few steps away from the block.

"Thanks," Link said, a little shocked as he settled his foot back on the ground.

"Don' do much good if ya fall in with 'im," Luggard answered. "Thanks for the _warnin'_, Irleen."

Irleen blew a raspberry at him. "I was about to warn you."

Link's eyes scanned ground. "What is this?"

"I don't know, but I think it's hollow underneath," Irleen answered, watching Luggard and Link round the patch.

"Do ya see Cale?"

"No, it's too dark."

When Link and Luggard reached the closest bit of grass to the hole, Link stretched one foot and tested the bare ground in front of him. Luggard said, "Yar made o' ligh'. Can' ya jus' fly down 'n find 'im?"

"You first."

Link took a step forward. "Seems safe enough," he told Luggard, stamping one boot in place. "We can probably make it to the hole if we take it slow. It's fairly solid."

"'Cep' where Cale stepped," Luggard groaned as he followed in Link's careful tracks.

Link reached the edge of the hole and craned his neck over to glance inside. "I think I see some light down there."

"Le' me see." Link took a large step to one side so Luggard had a better look inside.

_Shoofh!_ "YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH—omph!"

"Link!"

Link's head spun from the impact with something hard, and his back felt as if he had fallen onto a hard floor. A number of his vertebrae popped as he sat up. He made to call out, but the fall had kicked up a large amount of dust, causing his voice to choke up in a fit of coughing.

"Link!" Luggard called from above him. "Ya 'live?"

Link gave a hard final cough before answering, "Yeah."

"Ya 'urt?"

"Kaħác! Līnca kowà ùtīn lìh! Lukàrda, ħònùlpa!"

"I don' much like ya, either! Stop screamin' a' me, ya flu'erin' li'l sno' bubble!"

"Tùħa kákilin ō! Pòka cùpat láki, kīt hì ħacìnu cápa!"

Link cupped his hands around his mouth and called up to the two spots of light above him, "I'm all right!"

"Cale with ya?"

Link glanced around the darkness, but his eyes still had not adjusted to the new surroundings. He blinked a moment, then gave his head a shake to clear it.

When he opened them, he beheld a network of green lines coursing throughout a large cavity surrounding him. Twisting and crisscrossing in a variety of directions with a soft pulse, Link found himself standing large in the sky again with the lights reminding him of watching the blue glow of a Sky Line against the speckled darkness of night. Thicker threads revealed most of the stranger bulges in an otherwise square-looking room. Most of the lines trailed across the walls; the floor only had a few webs along the corners where it met the walls while the ceiling had no sources of light other than the two holes he and Cale had made. Link mouthed his excitement, his voice taken away from the sight.

"Link?" Luggard called down.

Link jerked from his thoughts. "I-I don't see him anywhere. But you've _got_ to see this!"

"_I_ ain' fallin' down there."

Link looked up as a small spot of green entered from one of the holes above. "Link, are you okay?" Irleen asked.

"I'm fine." He held out a hand to show her the surroundings. "Look at this."

Irleen looked around in silence. "Whoa… what _is_ all this?"

"I don't know," Link answered with a shake of his head. "I've never seen this kind of thing before." He stepped to the closest wall and touched his fingertips along a rough surface.

The pulsing in the lines quickened at his touch, and new lines of white, steady light shot from his fingers and across the cavity walls. The room illuminated in a soft flash, revealing walls and a floor composed of large slabs of green glass. Link saw that most of the green lines traveled just under the surface of this glass, guided by nothing immediately visible. That which was not glass sprawled from the center of the room, where a large spire of dark marble penetrated from the surface above into the floor. Roots grew shallow from the floor starting from this central spire. Link looked around to find that more roots penetrated the room from the corners, traveling along the edges of the ceiling and floor. In these roots, Link could see that the green lines followed the flow of cracks in its surface.

And nearby, Link saw that what he had landed on might have been another root. He squat to get a closer look. The suspect root appeared to have fallen to decay, its probably once thick form reduced to a pile of black ash. When he touched a boot to it, he found it surprisingly squishy. Further along the root towards the middle of the room, he saw that a hole had opened. A hole that Cale might have fallen through.

Link stepped to it and looked inside. "Cale?" he called. "Cale!"

"Link?" came a soft cry from the hole.

"Where are you?"

"Uh… I-I fell in a hole."

Link and Irleen glanced at each other. "I don't think that's what you were asking," she said.

"He probably can't hear me," Link agreed with a nod. Then he enunciated his next words into the hole in as clear a voice as he could manage. "Cale. Don't move. I'll be right down."

Cale paused before replying, "Didn't you get that befoah we left the train?"

Link exchanged another look with Irleen, this time showing her a helpless frown. "He probably hit his head."

"Oh, Link, if you happen to see it, I've lost my right shoe!"

"Uh… okay, Cale." Link stood up straight and sighed. "This is going to be a long day."

"Find 'im?" Luggard called down.

Link's eyes found the holes above again. "Yeah, but he's further down underground. I'm going to see if I can find him."

"Tha's fine, bu' how's ya gonna ge' ou'?" Luggard asked as Link cast his eyes around the room.

Link spotted something on the far side of the room. "How well can you see me?" he called up. He held up a hand. "Can you see me pointing?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"It looks like there's a staircase in that direction. It looks like it might be a little buried, but it may be a way out."

Luggard paused as he disappeared from sight. When his head showed up again, he said, "I might 'ave a shovel or somethin' on the Seventeen. I'll try t' clear it b'fore ya ge' back."

"And if you fall in," Irleen called up, "try to bring the shovel with you!"

"Wha's tha'?"

Link gave Irleen a confused look. "What?" Irleen asked.

"We'll be right back," Link said.

"Go' it."

Link started towards the far side of the room, moving around the central spire and carefully stepping over the roots in the floor. "So, what's the plan?" Irleen asked him as she fluttered behind.

Link pointed a finger at the far wall, where a simple, rectangular doorway stood as the only obstruction to the green and white lights under the sheet of glass. "We might find another way down through there. It wouldn't do much good if I just dropped through the holes Cale made."

"It's dark, though."

Link reached the doorway. The same green lines traveling through the room behind him continued to flow through the cavity in front of him, showing that it was particularly shallow. With one arm stretched at full length, Link touched the wall just inside the doorway. A thick, white line arching over the doorway shifted down until it stretched into the small cavity, revealing stairs leading below.

With a slight grin on his face, Link turned his head to Irleen and gestured at the stairway. "I think whoever built this place has it covered."

"Yeah. I wonder what else that person had covered."

Irleen's voice came out sarcastic, and Link could imagine her folding her arms as she hovered next to his head. He shrugged and said, "It can't be too bad."

Then Link took the stairs down, following their twist with one hand resting on the hilt of his sword. At the bottom, only a white shadow hinted at the interior of the next room. Clay tiles, a kind that Link had never seen before. Of course, tiles were not exactly prevalent in the sky kingdom; the islands only had so much landmass, and using some of that land to fire tiles was generally out of the question. Only the rich used them, and then those were usually taken from an uninhabited island. Link set foot on the tiles and touched the wall just next to the doorway.

The room that lit up with Link's touch spanned much further than the room above. The spire protruding from the upper floor continued its root motif across the ceiling, but the floor of this room was covered in tiles almost as large as Link. Each tile bore a three-loop knot at the center with a leaf at each corner. This knot on each tile, with the loops arranged in an arrow-like figure, all appeared to point to the far side of the room.

Irleen, dropping to the floor, commented, "Well, if that's not an invitation, I don't know what is."

"Yeah, it's really kind of friendly for an underground structure in the middle of a dangerous forest," Link said with a pleased grin on his face.

Irleen promptly froze in place as Link stepped around her. She quickly rose up and slid into the air near Link's right ear. "Link, do you think this might be the crypt we were looking for?"

Link wrinkled his face as he stepped over a large root blocking his path. "You know, this just might be.

"YAH!"

"Gyah!"

Irleen turned to find Link leaning on the central spire, giving her a goofy grin. "Sorry. Tripped."

"Don't do that!" she shouted, almost bumping his nose when she jumped closer to his face. Link chuckled at her.

But she backed away from him, her light paling. "Link. Look."

Link could not tell which direction she was looking in, so he had to pass his gaze around the room for a moment. The other side of the room looked to be about twice as long as the room above, the floor covered in rubble and missing a small number of its tiles. The lights traversing the room continued in its flowing, uninterrupted pattern to another doorway on the far side. Then his eyes fell on the spire he leaned against. Now that he stood closer, he could see that the spire looked more like wood grain than marble. The hand he used to brace himself slid along the surface, looking for the slightest flaw.

That was when he spotted it. A skeleton sat at the base of the spire, a dented breastplate bearing the Crest of Hyrule on top of a humanoid form of faded red. Link stepped closer so he could feel the surface of the armor.

"It looks like a Royal Knight," Link told her. He checked around the ground. "Huh. He isn't armed. I wonder what he's doing here."

"Wait," Irleen said. "This is a _Hylian_?"

"Probably one of the knights of the Royal Family," Link said with a nod. "I'm guessing that he's been down here for a long time. He might've come with Ryain."

"Link. If this is a Hylian…

"Where's his head?"

Link was not blind to the fact that the knight had been beheaded. It was so glaringly obvious that Link had not really expected the question to come up. Surely decapitation had been what had killed the knight. But now that the question was foremost on Link's mind, he was curious as to _what_ took the knight's head. Link again glanced around the floor where the knight had been permanently seated, but all he could find were fragments of tile littering the ground. Looking at the spire behind the body, Link saw a single notch in its otherwise smooth surface. He stood and examined the body and the height of the score. It appeared to him that the notch would meet with the end of the corpse's neck. His eyes wandered about the spire's roots until he saw something settled against one of the roots a couple arm lengths away from him.

Link pointed and said, "There it is."

"Aaaaaand… it doesn't bother you that his head is over _there_?"

Link examined the notch, using his hand to compare its level with his height. "I think I'll be all right. If there's a trap nearby, I have about half a head's clearance."

Irleen turned to look out at the rest of the room. "But there's nothing else here. It's all just… _glass_ and _tiles_."

Link shrugged at her. "It wouldn't be much of a trap if it was visible." He turned and started across the room again.

Then the room changed. Link froze in place when the green lines of light quickly faded to purple, darkening the room a bit. And whereas the pulses in the green lines had been traveling towards the other side of the room, the now-purple lines flowed in the opposite direction.

"Uhhh… something… _bad_ just happened… didn't it," Irleen said.

"I, uh… I don't know." Link looked around, seeing if he had touched a trigger somewhere. And he saw that he had stepped on a tile pointing towards the entrance of the room, one of a few on the floor before him. "I don't think I like the way this tile's pointing."

Irleen dropped closer to the floor to look. "O-okay… maybe… you can just take your foot off?"

Link took a step back, ensuring that he did not step on another backwards tile. However, the room remained the same. "Uh… n-now what?"

Irleen rose to Link's head level again. "Uhhh… try to… _not_ lose your head?"

Link turned his head to respond to Irleen's comment when he caught movement in the corner of his eye. His head whipped back just in time to catch a tile move. It was spinning like a top, wobbling with the movement like it was off-balance. It rose just about level with Link's chest and hovered, giving off a light swishing sound with each turn. Link could see that this tile was actually a little narrower than he had expected.

About as narrow as the notch in the spire behind him.

Link's face paled at the realization, and his heart started pounding frantically at the inside of his chest like a sailor trying to abandon a sinking ship. His stomach churned. Worst of all, his mind blanked. For a few moments, Link stared at the deathtrap with nothing on his mind except an image of his body with one corner of that tile impaling him through the chest.

"Watch out!" Irleen's cry snapped Link out of his thoughts.

Just in time for him to realize that the tile was hurling straight at him! Link released a wild cry and dove to the floor to his right. The tile sailed past him, its wake flinging Irleen to one side, and hit one of the roots on the floor with a ceramic crash.

_Sooshsooshsooshsoosh…_ Link's head spun from the fragments of the first tile to see three more rising from the floor. He shoved himself to his feet and dashed across the room as another tile shot at him. This tile attempted to arc back towards him and smashed against the glass wall behind him.

His foot hit something on the floor, something loose. He looked down, then looked up again as another tile hurtled toward him. With only a breath's length to think, Link picked up the loose item with both hands and held it up to protect him. The tile met a wooden surface and skipped to Link's right, breaking against the floor. The object Link had lifted slipped from his right hand, leaving its edge to scrape his palm and the inside of his arm. To Link's fortune, his undersuit protected his arm, and he brought the object up again to block another tile. This time, however, Link felt the full impact of the tile and was thrown backwards by almost unwavering force. He landed on his back against the tiled floor, wincing at the pain for only a moment.

_Sooshsooshsooshsooshsoosh…_ More tiles. Link scrambled back to his feet to find five more hovering between him and the exit.

"Link! Over here!" Link's eyes searched for Irleen's light. He saw her at the far corner of the room from him, fluttering above what at first looked like another tile. But with Irleen giving off her own light as she drew his attention to it, he saw that part of its surface was raised.

He was out of time to think. All he wanted to do was make it to that tile and hope Irleen had found a way to disable these flying ones before he joined the knight behind him. The problem was that those tiles stood between him and her, and he would have to make his way past them.

So Link picked up the wooden disk again and held it parallel to the ground. Within a second, he threw it into the tiles and dashed back across the width of the room. The next tile to move collided with the disk, sending both in wild directions. Link's hand tagged the opposite wall, and then he made a beeline straight for Irleen.

He would never make it, though. He was running past the tiles, and the next one was sure to hit him the moment it even felt like attacking. Link also had to bound over the roots protruding from the wall, and there were far too many in his path.

So many that he tripped about halfway to his destination. The trip seemed to save him, though, as the next tile to strike had chosen the moment before to make its move. Link dove into the ground and scraped his chin against the floor just as the tile closed distance with him. It could not follow him through the fall and, instead, shattered against the glass wall above him. Link had to cover his head from the falling chunks of tile, instead taking most of their impacts with his back. They felt heavy, solidifying Link's desire to not be hit by one. Fortunately, he could shrug off being pelted with pieces and scrambled back to his feet.

"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Link's battlecry heralded another spectacular fall as he dove for Irleen, arms outstretched. Again, he hit the floor hard, and his hands pressed down into the surface of the raised tile to help stop him from bashing his head.

_Sooshsooshsooshsoosh… soosh… soosh… soosh… klay! Klay klay! Klay!_ Link dared a glance up. The flying tiles had collapsed back to the floor, their askew angles from the surrounding tiles the only clue as to where they were only moments before. The purple lines in the room switched back to green, continuing on as if nothing had happened. Link gave a sigh of relief and let his head rest against his arms.

"Nice work, Link!" Irleen said as she descended to eye level with him.

"Thanks to you," Link replied, raising his head again. "If you hadn't found this switch, I might've gotten killed."

Irleen's small body whipped around for a moment. "Uh… aaaactually, I hadn't noticed the switch until you pushed it," she confessed with a tinge of embarrassment in her voice. "I just thought you might be able to huddle into this corner and smack them away with your sword."

Link frowned at her. "That… probably wouldn't have lasted for very long."

Irleen huffed at him. "Well, it was a _strategy_, at least. What was that thing you threw? I barely got a look at it."

"I don't know," Link said as he pulled himself to his feet. "I'm just glad it was around." He glanced back at the room and located the object he threw against the wall across the room. He jogged to the other wall and picked it up. He found that it was a circular shield composed of wood boards held together with a metal band on the circumference. When he turned it over, he found three straps riveted through what looked to him to be a separate panel of wood from the front. Two straps, one shorter than the other, were riveted parallel to each other. The third strap, the longest, was riveted at diagonal points on either side of the other straps. After examining a little more, Link decided to fit his right forearm through the larger of the parallel straps and fit his hand into the smaller enough for him to grip it. Then he drew his sword and struck a pose with the shield held in front. "What do you think?"

"I think Cale might be in more trouble than he realizes," Irleen said, coming close to his face as if to look him in the eye.

Link opened his mouth, closed it in embarrassment, and sheathed his sword again. After a quick look at the shield, he pulled his arm out of it and used the large strap to sling it over his back. "Right. Let's go."


	33. Link and Cale, Tomb Raiders

Chapter 33: Link and Cale, Tomb Raiders

…

Link paused near the bottom of the staircase for two reasons, one hand held up to tell Irleen to duck behind him. The first reason was that the lights in the next room were already on, signaling that someone was down there. Originally, he thought that Cale may have found the means to turn on the lines in the walls; it had not been difficult for Link to discover. But the second reason was the sound Link could hear from the room. Crunching, like someone chewing on a mouthful of cereal. It was not a single sound; it reminded Link of the sounds airmen tended to make when they were all ducking duty in the galley at the same time. Link had not wanted to get close to that sound on the _Grand Sails_, so entering a room in a crypt from which that sound came gave him more reason to hesitate.

"What is—"

"Shh!" Link hissed at Irleen. He hunched low and slowly continued around the spiral of stairs until he was peeking out the doorway at the bottom.

He saw a large chamber, much larger and taller than the one above. This made sense to Link, as the trip down the stairs felt longer than the first flight he had taken minutes before. The floor and walls were the same glass and lines theme as before, perhaps with even more lines to aid illumination.

The difference was the creatures roaming about the floor. Brown, ball-shaped creatures with a single spike on their heads waddled about on little more than a pair of feet. Short worms about the size of a cucco, sporting a soft body of puke-green skin, climbed about the various statues and coffins arranged on the floor and in recesses in the walls, making identifying the owners of the crypt even more difficult. The crunching sound, Link realized, was both kinds of creatures feeding on some of the roots growing from the center spire, which appeared to have thinned out as it descended to the floor of this vast chamber. The ball-like creatures formed a line and seemed to take their fill of the roots before going about their business elsewhere on the floor, while the worms preferred to slime over any vertical surface they could find, including a much higher feeding ground on the spire.

"What are these things?" Link asked himself.

"Spinuts and Blastworms." His forehead forming confused furrows, Link turned to find Irleen hovering further up the stairs. She rocked her body, producing a bell-like jingle. "They live in forested areas like this."

"How could you possibly know that?" Link asked. "You've lived in the sky for most of your life."

"I fight them all the time."

Link glanced back out at the floor. Then he turned back to her and said in a loud voice, "Haah?"

"We—not in _reality_, Link!" she replied. "It's a book game. The other librarians and I played them all the time. One of you tells a story while the rest of the group plays as characters in the story. The story finishes after you go into a dungeon and rescue someone or find treasure or something." Link stared at her in silence. "It's a fun game." More silence. "Okay, stop staring at me."

"I still don't see how you know what these things are," Link said.

"They're creatures from the monster manual. Most of the creatures in the monster manual are made up of creatures known to the surface world."

Link gave a sigh. "Okay, so, what can you tell me about them?"

"Spinuts are mean little things that like to chomp at anything fleshy. And watch out for that spike on the top of their heads; it's poisonous."

Link's eyes swiveled out to the chamber again. Near one of the closer coffins, a Spinut gave a strange barking sound at one of the Blastworms crawling on coffin's side. In response, the Blastworm dropped from the side and curled into a ball in front of the Spinut, producing a number of spines from the surface of its skin. Undaunted, the Spinut lowered its head and charged into the Blastworm.

_BOOM!_ The Blastworm exploded, sending the Spinut hurtling across the chamber. It hit the wall far behind it with a disgusting splat and dropped to the floor, unmoving. Link's eyes turned back to the Blastworm's location to see grey entrails coating the floor.

Link gulped. "And… Blastworms?"

"Uuh… yeeeeaah, pretty much just as the name sounds."

Movement in the room suddenly changed. Spinuts lined on the far side flocked to the remains of either the Blastworm or its victim and began chewing on it. Link put on a disgusted face as he watched Spinut teeth tearing apart the newly dead. "Ugh."

"The manual didn't say anything about cannibals, though."

"I think we should just avoid becoming part of the menu. We have to find Cale."

"How about up there?"

Link turned his attention back to the chamber. Spinuts were swarming and pushing each other out of the way for a taste of flesh, and some had even starting butting heads together. Link's eyes traced up the center spire and saw that a platform sliced through it about halfway up. The chamber offered lines of light enough that Link could see the black roots that Cale might have fallen through. Unlike the rest of the chamber, the platform looked like fresh wood. Blastworms crawled along some of its edge and the bottom, and Link could just barely make out spots in the wood where the Blastworms might have chewed into it. His eyes fell to the wall across from the stairs, and he could see the dark shadow that must have been another set of stairs leading up to the platform. He would have to hope so, anyway; he could not see any other way up. But he was concerned about crossing the chamber. How would the Spinuts react to him?

"Will they attack me if I try running across?" he asked.

"Weeeeell… Whenever I was playing a game, Spinuts normally chased after us. I… got killed by them a couple of times. It's… well, it's actually a little embarrassing."

Link's eyes swept across the chamber. He realized that the Spinuts had formed two large groups around the entrails, and no others seemed interested in mindlessly wandering about. And, if the demonstration moments before was a good sign, Link just had to avoid touching the Blastworms.

He steeled himself and said, "Okay. We'll sneak past them while they're eating. Follow me."

Hand on the hilt of his sword, Link stepped out into the open. The Spinuts did not appear interested in him as they continued to brawl, so Link moved along the adjacent wall where the Spinut from before had not hit. He kept his distance, of course, because Blastworms were travelling on the wall at about head-height with him. Shifting his eyes between the nearby Blastworms and the Spinut hordes, Link moved behind a row of stone coffins on his way to the other side. His heart pounded with fear, knowing full well the kind of damage setting off a Blastworm could do. He waited until he was under the platform before venturing into plain sight, sure that the Spinuts would not bother him from there.

Now that he was closer to the spire, he saw that the Spinuts had chewed it into almost a point. The stone looked like jagged, brown marble, and water dripped onto the floor. Link stepped closer, casting a cautious eye to the Blastworms above, and felt the surface with a hand. "I wonder if they're eating this rock because of the water in it," he said to himself.

"Link," Irleen said, "I don't think this is a rock. These markings look like rings on a tree."

Link rapped his knuckled against the surface, producing very little noise. "Feels like a rock."

"I think it was petrified. I think we're looking at the roots of a petrified tree."

Link followed the sound of her voice so he could give her a confused look. "How could this be a tree? We didn't see any up above, except as part of the Lost Woods."

"Maybe that's what those rocks up there used to be. You saw them, right? If I had to say, this root sits right under that rock that we fell into."

Link looked up as he considered it. "Huh. Maybe you're right."

"Maybe?"

Link sighed and moved towards the doorway. "Okay, you're right. Come on. We have to find Cale. I don't see a hole, so he's probably above us."

"Uuh, that… might be a problem."

Link stopped short of the stairway when he saw what she was referring to. The lights inside were on, revealing Blastworms crawling on the curved wall inside the stairway. Craning his neck to see inside without actually getting close, it appeared to him that they covered the wall for some distance above. Link groaned. "Okay, now what?"

"Well, maybe if we make one of them blow up," Irleen said, "it might clear the rest out."

Link nodded slowly. "Okay. Okay, that could work. But how?" He drew his sword. "With this?"

"Mmm… maybe not a good idea. You might not get away from the blast."

Link replaced his sword and glanced around, hoping to find a loose rock on the ground. "You think I can throw my shield at it?" he asked.

Irleen circled Link for a moment, then she moved to the doorway to compare its width. "That's going to be a hard throw, Link. The doorway is barely larger than that shield."

Link stepped back to the spire and tapped what he thought to be a rock with the toe of his boot. He found that the rock, about half the size of his fist, was not attached to anything and picked it up. "Okay, I think I've got it," he told Irleen. Irleen dove back towards him as he heaved. The rock sailed into the doorway.

_Tonk. Clop copcop._

And bounced back out, landing halfway between the stairs and Link. Nothing followed.

"I think you missed," Irleen said.

Link nodded in irritation. "Thank you, Irleen," he said as he picked the rock up. He stepped to one side so that he could throw it up into the stairway. Then he underhanded it into the doorway.

_B-B-B-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!_ The sudden force of the Blastworms exploding almost at the same time hurled Link onto his back, causing the shield to knock into his head. He lay dazed for a moment, trying to let the room stop spinning before he dared stand. When he got to his feet, he saw that the inside of the stairway was coated in large blotches of grey goop.

He shook his head and said, "Maybe we should think about that a little more next time."

"Uh… L-Link?!" The panicked tone in Irleen's voice caused Link to snap his eyes to her. She hovered just to his left, staring at the chamber behind him.

Link turned his head. "Wha—YAAAAAAAAAAAH!" He was dashing for the stairs in the next moment he realized that the Spinuts, alerted by the blast, swarmed at him from across the chamber. His feet slipped on the grey entrails of the Blastworms, forcing him to take the stairs using his hands and feet to keep him balanced in the correct direction. He ran full out, never looking back to see where the Spinuts were. He wanted to get away before they decided to make a meal of him.

He dove out of the top of the stairs, collapsed onto the wooden surface of the platform, and crawled forward for good measure. When he looked back, he saw that the Spinuts had not followed him all the way to the top. From the chewing sounds echoing from the stairway, he guessed that they were too busy making a meal of the Blastworm remains.

He flipped over to sit up. Then he found Irleen hovering above him. "Okay, that was _definitely_ a stupid idea."

"I won't tell anyone if you won't."

"Uuugh…" Link's head spun to locate the groan from somewhere behind him. What he first took for a lump of Blastworm entrails shifted and sat up. "Wha-what happened?"

"Cale?" Irleen asked, floating closer to his face.

"Ihleen? Link?" Cale pulled a handkerchief from his back pocket and wiped the smudges of grey slime from his face. "What was that explosion? The last I remembeh, I was about to descend the staihs, and… what…"

"Sorry, Cale," Link said. "That was us."

"You mean that was _you_," Irleen said. "_You_ set them off."

"It was _your_ idea!" Link countered.

Cale blinked at them. "Uh…" Then he used a finger to clean one ear. "Could-could you repeat that again?"

Link frowned at him. "Cale? Are you all right?"

"Uh… no, I have three."

Link exchanged looks with Irleen. "Cale, can you hear me?"

Cale squinted at Link, focused on his mouth. Then he said in a loud voice, "Wait, wait. Can you repeat that sloweh?"

"Can. You. Hear. Me." Cale glanced down at the handkerchief in his hand. Then he offered it to Link. Link slapped a grim-covered hand into his forehead. "No. No, I suppose you can't."

Cale tilted his head closer. "What?"

Link wiped his forehead with one sleeve of his body suit. "Never mind, let's get going." He stood up.

Cale quickly followed. "What's happening?"

"We're going back." Cale frowned at Link, so Link pointed a finger to the ceiling. "Back to the surface."

Cale glanced up, and then he nodded at Link. "Yes, that was a ratheh amazing fall. I've no clue how I suhvived."

"Forget it, Link," Irleen said. "He's deaf as a leaf."

Cale's face snapped in Irleen's direction. "Ihleen? Ah you speaking a different language?"

Link gave him a confused look and pointed at Irleen. "She's been speaking Sorian this whole time."

"No, Link, that breakfast was te—why ah you changing the subject?"

Link glanced to Irleen. "What's going on? I thought the gem translated for everyone around me."

"It does," Irleen answered. "But I suppose it can't translate if a person can't hear correctly."

"What's she saying?" Cale asked.

Link sighed. "Let's just get him out of here."

He turned, but Cale quickly grabbed his arm. "Wait, wait!" he said in an excited tone. "You have to see this!" Cale then began to stumble around the roots melding into the floor, making his way around the central spire. Link traded a glance with Irleen, and both followed him.

Similar to the floor below, recesses in the walls on either side housed both coffins and Blastworm occupants. But the statues had not been touched, revealing that the inhabitants had been somewhat similar to Hylians in general appearance. One statue that caught Link's eye was of a short, elderly man with a circle beard and a large ball of hair that doubled the size of his head. He held an angular cello against the ground with a stick poised like a bow ready to slide across invisible strings. The chair he sat in encompassed his whole lower body, shaped vaguely like an egg with a triangle-and-wings emblem on the front.

"What is he?" Irleen asked Link.

Link shook his head. "I don't know." His eyes fell on the next statue. This one was also a short, elderly man in a similar chair. He also had a large ball of hair, but no facial hair. And instead of an instrument, this one held a spear twice his own height. "Cale?" Cale stopped and turned to him, but instead of risking another misunderstanding, Link indicated the statues with a finger.

Cale appeared to think for a moment, then he nodded. "Ah, yes. Those ah statues of the Lokomo tribe. They used to inhabit this land before Hylians arrived. Evidently, the Lokomos who lived in this forest made theih final rest heah. Which is strange since Lokomos ah rebohn yeahs lateh anyway."

"They probably thought that this was a quiet place to rest," Irleen said to Link.

Link eyed the Blastworms on the nearby wall. "Not so much anymore, probably."

"Oveh heah." Link quickened his pace until he was standing beside Cale. Cale pointed out a chewed-up blanket and a sleeping mat on the floor in front of him. "I think this might have belonged to Ryain."

"And he just left it here?" Link asked.

Cale's eyes went wide, and he quickly held up his hands. "No, no, I don't think we need to use it, Link."

Link pressed one hand against his brow. "Do you think he'll understand if you smack him?" Irleen asked.

"It's tempting at this point…" Link answered.

"I also found this litteh." Link removed his hand from his face. Cale squat down next to the blanket and pulled it away, revealing the dried remains of dirt and leaves. "I was once in trouble foh playing an adventuah game while I was supposed to be studying. And we weah not very accurate with the surroundings, so, as punishment, Madame Ahneed made me read two books of botany. I can tell you foh cehtain that these leaves came from the forest area south of Diggehton."

"How does this help us?" Irleen asked.

"Uuh…"

Link sighed. "So, you're saying that Ryain's home was south of Diggerton?"

Cale's face turned pale. "Y-you want to do _what_ with a cucco?!"

Irleen shot straight for Cale's left ear. "Snap out of it!" she screamed as loud as she could.

"Dyah!" Cale jerked away from Irleen and fell over the sleeping mat with a hand over his ear. "Ow! Ihleen!"

"I don't think that helped," Link told her.

"Maybe not, but it made me feel better."

Link gave a shrug. "Well, at least we have a location to check. We should lea—"

"Link, look!" Irleen fluttered toward the edge of the platform. Link followed and found her circling a large box with a curved lid. The box was composed of wood with a metal frame and flat latch holding it shut. "It's a treasure chest!"

"Okay," Link said, finding himself more interested in leaving.

"Open it."

Link gave her a repulsed look. "No."

"Why not?"

"Because I want to go."

"Come on. Just open it."

"Why?"

Irleen circled it once more before pulling to a stop in front of Link's face. "Treasure chest! Treaaaaaasure! Yooo-o-o-o-ou mu-u-u-u-u-ust oooooooooopeeeen, Liiiiiiiinnnnnnk."

Link shook his head at her. "What is _wrong_ with you? This is a crypt. They probably left valuables in there. I don't wanna _take_ them."

"No one has to know." She fluttered over to Cale. "Ħo, Cīla. Kahì Locono otàk ta kil tlīnwat klátālat?"

Cale, in the middle of digging into his left ear with a finger, stopped and stared at her. "Uuuuh…"

Irleen shot back to Link. "Cale says it's okay."

Link pointed a finger at him. "He can't even understand you!"

"Details, Link. Open it."

"No."

Irleen huffed. "Fine. _I'll_ open it." She dropped to the latch on the front of the chest and began tugging on it.

After a couple of minutes, Link grew tired of listening to her grunt and groan against the latch. He reached a hand forward, causing Irleen to back away. The latch gave a pop, and then Link pushed the top open. He was surprised to find the interior rather lacking, so he picked up the only item inside.

What he first thought was just a leather pouch about the length of his forearm turned out to be a little heavier than he expected. When he opened the flap on one end, he found a red jewel recessed in a steel frame. He pulled out the object and realized that it had two, identical, leg-like branches, likely wood painted yellow if he judged its weight correctly. As he examined it, his thumb accidentally pressed the jewel into its recess. The branches sprang open, startling him. They rested with a click at almost a right angle to each other, and when Link tried to press the branches back together, he found that they had locked into place.

"Wow!" Irleen said. "A boomerang! I've never seen one so mechanically complex before."

"Mechanically complex?" Link asked, locating a metal switch between the two branches. He pushed it, and the branches snapped loose enough that he could push them back together.

"These Lokomos must have been pretty smart to design a boomerang that could be easily stored. You should hang on to it; it might come in handy."

Link shrugged as he replaced the boomerang. "I suppose." After examining the belt clip on the other side, he reached around the back of his tunic belt and hung the boomerang over his left buttock. "Can we go now?"

"Hey, Link?" Cale called. Link glanced over to see that Cale had paused scribbling in a journal.

He walked back to Cale. "What is it?"

"What's that sound?"

"You have your hea—" Irleen began.

Link immediately hissed at her. Beyond the silence, he finally heard the chewing sounds. A thought occurred to him, so he softly stepped past Cale and up to the center spire. Then he slowly peered around one side. His eyes found movement in the stairwell among the Blastworm remains. The Spinuts had moved up the stairs and were about to fall onto the platform. Link glanced down at his tunic, realizing that he was still spattered in Blastworm and Skulltula entrails. These creatures would want to feast on those.

"Time to go," Link said.

"I-I'm not finished with my notes," Cale told him.

"You're going to have to be," Link said as he jogged back to the edge of the platform.

"Wha-wha-what's going on?"

Link ignored him as his eyes fell upon the floor below. He could not make out any of the remains of the Blastworm or Spinut that had been devoured earlier. He also did not see any surface that would be comfortable to land on. Never mind that, it was too far down to jump anyway; even if they survived, he and Cale would likely be unable to move due to breaking bones on impact.

"Link?" Irleen asked.

"Those Spinuts are coming," Link told her. "Cale and I are covered in guts. They eat guts."

"Okay, yeah, that's bad."

In frustration, Link kicked the raised ledge of the platform.

And he discovered that the ledge was loose.

For a moment, Link's mind blanked. In the next moment, he was piecing together an escape.

"Link?!" Cale's worried cry called Link's attention back to the other side of the platform. He ducked behind the statues on the right as he snuck back towards the stairs. The first Spinut had just set foot on the platform and was licking up the smear Link had created when he had fallen minutes before. Even if he could come up with a safe way to get back to the floor below, the Spinuts might find them before he could put his plan into action.

Movement caught Link's eye, and he looked at the wall above the stairs. A Blastworm was crawling just above the doorway. And if it dropped from there, it would create more mess for the surviving Spinuts to feast on.

"Cale, take cover!" he shouted while is left hand pulled open the flap on the boomerang's pouch. He removed the boomerang and pushed the jewel with his palm. Then he switched his grip to one of the wings. There was no time to lose; another pair of Spinuts had found their way onto the platform. Link stood poised to throw. He had never thrown anything as large or complicated as a boomerang before, so he decided in the split-second before he threw that he would put his whole arm into it.

When he released, the boomerang spun fast enough to look more like a disk. It had a slight curve to the right, and Link thought its flight looked a little wobbly.

It struck the wall with a hollow, wooden sound. For a moment, Link thought he had messed up. But then the Blastworm he had been aiming for decided to curl up, causing it to detach from the wall. Link only had a second to dive back behind the statue before the Blastworm detonated upon contact with the floor. Link's ears rang for a moment. Then he stood up to survey the damage. The handful of Spinuts that had made it to the platform had been thrown at the nearby walls. In addition to the Blastworm entrails on the platform, the wood had a noticeable divot where the Blastworm had landed. Link located the boomerang near the Spinut that had splattered against the wall closest to him. He jumped out of his hiding place and retrieved it. Not wanting to wait around for the Spinuts to come back and swarm the latest kills, Link dashed for the edge of the platform.

Cale, uncurling himself from behind the center spire, stood up and followed. "Wha-what did you just do?"

Link closed the boomerang and replaced it. "Bought us some time. Give me a hand."

"What's the plan?" Irleen asked.

Link kicked the platform's edge. "If we can knock this loose, we might be able to make a slide out of it." He kicked again, and then again. Cale watched until the fifth kick before he joined in Link's work. The wood began to creak, then crack, then finally snapped loose from the nearby wall to their left.

But Link's final kick had knocked the loose end out of reach. Cale exchanged a concerned look with him and asked, "Was-was that suppose to happen?"

"Uh… Ideally, no," Link answered. "Come on; we still have the other end."

"But… we can't _possibly_ lift that," Cale said as they moved to the opposite side of the platform.

Link placed a hand on the ledge and tried to pull it back. Cale was right; the ledge was too heavy for them to lift, and he could not pull it back onto the platform. So Link took in a breath and said, "So we'll just climb down from here."

Cale's eyes jumped from Link to the ledge, to the floor below, back to the ledge, and then back to Link. "Have you lost youh _mind_?!"

"Would you prefer to go that way?" Link asked, pointing towards the stairs.

Cale followed his finger and saw that the Spinuts were on the approach again. "Ahp… no."

Link was already straddling the ledge with his back toward the loose end. "Then come on!" Pressing his chest against the smooth surface of the ledge, he slowly pushed himself backwards. Cale climbed on next and did the same thing, if a little slower than Link.

As they moved, the loose end of the ledge began to drop. Link had counted on this, figuring that even if the ledge did not reach the floor below, they might be hanging low enough that they could simply fall the rest of the way to the floor.

_Krrrrrak!_ The upper end of the ledge gave a jerk, and the loose end swung. Both boys wrapped their arms around the wood as their legs fell off, Cale screaming at a high pitch as the ledge threatened to sling them both at the floor. Link saw the nearby wall closing fast and shut his eyes in anticipation of smacking into the glass. More groaning, and the ledge stopped swinging. Link opened an eye to find that the wall had stopped about two arm lengths away from him. He gave a sigh and adjusted his hold on the ledge, trying to think of the best way to continue.

Cale, however, could not maintain a tight grip on the ledge and began to slide. "Link!"

Link had just a moment to realize that Cale's leather shoes were descending towards him. He closed his eyes again and turned his head to protect his face. Cale collided with him, and Link's grip faltered, causing both boys to drop. Both cried out as they fell. They landed on the floor below with a soft _thup_ not far from a coffin. Link's back took the brunt of the damage, feeling the pain distributed by the wooden shield still slung over it. Cale had landed on top of him, so it was a few minutes before he could groan in pain. Cale, meanwhile, had felt his neck crack on the sudden stop, and his hand and feet were sore from the impact with the ground after their wild flailing during the fall. He rolled off Link and curled himself up for a moment as he waited for the pain to subside.

"You two okay?" Irleen asked when she finally reached the floor after a softer descent.

Link winced at the pain in his chest and rolled to one side. "I think some of my old injuries are back."

"I think I've broken something," Cale said in just a little more than a whisper.

"Yeah," Link agreed as he pushed himself off the floor. "My back."

"Okay, well, I know you guys are in a lot of pain right now," Irleen said, "but you might want to get moving to the stairs."

"Why?" Cale groaned as he looked up at her. Link's hand found the nearby coffin, and he started pulling himself up.

"Mostly?" Irleen asked, turning towards the center spire.

"That."

Link looked up as the Spinuts started swarming their way around the spire. He turned to Cale and grabbed the back of his waistcoat by the collar. "Let's go, hurry!"

Once Link hauled Cale back to his feet, both boys were half-running, half-limping towards the tall stairway on the opposite side of the chamber. Although their pace was by no means fast, they got to the stairway just as another explosion from a coffin somewhere behind them flung Spinuts in all different directions. However, without turning back, Link and Cale took the stairs as swiftly as they could until they were almost halfway to the chamber above.

Link, five steps higher than Cale, collapsed first. He turned around and stretched his body against the stairs, hoping that it would alleviate some of the pain. Cale huffed to a stop and leaned against the wall, feeling most of his extremities throb.

Irleen approached them from below and said, "Looks like you guys are good. That last explosion opened up more food for them."

Link nodded slowly. "Good. I can't run anymore."

"Noh I," Cale agreed. Then he gave Link a smile. "But that was _awesome_. I've nevah been in such a spot befoah. Do you do this regulahly?"

Link gave him an exhausted sigh, not believing that Cale had just turned a dangerous situation into a thrill.

"Maybe in another life."


	34. Scimist, Iron Forestbane

Chapter 34: Scimist, Iron Forestbane

…

When Link, Cale, and Irleen reached the top of the stairs, Link took a few moments to make sure that the switch in the corner still kept the tiles at bay by stomping on it. Afterwards, he and Cale took a few minutes to rest. Well, Link rested; Cale found the energy to relive the excitement four times before Link decided to get moving.

"—and that boomerang! Wheah did you find it?!"

Link sighed, grateful that they had finally reached the top floor. Maybe Cale could unload his enthusiasm on Luggard. "In the treasure chest," he groaned. "The one you didn't want to open because you thought you'd be desecrating the crypt."

"More spoils for you, as I said," Irleen said, circling Link's head.

Link cast a glare upwards, remembering that it was the same reason _he_ had not wanted to open the chest. "Thank you, Irleen."

"You're welcome!"

Link gave her an irritated look when she stopped in front of him. "You're enjoying this way too much."

The top floor had a fresh beam of misty light protruding from the ground above. The hole was as wide as the stairs and deep enough that a taller person like Luggard could use the stairs without having to duck.

Demonstrated when Luggard ran down the stairs just as Link was about to ascend. "Ya don' wanna go up there," he said as he passed Link.

"What? Why?" Link asked, turning to follow.

_Bmmmmmm…_ Dirt shook from the ceiling, forcing Link and Cale to shield their eyes.

Luggard, stopping at the bottom of the stairs, pointed up.

"Tha's why."

_Bmmmmmm…_ More dirt fell, and Luggard dashed for the stair leading to the floor below.

"Wait! Luggahd!" Cale called behind him. "What's happening?"

_Bmmmmmmmm… Bmmmmmmmmmmm… BMMMMMMMMMMM._ Link glanced out the hole above him.

In the next moment, Link tackled Cale to the ground just as a large blade of dull-grey iron sliced through the frail earth above them. Chunks of dirt rained down from above, caking Cale's face and causing him to cough. The blade retreated, and Cale closed his eyes to protect them from more dirt. When he opened them again, he gave a high-pitched scream, prompting Link to look over his shoulder. The giant blade had knocked most of the dirt above out of the way, giving a clearer picture of the dull sky above.

And a picture of the large beetle looming over the crypt entrance. It had a shell of thick iron, scuffed and dented over many years. Its orange eyes looked down into the crypt in a permanent, angry squint due to the plating over its face. Link realized that the blade that had destroyed the ground above was one of a pair of mandibles the width and length of a locomotive with a smooth outer edge and serrated inner edge. They gave an irate, metal clank with each flex as the beetle stared down at them.

"Ah… aaaah—run!" Link cried out, pushing away from Cale. He darted hunched for the stairway below, dragging Cale behind him by the waistcoat.

_GHANNNNG!_ Link could feel the breeze caused by the beetle swinging its pincers into the crypt. But the angle the creature had attacked from turned out wrong, and the creature embedded the outer edge of the attacking pincer into the center spire. This gave Link enough time to shove Cale into the stairway and follow before the released pincer crashed into the wall.

Link and Cale found Luggard huddled at the bottom of the steps. Cale immediately cried out, "What on the Goddesses' eahth was _that_?!"

"'Ow should _I_ know?!" Luggard shouted back.

All three young men braced themselves against the inside of the stairwell as the crypt around them shook. Link found Irleen hovering next to his head and asked, "Any ideas, Irleen?"

"Uh… uuh…" Irleen looked between all three. "Irleensoutofhermindrightnowshellbebackinafewmomen ts!" With that, she dove under Link's hat.

"'Ave room for 'nother under there?" Luggard asked.

"Can we get to the train?" Link asked him.

"No way!" Luggard shouted. He pointed to the ceiling. "I ain' puttin' the Seventeen ou' t' rail with _tha'_ wand'rin' 'bou'! I say we wai' 'ere 'til it leaves."

The crypt shook again, and Cale brushed dirt and dried entrails off his shoulders. "What's to keep it from just tearing this place apaht?" he asked.

Luggard shrugged. "Don' know, bu' 'ere's be'er than runnin' for the Seventeen." Then he frowned and looked both Link and Cale up and down. "Wha' 'ave ya two been doin' down 'ere?"

"Running from Blastworms and Spinuts," Link said.

Luggard grimaced. "So we prob'ly don' wanna stay 'ere, either."

"Just as long as we don't go down any further, we should be safe."

"So we wait?" Cale asked.

"I can live with tha'," Luggard said. Link nodded in agreement.

So they waited. But just a minute after the conclusion of their conversation, they realized that things above them had already fallen to silence. Link made to stand.

"Where is ya goin'?" Luggard asked him.

"It got quiet up there. I want to see if it might've left already."

"Jus' waitin' for us, Link. Le' it wai' a momen'."

"It can't hurt to at least take a peek." At this, Luggard just shrugged, so Link slowly climbed the steps.

When he reached the top, he found that most of the dirt covering the crypt now lay in a thin sheet over the glass floor. The spire, which Irleen had concluded correctly was part of the block that rested on the surface, had a large gash across the side facing the stairs. Link's eyes wandered along the nearby walls, seeing more large scratches in the glass. Undoubtedly, this beetle was strong, and Link felt that their best bet was to reach the Seventeen and ride out of the forest as soon as possible. Which looked like a promising idea since the creature was no longer lurking about the immediate entrance. With trepidation, Link stepped out of the stairway and looked around. Nothing immediately told him that the beetle was nearby, so he ventured towards the stairs leading above ground with his eyes wandering the sky. He climbed almost to the top, just enough that his head was above ground. Other than the mist rolling about the half-dead field, he could not make out any sort of movement from any direction. He even looked up just in case the creature was capable of flying.

Although not completely satisfied, he walked back into the crypt and leaned into the stairway. "Guys," he said in an even voice, "it's clear. Looks like it left."

"Gave up a li'le quick, didn' it?" Luggard asked.

"Maybe it knows that once something gets down heah," Cale suggested, "it's out of reach, so it doesn't puhsue fuhtheh."

"I still don' like it."

"Come on, guys," Link urged them. "This might be the only opportunity we get."

Luggard and Cale exchanged looks. "Fine," Luggard sighed. As he stood, he added, "Bu' I see tha' thin's shadow, I's takin' my chances with the Blastworms."

"Okay, come on."

In only a minute, all three boys stood with barely their heads above ground, searching for signs that the creature was still around. Link was the first to set foot on the ground, and he waved Luggard and Cale to follow him.

But as he looked around, he realized something and asked, "Luggard? Where's the temple?"

Luggard began to point with his mouth open. Then he clapped it shut. His eyes searched through the mist around them. "Uh… tha's a… well, tha's a fair question."

"The fog's gotten thickeh," Cale observed.

Link nodded in agreement as he squinted into the fog, trying to at least find the Spirit Tracks. If they could just see the faint glow, they would be able to follow the tracks back to the temple. Or back out into the Lost Woods, Link grimly reminded himself. He comforted himself with the knowledge that at least it was a fifty-fifty shot.

Fortunately, Luggard was cutting the odds with his own survey of the nearby ground. He pointed out a smaller hole on the other side of the dead ground. "Tha's where Cale fell through, so the Spiri' Tracks 'ave go'a be in _tha'_ direction." He bent over to a spot next to the large hole and retrieved a shovel. "Le's go."

"I suppose it would be easy foh a train engineeh," Cale remarked as they started walking.

"Naturally," Luggard said with a large grin. He rested the shovel on his shoulder. "Engineer's go'a 'ave a good sense o' direction. Ain' good t' be los' all the time, 'specially when ya go' places t' go."

"Luggard," Link asked, "when did this fog get so thick?"

Luggard wrinkled his face. "Don' know. Didn' notice it 'til Cale said somethin'."

_Bmmmmmmm_… All three froze in their tracks, falling silent.

Irleen's light protruded from Link's bangs. "Wha-wha-what was that?"

_Bmmmmmmm. Kzzzt._

Luggard gave a sigh. "Is we jus' _tha'_ stupid?"

"We-we-we might be able to make it back to the crypt," Cale suggested. Luggard nodded in agreement, and all three turned.

But the opening to the crypt had already fallen to the veil around them.

"Tha's jus' unfair," Luggard groaned, unshouldering the shovel. He grasped it at about the middle, holding the metal end up like a weapon.

"If we keep walking this way, we should find the tracks," Link said, pointing in the direction he hoped they had been traveling.

"Go slow, boys," Luggard said. "We don' wanna le' it know we know where t' go."

"This is nuts," Irleen commented as Link and Cale started backing toward where they thought the tracks sat.

_Kzzt. Kzzzt._

"What's that sound?" Cale asked.

"Don' know," Luggard said as he started following them. "Tha' should scare ya enough."

"You're not helping, Luggard," Irleen growled.

_Kzzt. Kzzzzzzzz—bm. Bm. Bm. Bm. BM. BM. BM. BM. BMMMM!_ All three boys swung their heads when they finally realized the direction the sound traveled from.

"Look out!"

"Wah!"

"Yah!"

They scattered as the towering insect sped through their clear patch. Cale, attempting to run in one direction, tripped over his own feet and landed on his stomach right in the beetle's path. His only fortune was that the insect was far enough from the ground that it sailed right over Cale without noticing. Luggard and Link had dived in the same direction. They wheeled about to find Cale clutching the ground.

"Cale!" Link shouted.

"I-I'm o-o-o-okay!" Cale replied.

"Tha' thin's go'a be 'eavy as a train!" Luggard shouted. "'Ow is it flyin'?!"

_BMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmmm!_ The distant sound of the insect landing clued them into where it had landed. Then the subsequent thuds indicated movement.

"Uh… I think it's turning around," Link said.

"More good news," Luggard growled.

_KzzzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZZ_… The beetle sailed back into view, and Link and Luggard spun and flung themselves in opposite directions. As it flew past, Link flipped over to look at the insect. He managed to gauge its size the rough equivalent of the _Grand_ _Sails_, which meant about as massive as the receiving bay holding the Seventeen train. It had its rear shell suspended open, allowing a pair of thin, almost invisible wings to propel it along the ground. This gave Link a look at a massive abdomen, covered in yellow skin.

Very soft-looking yellow skin.

It disappeared into the fog again. Luggard was jogging up to Link as he was standing. "Well, I's ou' o' ideas," he said to Link.

"I think I might have one," Link said as he removed his shield.

It was not until Link took out his boomerang that Luggard started picking up on Link's idea. "Wai', ya ain' actually thinkin' o' _fightin'_ tha' thin', is ya?!" he shouted.

"If I can wound it, we might be able to get away," Link nodded, popping the boomerang open.

"'Ave ya los' yar _mind_?! 'Ow's ya gonna do _tha'_?!"

_BMMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmm!_

"I don't have time to explain. Find Cale and see if you can keep him quiet. I need to get its attention." Luggard opened his mouth to argue, but he clapped his teeth together and left Link with an irate growl. Link looked up at his brow. "Irleen, we'll need to call attention to ourselves."

"You're nuts!" Irleen said. "What are you expecting to do?!"

"Just come out here; we can use your light to get that thing's attention."

Irleen jumped out of Link's hat. "This better work."

"For all of us," Link agreed. Then he beat the boomerang against the outer surface of his shield. "Try to keep track of my boomerang; I don't know if I'll be able to."

_Bm. Bm. Bm. Bm._ Link's heartbeat felt like it had merged with the beetle's thunderous steps. He started hitting the boomerang harder.

"Are you sure this thing navigates by sound?" Irleen asked, hovering over Link's head.

_Kzzzt._

"I think we're about to find out."

_KzzzzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZZZ…_ The beetle's massive pincers showed up first. Upon seeing them, Link dashed in a direction perpendicular to the path the beetle was taking. Then he spun as the beetle flew over the spot where he had stood. Link did not take the time to sight up the beetle for the throw. His arm swung long before he could think about the throw, and his finger flicked the wing back to ensure a strong spin. The boomerang first looked as if it would land short. But Link had thrown it just slightly askew from being level with the ground, and that caused the boomerang to tilt and curve to the right. The curve caused one of the boomerang's wings to clip the insect's abdomen before the boomerang's spin was thrown off by the wind coming off the beetle's wings. The beetle gave a thick grunt, and Link could see a small bit of wobble in its flight before it disappeared back in the fog.

"Link!" Irleen cried out. "Your boomerang!" She dove into the fog, and Link quickly chased her. "Over here! Over here!"

"Thanks, Irleen," Link said when they found the boomerang.

_BM-Baboom bm!_

Link's head spun in the direction of the klutzy-sounding landing. "I think that did something," he said as he picked up the boomerang.

"This is still crazy!"

_Bm. Bm. Bm. Bm. Kzzt._

Link clapped the boomerang against the shield. "Here it comes again."

"I got you covered!" Irleen said, circling above his head.

_KzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZZZ…_ Link ran to the side again, just as before. He turned and loosed the boomerang again, using the same kind of throw. This time, the boomerang made a solid _thup_ against the side of the beetle's abdomen, and the beetle more visibly shook before disappearing into the fog again.

"Hurry! Hurry!" Irleen shouted. Link followed her again.

_BOOM-baBOOM!_ The beetle sounded like it had landed closer than before.

"Irleen, where is it?!" Link shouted. Then he spotted her hovering on the edge of the mist. "Never mind; found you!"

_BM. BM. BM. KZZT._

"Liiiiiiink…" Irleen said, her tone rising to match her sense of urgency.

_KZZZZZZZZZZZZ…_

"Got it!"

Link scooped up the boomerang just as the beetle's pincers emerged. He immediately turned to run in a different direction. However, he did not get much distance before he spun and threw. He did not have the time to gauge where the beetle was before he released, and the boomerang struck the first thing he had in sight.

A wing. _Ktsit._

This time, the beetle veered away from Link. Without its right wing, it –_BMMMMMMMMMM!_— bashed hard into the ground, kicking up clumps of dirt. Link watched in surprise as it folded its wings against its bruised abdomen and slowly picked itself up from the ground.

_Ksssssssssssssssssssssssssst._ Link took a step back at the hissing sound. The beetle began to leak thick clouds of mist from its middle section, like a train letting off steam.

"Uh oh," Irleen said. "Oooh, that's not good. What's the plan now?"

Link gulped as the beetle began to vanish in a dark, thickening cloud. "Uh… yeah, probably run."

_BM! BM! BM! BM! BM!_ Link was already running away when the dark cloud started moving towards him. He had only ever known himself to run this fast before in his life. That was back in Whittleton, when he was running to raise the warning about the Bulblins. His muscles were getting sore again, and he could feel the pain from the fall in the crypt returning. He could not handle running like he had before. Without his boomerang, he could not take blind shots at the beetle. Not that he would be able to set up a throw anyway; if he stopped, the beetle would be on top of him.

But if he turned…

As soon as the thought was out, Link pulled his sword and started to curve to the left. A wind swept over his head, almost taking his hat, and he caught sight of one of the beetle's blades slicing the air above him.

Then he jerked to a stop and ran towards it. Because if he could see the beetle, he could hit it.

He ran into one of its massive feet. The foot, about as thick as a horse and high as Link, rose in response. Link saw a soft, brown spot in between the armor covering its leg, so he swung his sword into the gap. The foot retreated underneath the beetle, digging a furrow in the ground in front of Link. He jumped over it and ducked under the next leg he saw as it stretched out to compensate for the injured leg. In the dark caused by the large amount of fog, Link could barely see that the body section where the creature's legs converged was covered by a plate and out of reach for Link to hit with the sword.

That was fine. Link did not want to take off its legs. He continued until he found the third foot.

Concluding that this was one of its rear sets of legs, Link struck the same fleshy point he had found on the first foot. The strike drew yellow blood, and the foot slid against the ground. Link darted from under the creature just before it settled against the ground.

Its abdomen opened, and Link barely had time to bring his shield up. The impact of the shell against his shield knocked Link onto his butt with an ungrateful grunt. He ducked his head when one of the clear wings on this side of the beetle rose. It started a breeze as the wing began beating fast.

But Link was on his feet already. He ducked under the large appendage and approached the exposed, fleshy abdomen as it slowly rose from the ground.

Without a second thought, Link plunged the sword's blade into the abdomen. Yellow blood started to flow from the gash. Link then stepped towards the beetle's rear and pulled the sword with all his might. The blade began to slice through more flesh, and more blood spurted across the ground. The beetle's flesh convulsed under Link's blade, eventually ejecting it. Link spun with surprise and backed away quickly.

"Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!" the beetle roared, its blades rearing up in the mist around its head. For a moment, Link thought that it would spin and try to slice him in two. "Haaaaaaaghaaaaaaah!" And it tried. The pincers came down, and one buried itself into the ground in the middle of the beetle's spin. Link backed up further, both in caution and in horror. The beetle's whole body shook as its entrails started leaking through the gash in its abdomen. Two of its limbs swung wildly, as if trying to find grip in the air. Its body arched.

Then the beetle settled against the ground with a heavy thud. Link could see the one eye visible to him dim until it was a brown slot in the beetle's face. Link could only stand and watch the unmoving hulk of metal, heart pounding and breaths heaving.

"Oh, jeez, Link," Irleen whispered as she brought herself to a hover next to his head. "Oh, jeez. You… you killed it.

"YOU BEAT IT, LINK! YOU DID IT!"

Irleen's scream snapped Link out of his stupor, and he looked down at the sword in his hand. The blade and part of the hilt was covered in fresh, yellow blood. On an impulse, Link swung the blade in a diagonal cross, then he twirled the sword in a circle near his hip. He held it up before him to examine the blade again. The swinging had slung the blood from the blade and the hilt, leaving just the green stains from the evening before on the hilt. He gave a shrug and sheathed the sword. His eyes fell on the dead insect, and he subconsciously pumped his free arm.

Link then noticed that the fog around him began to lift. To his right, he saw a large block a mild distance away from him. Further on in that direction sat the large hole the insect had beaten into the crypt. And to the left—

"Link!"

"Oy, Link!"

Luggard and Cale ran towards Link from that direction. Behind them were the Spirit Tracks, glowing their usual blue against the grey surroundings. Both of them came to an abrupt stop when they were close enough to the dead beetle. So Link jogged towards them.

"Jeeziz shi', Link!" Luggard told him. "You killed it!"

"And we missed it!" Cale added, gripping his hair. "Oh, no, I can't believe I missed it all!"

"I saw it!" Irleen said, bobbing up and down. "I can give you all the details."

Link gave a relieved laugh. "You do that, Irleen. I don't think I can."

"You can count on me!"

Link nodded. "Luggard, how soon can you get Old Seventeen ready?"

"Jus' a few minutes."

Cale started and handed over the boomerang clutched against his chest. Link took it and nodded. "Good," he said, collapsing the boomerang. "Because we need to get to Diggerton. We think we know where Ryain might be."

"Tha's fine by me. I can' ge' ou' o' 'ere any faster." He turned towards the now-visible temple. He put one finger in the air and drew a circle. "All aboard!"


	35. Budget Adventuring

Chapter 35: Budget Adventuring

…

~~Day 12

~~I think we got an early start on the day. I can't be sure; Luggard is the only one with a watch. It's just into the afternoon – I think – as I sit and write this. We're back on the Seventeen on our way to Diggerton, a large town on the west side of the Lost Woods.

~~I don't really know if I can sum up everything that happened this morning. We found the crypt when Cale fell into it almost three floors. It's nothing but luck that he didn't die when he hit the third floor. I had about the same amount of luck when I fell in after him, but at least I stopped before I fell too far. The first floor was okay, but I got attacked by tiles on the second floor. Tiles! I guess I should be glad it wasn't giant blades flying out of the walls or an endless pit falling into the ground. And the third floor—Spinuts and Blastworms, that's all there is to say. Then, when we got back to the surface, we got attacked by a huge bug! I must have been out of my mind to try finding clues in such a stupid place. My clothes are covered in three different kinds of remains and dust. I could use a bath.

~~And some sleep. Cale's sleeping right now, and I thought I'd drop into a bunk just like him. But those nightmares I had—I can't seem to shake them. Even now, I feel a little sick, but I think I might also be a little fatigued. And I don't think the packaged rations Luggard brought along are settling in my stomach right. And there's the motion of the train—~~

~~I'm glad there's a can nearby.

…

Link poured out the bucket over the edge of the platform. The resulting splat against the ground brought up his nausea again, and he quickly turned away.

"Ya okay there, Link?" Luggard called across the platform.

Link groaned, not feeling well. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"You look like you're about to throw up again," Irleen said as she hovered out of Link's arm reach.

He swallowed and croaked, "I'm trying not to. I think it was the motion that did it."

"I told you that biscuit looked a little green."

He glanced up at the sky. Although the sun was about as visible on this side of the forest as it was on the other side, Link guessed that it had to be about mid-afternoon. He sighed. "Well, what do you think? I'm guessing we can ask around town today, see if anyone knows whether Ryain actually lived near here."

Irleen bobbed to one side. "Sounds good to me."

They crossed the platform back to the Seventeen's cab, where Cale leaned against the running board and Luggard performed a task inside the cab which Link could not see. Cale pushed away from the locomotive. "So, what's the plan?" he asked.

"Stick around," Irleen said. "Ask questions."

"What do you know about this place?" Link asked.

"Well, it's mostly a mining town," Cale said. "A numbeh of the materials used around this realm come from heah. It's… been soht of a requiahment since the Fiah Realm became inaccessible by train."

"How come?" Link asked.

Cale shrugged. "It's frozen."

Irleen and Link exchanged looks. "Isn't that kind of… contradictory?" Irleen asked.

Cale nodded. "It is, in a way. Only a small supply of goods runs into oh out of the Fiah Realm in a day. And the local population, namely the Gorons, have taken measuahs to protect themselves from the cold."

Luggard leaned over the edge of the cab's wall. His voice attracted the attention of the other three when he said, "Trains is the only way to ge' in or ou'. Forge' walkin'; ya'd freeze yarself t' death b'fore ya reach far. No' even draf' animals can survive in those temp'ratures." He grinned at Link. "Though. I 'magine by the time we ge' somewhere with this venture, ya is gonna wanna go there, is ya?"

Link gave a sigh. "I hope not. At least not too far in."

Luggard gave a dismissive wave. "Bu' tha's the future. We go' a prob'm now."

"What is it?" Cale asked.

"Well, if ya two'll notice tha' this is the only train platform Diggerton has…" Luggard said, pointing a finger along the length of the train with a swinging motion.

Cale blinked, his glance switching between both ends of the track. "I… I don't undehstand."

"Diggerton's only go' the one platform," Luggard explained. "And unlike the Fire Realm, trains pass through Diggerton all the time. I can' leave the Seventeen here. If no one crashes in'a 'er, they's gonna start the boiler, throw the brakes, 'n le' 'er disappear down the track somewhere."

Link glanced down at the platform and scratched the back of his head with his free hand. "So… what do we do, then?"

"Well, I checked me schedule book. Mos' o' the tracks 'roun' 'ere is gonna be busy, so I can' jus' 'ang 'roun'. I might kill time a' the Rabbitlan' Station, bu' I's no' gonna be able to ge' back 'ere 'til late in the day, probably a' nigh'. Even if I can make it back then, I's still gonna be blockin' the rails."

"So we'll have to make otheh arrangements," Cale concluded. "Is theah nowheah neahby you could leave the train?"

Luggard wrinkled his nose as he thought. "I thin' there's an ol' service rail up north o' 'ere, bu' then I's go'a ge' back t' town."

"If theah is, theah should be a road to Diggehton," Cale told him. "I-I might have just enough to affohd a caht. Do we want to stay with the train, oh do we want to stay in town?"

"Do we have enough money to stay in town?" Link asked. "I only have twenty-nine rupees, and that's just leftovers from when Madame Seilon sponsored me."

"I go' 'bou' thirty-five lef' after the prep I 'ad t' make b'fore we lef' Library Town," Luggard said. "Cale?"

Cale patted himself down for a moment. Then he dug a hand into one of his trouser pockets. "Um… I-I think I've only about… seven rupees left… I-I-I was suah I had moah…"

"So that's…" Link said, trying to add the figures in his head.

"What… fffff—no, sixty-four between Link and Luggard," Irleen said. "Aaaaand seventy-one with Cale."

Luggard bore his teeth in a nervous grin. "No' much t' work with."

"Enough foh dinneh, maybe," Cale said with a nod. "A caht ride may be out of the question. But then… what do we do about accommodations?"

Luggard gave a mixture of a sigh and a growl. "Too bad the grass 'roun' 'ere ain' growin'." He gestured at Link. "Ya could use yar sword 'n see if anyone needs their lawn cu'."

Link managed a weak smile. "Funny."

"What do we do, then?" Cale asked.

"Well, Luggard still has supplies if we need them," Link said. "And, if nothing else, I suppose we could spend another night in the office car."

"So we'd only have to spend money on a caht," Cale said. "Unless the sehvice rails ah close, I suppose."

"I'll say wha', then," Luggard said, standing. "I's gonna 'ead t' the Rabbitlan' Station 'n wai' for a chance t' work through the rail traffic. Then I'll see if I can fin' a service track. If it's close, I'll meet you two back 'ere b'fore nightfall. If ya don' see me, fin' a rail map 'n see if there's a dea' end somewhere north o' 'ere. Now, if ya can' fin' one 'n ge' a cart up tha' way, I'll duck back t' the Rabbitlan' Station 'n mee' ya both back 'ere in the mornin'."

"Wheah ah we to stay if you don't retahn?" Cale asked.

Luggard put a hand into a pocket on his waistcoat. Then he dropped a wallet down to Cale. "Fin' yarselves a place t' stay. Should be a few taverns near the platform."

"Take care, Luggard," Link said with a nod. Luggard held up his hand with two fingers extended into a blade and gave them a farewell salute before turning to the train's instrument panel. After tinkering, he gave his whistle a single blast that caused both Cale and Link to jump backwards from the locomotive. They stepped further back as the train began to chug. It lugged itself into motion, and then it began moving down the track faster. All three watched the train take a turn further ahead and continued to watch as the train doubled back and slowly shrank in the distance.

Cale and Link turned to walk across the platform with Irleen hovering in between them. "Are you sure about those leaves you found?" she asked.

"Quite suah," Cale said with a nod. "I know it may be an obsehd revelation, but I am somewhat familiah with the tree fohms in this realm."

"Well, that's kind of my point," Irleen said. "I thought there hasn't been any green growth in this realm for _years_. How is it that we just happen to find leaves in a crypt?"

Cale's mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water for a moment. "Wha-ah-ah-ah… W-well, it's possible that the-the leaves precede the mist's effects on the plant life heah."

"Yeah?" Irleen said in a challenging tone. "And when did _that_ happen?"

"Wha-uuh… f-fifty-fifty yeahs… about…"

"So you see why I have a problem with this. How is it that we just happened to find twigs and leaves fifty years old when they should've been dust by now?"

"Well, you saw that blanket and sleeping mat," Link said. "They might have helped preserved the leaves."

"That's a little _too_ lucky for my comfort…"

They descended the stairs off the platform into a pit encompassing the entire town. Instead of dead grass or slabs of stone, the whole town looked to have been built on the same red rock that lined the edges of the pit behind them. Beds of gravel lined by grey bricks provided the route through town. Most of the nearby buildings looked to have been made from smooth, black cobble combined with large flagstones at the exterior corners and the foundation. Further down, Link could see smaller buildings (houses, he assumed) composed of sandy fieldstone. Very few things nearby seemed to be made using any other material: wooden draft carts and signage, metal tools like hammers or knives, glass windows… Other than those, almost everything appeared to be made of stone. And he began to find the name Diggerton much more appropriate.

"They use stone for everything here?" he asked Cale.

"The mines they use run deep into the eahth," Cale explained. "They ah suppose to be quite extensive. Fah as the Great Sea to the south and tunneling into the Snow Realm to the nohth, as I undehstood. As I said, a numbeh of the minerals used about the realms comes from heah. They take theih jobs quite seriously. Some of theih fihst structuahs weah composed of the materials mined from this very pit." He pointed out the wall of bare stone behind them. "That must have been done generations ago."

"That's not something you could pull off in the sky," Irleen commented.

"Land is at a premium," Link agreed. "You couldn't simply mine an island like this unless it was uninhabited."

"Right, well," Cale said. He took a deep breath. "Wheah should we staht?"

Link's eyes followed a young couple walking across the street stretching before them. He saw that the woman held a basket which appeared to be full of fruit. That gave him an idea, and he told Cale, "Grocers. If someone still lives nearby, they probably come to Diggerton to buy food and supplies."

"I think that might be a mahket street theah," Cale replied, pointing to a street parallel to the one before them. Link turned his head to see an open-air vegetable stand just around the corner. "I think I'll check with the local smiths. It's possible that, if someone _does_ live outside of town, they have a requiahment foh tools and such."

"We're new in town," Irleen pointed out while Cale set out. "What makes you think they'll talk to us?"

Link shrugged. "We'll just have to be friendly."

"And how should we explain _why_ we're looking for someone living to the south?"

Link opened one corner of his mouth in a show of nervousness. He had not considered that aspect of the search. At first, the truth seemed sane enough; he was an airship captain from the sky kingdom, and he needed to find the Architects to help him build another ship. However, now that he considered it… what part of that truth sounded sane? Especially since he was carrying a shield and a sword, looking more like a junior swordsman than an airship captain. His clothes… well, they _might_ help; he appeared to be the only one wearing long sleeves on a warm evening, and, while the hat was not a piece of his original clothing, it seemed to be at least rare among the people of Diggerton.

His clothes… he just remembered that Skulltula and Blastworm remains had turned the front of his tunic and the knees of his trousers an ugly spatter of green. In addition, the dried remains had hardened the cloth of his tunic. He took a handful of it and squeezed, causing flecks to fall off but not improving his overall appearance.

"Yeah, this is going to be interesting," Irleen commented.

"Maybe… I won't have to explain anything?" Link said with a nervous grin. "I mean… well, I'm only trying to find someone that might live nearby. How suspicious can that be?"

"You're covered in monster guts. You're also carrying weapons. And it's a good thing you're wearing a hat, because you have a large knot on the top of your head."

Link put a hand up and felt around the edge of his hat near the back of his head. "Oh. I thought I just had a small headache."

"You do. Under that egg-sized lump on your head. Also, keep in mind that you're talking to a fairy, and you're beginning to attract attention."

Link started. Looking around, he discovered that, suddenly, a lot of people going about their daily business were shifting their eyes away from him. He wrinkled his mouth and said, "I blame that one on you."

"We need some kind of cover."

"You mean 'lie'."

"Naaah, I get the impression you suck at lying." Link glared at her. "Hey, don't give me that look. It just means you're an honest guy."

"So what's our 'cover', then?"

"Well, our little adventure has been funded by the Library."

Link patted the wallet in his pocket. "For what I have left."

"Granted. But since the Library gave us the money, they probably expect information out of our excursion. Thereforrrrrrre…" She paused, expecting Link to finish the statement. When he continued to stare at her, she said, "It means that we were hired by the Library to do _research_."

Link gestured at his outfit. "And… all of this?"

"What, you think researchers don't get dirty?"

"With _dirt_, maybe."

"You'd rather try telling them that you're a ship-less airship captain?"

The question stung, and Link looked down at his boots with a dejected expression. "Right…" he mumbled.

Irleen dropped back into his vision. "Hey, I didn't mean it like that, Link," she said. "It's just that, well…"

Link shook his head. "No, don't worry about it. Come on, let's ask some questions."

"Right." With that, Irleen ducked into Link's hat.

Link stepped to the market street and looked down the length of the road. While he initially had the impression that this was a major street, very few people were actually shopping. Probably justified, as it was likely later into the evening than Link realized. Some of the outdoor shops had already closed for the evening, covering their produce with sackcloth to protect it from bugs. Indoor shops had posted "closed" signs in the window, although Link noticed that some shops still had lights lit on the second story. He noticed one man in the middle of covering his produce and quickly stepped over to him.

"Ah, excuse me!" he called out, raising a hand to get the balding man's attention. "Sir?"

The man glanced over his shoulder with narrowed eyes. "I'm closed, kid," he said in a gruff voice.

"Y-yeah, I know," Link replied, cowed by the man's attitude. "I just wanted to ask a couple questions."

"I ain't in much mood fer talkin' either. I gotta get home."

"Please, just two questions."

"Bah! Go away!" With that, he plucked out a sigh advertising snow cabbage at five rupees a head and spun to walk down the street.

Link was about to pursue, thought better of it, and just stood in place. "That didn't go too well…"

"Yeah, I noticed," Irleen said from under the hat.

"Tsst, tsst." Link could hear someone trying to signal with their tongue and looked around. One man in a nearby doorway leaned out with one arm swinging, trying to sign to Link to come over. Link poked his chin with a finger, and the lanky man nodded. After a glance at the bald man's back, Link walked over to the doorway. "Hey, kid," the man said with a greeting nod. "Couldn't help overhearin' Gavin shoutin' at ye."

"'Gavin'?"

"Big guy you was talkin' te." He pointed down the street. "Ain't much point tryin' te talk te him; his sales've been low fer a while, and it's makin' him all colors a' cranky."

"Oh, I see," Link said. "Five rupees for a head of cabbage?"

"Part a' his problem," the man said with a grin. "Mangy fool don't realize no one wants te pay five rupees for a head of cabbage, let alone 'snow' cabbage."

"It's different from other cabbage?"

"It's grown in the Snow Realm. Not many people like it since it's bland beat all hell, but it keeps well after it's been harvested."

"Oh."

"Ye had some questions ye wanted te ask, don't ye?"

"Uh, yeah. I wanted to ask about the area south of here."

"Ye mean the forest? Whad ye wanna know?"

"Well, I was wondering w-how to contact anyone living in the forest." Link had actually meant to ask whether anyone lived in the forest, but his mind had accidently shifted directions mid-sentence with the idea that he had to be convinced that someone already lived in the forest.

The man scratched at his sandy-blond hair. "Well… I can't really say. I'm sure someone lives out there, but other than goin' out 'n lookin' fer 'em, I can't really guess."

"Link," Irleen whispered. "Ask if there are any roads."

Link drew himself out of a contemplative look to ask, "Are there any roads through the forest?"

"Wagon trail and train tracks cuttin' all way through te the South Bay," the man answered. "Imagine there's branches off 'em somewhere, but I don't think I've met anyone that actually lives _in_ the forest."

"Ask him about strangers to town," Irleen whispered, excitedly tugging a lock of hair.

"Ow," Link grumbled. The man gave him a confused look. "Sorry. Have you… well, have you noticed anyone new to town?"

"Got train crews comin' through all the time," he answered. "No one particularly new, except you."

"Okay," Link said with a nod. He paused, waiting for another prompt from Irleen. When she did not speak up, he said, "Thank you. Sorry for taking your time."

"No problem," the man said with another grin. "Next time, ye might invite yer fairy friend out te chat." With a polite nod, he closed the door and flipped the sign in the window.

Irleen jumped out of Link's hat and –_puh_— bounced off the glass window. "Ow!"

"You okay?" Link asked, covering his mouth so she could not see him smiling.

"How did he know?" she asked.

"He probably heard you whispering through my hat."

"Wa—Why didn't he say so sooner?!"

Link let a hiccup of a laugh escape. "W-well, you have to admit… it-it probably looked a little funny."

Irleen danced a few angry circles around Link's head. "Whatever. So we know that someone _might_ be living to the south. What now?"

"Well…" Link trailed off as he thought. "Luggard said to find a rail map. There might be one back at the platform; most ports in the sky usually have one of the Sky Lines on display to the public. If we're lucky, it might also show the trails he was talking about."

"Let's go find one, then."

Link took a look down the empty street. Then he walked back towards the platform. Now that he was facing the wall from this angle, Link saw that the area under the platform actually opened into a small cavity. He crossed the road, stepping into what looked like a public terminal at a dock. Two rows of chairs occupied the center of the terminal. The wall opposite the opening appeared to advertize different spots of interest around the kingdom, most of them nailed haphazardly to a cork board. To his left, a window had been cut into the middle of the wall, revealing a large work area complete with charts and timetables. To his right, the entire wall was covered in a large map of the kingdom, supplemented with more detailed maps of the areas around Library Town and two other spots on the east side of the kingdom. He approached the map and squinted in the dim light from outside, trying to read some of the location names.

"Hey, Irleen. I need some light."

She bounded in front of his face, her voice oozing irritation when she said, "And, naturally, I'm the one to provide it."

Link sighed. "Please? I can't read this in the dark."

"Nnn… Okay, what do you need to see?"

He put his hand on the map. "I know we're right about here, so I need to see the forest below it." Irleen hovered beneath his hand and moved forward so that her light illuminated the map. Link used a finger to trace one of the colored lines falling from the spot labeled "Diggerton". "Okay, this looks like the line going through to the southern bay. And this might be the wagon trail."

"It looks like it branches in a few places," Irleen observed.

"We've got a few places to look. With Luggard and the Seventeen, we'll probably manage most of them in a day. Move up now; we have to see if there's a service track nearby."

"Do you think there'll be one close enough?"

Link gave his head an uncertain jerk. "I'd prefer staying on the train instead of spending Luggard's money on a room. As uncomfortable as it is, you never know when we might need the money for something important."

"Like a bath, right?"

Link gave a half-grin. "And some clean laundry. Wait, hold it there."

"Find one?"

Link marked the dead end track he had found with one hand and traced a line back to Diggerton. "I think so. It looks like it's in walking distance, but we'll have to wait until Luggard gets back here before we know."

"Well, it's only been a few minutes since he left. If he has to pass by Diggerton on the way north, we might be able to flag him down and tell him about the track."

Link nodded. "Good idea. Let's go wait for him."

…

~~I'm feeling better now that we've stopped in Diggerton. I'm waiting on the platform with Cale for Luggard to pass again so I can tell him about the track further down. He wasn't joking about the trains passing by; I've counted three other trains stopping at the platform, one having to wait for another to depart before it could stop. Like the ones in Whittleton, these ones stop, unload supplies, load minerals, and depart. They don't appear to need as much as Whittleton, though. I can't help wondering how things are going back there. How she's doing.

…

"Hey, Link. Look."

Both Link and Cale glanced up at the sound of Irleen's voice. Then they stood when they saw a shadow traveling along the barely visible rails. It was early into the evening, with the sky dyed a dull purple slowly fading into black. Figures on the ground were harder to identify, especially since most of the nearby light was lamps focused on the streets of Diggerton. Still, some light strayed into the field around the platform, and after a few minutes, the shadow faded into Luggard's familiar form. He raised a hand and greeted the two with a call of, "Oi, fellas!"

"Hey, Luggard!" Link called back. "Did you find that track?"

"Yeah, jus' as ya said," Luggard answered in a normal voice as he stopped at the side of the platform. "I 'ad t' run 'er t' the end o' the track t' be sure no one'd 'it 'er turnin' 'roun'. So wha's the story, then?"

"Did you have to walk fah?" Cale asked.

"No' very. Li'l farther than I 'spected, bu' I can take the walk. You fellas find anythin'?"

"Enough to have a clue," Link said. He waved Luggard along. "Come on, let's get something to eat. We'll explain it to you."

"Nothin' 'spensive, righ'?"

"I found a pub close by," Cale said. "The owneh said that theah won't be much business today, so it shouldn't be very rowdy. He promised to only chahge us fifteen rupees a pehson."

"Wha's on the menu?" Luggard asked before dropping into the pit below.

Cale shrugged as he and Link descended from the stairs. "Local items as fah as I know. Crisp potatoes, half-steaks, and slaw."

Luggard let his tongue roll out of his mouth in disgust. "Hate slaw."

"It's good for you," Irleen said. Then she turned to Link. "Right?"

"I guess so," Link said. "I'd just be glad we're getting _food_."

"I's the same stuff ya feed t' pigs!" Luggard complained. "And I don' like wha' it does t' me stomach!"

"It's oveh heah, Luggahd," Cale told him, pointing in the opposite direction from where Luggard had started.

"It's not like you _have_ to eat it," Irleen said.

"Jus' it bein' on me plate bothers me," Luggard replied, jumping in front of Cale and Link. As he walked backwards, he used a hand to pull his left eye open wider. "It looks a' ya while ya's eatin', like it knows ya won' ea' it."

"Now you're just sounding crazy."

Cale led them to the pub down one of the side roads just removed from the train platform. The interior sported a number of rock pillars to hold up a wooden ceiling. The tables and chairs around them were also wood, although the bar was what appeared to be a large, polished slab of rust-red granite on top of grey flagstone. The atmosphere inside was choked with silence and a strange, fragrant smoke which formed a cloud barely above Luggard's head. Cale left them to find a table, and when he returned later, it was with a young waitress carrying their food along with cups and a pitcher of… something they would agree later was fruit juice. Both Luggard and Link paid for their part of the bill, but Link also paid for Cale when the student discovered that his pockets only held six rupees. They ate in silence for some time, Irleen merely hovering over their heads. Although she occasionally groaned about not being able to eat.

About halfway through the meal, Link remarked, "This sauce is good." He dunked the piece of steak on his fork into a shallow bowl sitting in the middle of their table. "What do you think is in it?"

"Axle grease," Luggard answered in an uninterested tone.

Cale, who had just taken a bite of steak he had coated in the sauce, immediately spat it out to one side. "Phzzzzzzzzttt! Kuhh! Kuhh! L-Luggahd!"

"Wha-tha's wha' I _though'_!" Luggard defended while he dipped a piece of steak.

"You're eating it, too!" Irleen accused him.

"I didn' say it wasn' _good_!"

Link took a drink of his fruit juice. He could definitely taste the alcohol in it; it was only a little stronger than the Boiler Soup back in Library Town. The rest… he was not sure how to describe. Tangy? Sharp? It had to be some kind of fruit, but Link was at a loss as to what. After a sigh, he said to Luggard, "I think we have a lead on a nearby Architect."

"Mya do' soun' doo sure," Luggard said through a full mouth.

"We know that someone lives to the south."

"Indeed," Cale added after a swig of juice. However, in his rush to clean the sauce out of his mouth, he had forgotten about the juice's alcohol content. His eyes rolled up, and he flopped onto the floor with a _thump_ and the clatter of his cup on stone.

Link sighed and continued in Cale's place. "One of the local smiths provides custom-order parts. He says that many of his orders are picked up by a young man whom he knows to live in the forest south of here."

"Custom-order? Wha's 'e buildin' ou' there?"

"Not sure. But we know what we need to look for. According to Cale and the smith, he bought and picked up a furnace about a month ago."

"'Ow does tha' help _us_?"

"A furnace puts out smoke. And since we'll be using the tracks in that area, all we have to do is look for smoke above the treetops."

Luggard touched the blunt end of his fork to his chin. "Hmm… no' a bad idea. I don' think anyone uses the tracks between 'ere 'n South Bay; mos' people goin' t' South Bay prefer t' go through Aboda on the southern shore."

Link grinned. "I was hoping it would be a little more convenient."

"So we've got that much," Irleen said. "But how are we supposed to get this Architect to come with us? It's not like we can pay him; we're barely scraping along as it is."

"She's go' a poin'," Luggard said, indicating Irleen with the end of his fork.

"Yeah, I know," Link said. "We'll just have to talk to him and see, I guess." Both glanced at Cale's empty seat. "Think we should try waking him?"

Luggard shook his head. "Nah."

…

~~Our destination is set for the forest south of Diggerton tomorrow. With any luck, we'll find an Architect living out there; from what Cale told me, it's certainly worth a shot. Even without an actual Architect, whoever lives in the forest sounds like the kind of guy we might need.

~~I've been having problems getting to sleep. It feels like the moment my head meets the pillow, I can't help thinking I'll have another one just like it. I wish I could do something about it.

…

A shiver. He had felt it before, when he had first entered the storm. He should have expected it, having to go back through, but… they had already entered the storm minutes before. Why had he not felt it back then?

"Are you all right?"

The voice startled him from his thoughts, and he quickly spun around to find Captain Koroul's tall form before him. "Captain," he said with a relieved sigh. "I apologize. I was… rather lost in thought."

The captain nodded. "You are uneasy because of the storm."

He was about to ask how the captain knew, but he stopped himself. Instead, he nodded. "You are quite perceptive."

"A captain has to know how to read crewmen from a distance," he said. "You are not the only one who finds the storm so off-putting. My crew knows of the origins of this storm. They do not want to underestimate its ability to destroy us."

"What _are_ the origins of this storm? I find myself curious about it."

The captain nodded again. "We call this the Storm of Purgatory. Hundreds of years ago, there was a war with the demons below and the Sorians. I cannot recall many of the details, but I know that it is believed that this storm was made to imprison the leader of the demon army."

"Cunimincus?"

Koroul appeared to think about the question for a moment. "Yes, I suppose that may have been their leader. With him and his vessel imprisoned, the rest of the demons fled back to the surface. After that, well… we Sorians simply don't know. Being trapped in this storm has left us without word from the outside world for some time. You and your escorts are the first non-Sorians we have seen since then."

"And yet. Rireen and her parents were left on the outside world to eventually bring word that the world was in duress."

The captain sighed and crossed his arms. "I am afraid that it is a part of events which I cannot comment on. It is generally believed that there were some Sorians stranded on the other islands when the demon army broke apart our land. If they were, it was likely that they were either too young to fly or stayed behind to protect those that could not fly. The Wind Trails, the… 'Sky Lines' as you call them, were meant as roads for other Sorians to eventually find their way home. But your friend Rireen appears to be the first and only to come back."

He felt his heart sink at the revelation. He could only imagine what it would be like to watch his home merely float away with no means of reaching it, like a baby bird stranded in the nest. Suddenly, his perception of Rireen's circumstances had changed. He did not know how long Sorians lived for, but… the horror her parents or grandparents must have felt watching as the other Sorians were slowly pulled away… What if… what if Rireen's purpose was not to return to the Sorians in time of need? What if… she had simply been stranded with her family?

"I-I see," he told the captain. He sniffed and added, "Excuse me."

The captain gave a grim nod. "Of course."

He crossed the weatherdeck and into the first door in his blurry vision. He had walked into the captain's empty cabin. He wandered toward the glass windows in the rear and glanced at the essence of the Sky Line swirling behind the vessel. As his thoughts sailed back towards Forelight Island, he could not help grieving for his friend. For those Sorians left behind. One tear. Then two. The soft sound of sobbing came after.

"Līnca? Līnca!" Link's eyes opened slowly, conscious of Irleen's voice nearby. "Līnca!"

_Bum! Ban!_ "Aughhh…" Luggard growled from above, accompanied by Cale's pained moan from below. "Now wha'?!"

"Līnca," Irleen said. "Katùphu kōwì?"

Link blinked at her for a moment, not completely sure what she had said. Then he noticed something warm across his eyes and used a finger to wipe. Although he could not see it, he could tell that there were trails of tears on his face.


	36. Get Off My Lawn

Chapter 36: Get Off My Lawn

…

~~Day 13

~~I guess I had another nightmare, but something was different about this one. It didn't scare me. When Irleen woke me up, I realized that I was crying. I had the vague sense of pitying someone, but I just can't figure out who it was. I'm beginning to feel like the dreams are somehow connected, and that they might have something to do with Captain Koroul. Now that I think about it, Irleen did mention that when someone's mind is imprinted onto a crystal, there is a tendency to share dreams. I know I must have had one of Captain Koroul's dreams that day, although I still can't figure out why I saw it even before he had that crystal. Could it be possible that we're still connected? I'm certain that Captain Koroul appeared in this dream, too. Does it mean he's still alive?

…

"Link, look over there!" Cale hollered above the locomotive's churning.

Link crossed the cab to see what Cale was pointing at. Luggard kept the Seventeen running at about half its usual speed while Link and Cale attempted to find any trace of life among the trees of the southern forest. To see trees with leaves on them was a surprise to Link, although they still had the sickly look like trees in Whittleton. It made watching for anything a little more difficult, but the height of the train ensured a decent glimpse of the sky. This had given Cale the opportunity to spot a stream of grey smoke to the west, barely visible against the darker haze above.

"What do you think?" Cale asked.

Link nodded. "It's worth a look. Luggard?"

"I 'ear ya," Luggard replied, letting up on the throttle. "I'll stop us a' the nex' trail."

"If nothing else, we'll be off the train," Irleen told them. Link nodded in agreement; they had been riding the train for a couple of hours, and he was beginning to feel restless. His head still buzzed with the unusual release of emotion last night, and he could not help having a few other worries on his mind. He could not think straight while riding on the train, especially when his only task was to find signs of life somewhere in the middle of a forest.

The brakes squealed to life as Luggard brought the locomotive to a stop near the head of a trail worn in the dead grass. After securing the train, he pulled out his pocketwatch. "'Bou' two an a 'alf 'ours ou'. Tha' puts us 'bou'… 'alfway t' South Bay."

"Any idea what kind of wildlife is out here?" Link asked as he opened the cab door.

Luggard shrugged. "Prob'ly friendlier than wha' we found in the Los' Woods."

"Agreed," Cale said, "but it doesn't help."

"Look. The Los' Woods is the wors' place ya can go in the Forest Realm. This can only be be'er."

"Luggard," Link said before climbing down. "Give your whistle a blast every hour so we know where to find you."

"Go' it."

"And two blasts if you have to move."

"I'll blas' twice 'gain when I ge' back."

"And three blasts if something attacks you," Irleen said as Link dropped to the ground. "You know, if you don't die first."

"And 'ave ya three ride some other train ou'?" Luggard asked with a grin. "I don' think so. I'll 'ave me spiri' drive ya."

"Then, I suppose the 'Spirit Tracks' will live up to theih name," Cale commented blandly.

"Ya be' yar ass!" Cale dropped down, and Luggard moved to shut the door. "Be careful, ya three."

"You, too," Link said with a nod. "You ready, Cale?"

Cale adjusted the strap of his satchel. "I suppose."

"We'll try to stick to this path for now." Link took in a deep breath and turned to the forest, pulling the strap of his shield away from his neck. "Okay, let's go." He took a step.

And Cale let out a small whimper. "Something wrong, Cale?" Irleen asked.

"Isn't it a little… dahk in theah?"

Link contemplated the forest. Certainly, the dead leaves on the trees made it look a little darker than the area around the rails, but not by much. He shrugged and told Cale, "It should be all right. We can see much better here than back in the Lost Woods."

"Wan' me pipe?" Luggard asked from above.

Cale considered this for a moment. "No, I think I'll be betteh off," he concluded. "I'd ratheh not have something chase me because it believes me to be a threat."

Luggard shrugged. "Tha's fine; wasn' givin' it t' ya anyway."

"Come on," Link told him, waving him on. "We'll be fine."

…

A whistle blast sounded in the distance, Luggard's first hourly signal. Link wished he had a way to answer from where they were.

The trail had ended not long before, forcing them to cut between the trees. They had already lost sight of the Seventeen, so Irleen kept flying up above the trees in order to give Link and Cale directions toward the smoke. Link did not feel too concerned about the forest. In fact, he felt a little more at home walking among the trees. It reminded him of being back at Whittleton, with all of the houses built inside those massive trunks. Unfortunately, this reminded him of Meilont, how much help she had been to him. And that last day, when she stood on the edge of the platform with that longing look on her face.

Cale, on the other hand, was focused entirely on the forest.

"I've a bad feeling about this place," he said.

"Don't worry," Link tried to assure him after Cale's voice interrupted his thoughts. "I'm sure we're close. Right, Irleen?"

"We're getting there," she answered.

"I—well, it's-it's… that's… not entiehly my concehn, really," Cale said.

"How couldn't it be?" Irleen asked. "There's nothing else around here."

"Ah, well… you say that, but…"

Irleen hopped from the air above Link to in front of Cale's face. "But what?"

Cale sighed. "I just don't like the feeling I get heah. We don't know what might be luhking about."

"Nothing's bothered us for an hour. What's there to be afraid of?"

He shook his head. "I don't know. I-I just have this strange feeling of being—"

_Ffffffffff—thup!_

Cale's face turned pale, and his voice came out in a higher pitch at the sight of an arrow protruding from Link's shield. "—watched?"

Link, having felt the thump against his back, pulled off the shield. After seeing the arrow, he quickly spun about. His hand was in the shield's straps, and he held it up for protection. Cale, meanwhile, took Link's reaction as a cue to jump behind the nearest tree.

"I'll have you know that was only a wahning shot!" a man's voice hollered from the trees ahead of them, his accent oddly similar to Cale's. Link hunched lower, trying to find any sign of the voice's owner. "The next one'll be in youh skull!"

"We're not here to cause trouble!" Link shouted back, trying to keep his voice even. "We just want to talk!"

"I don't!"

"We're just looking for someone!"

"You found someone! Now get out!"

"Please! It's important!"

"I don't _caeh_!"

Link reached his left hand behind his back, locating his boomerang. "Is there any way you'll hear me out?"

"No!"

"We're not here to cause any harm. We're just looking for an Architect by the name of Ryain."

_Ffffffffff—tink!_ Another arrow rang off the edge of Link's shield, coming uncomfortably close to his face as it ricocheted into the air behind him.

"Ryain's dead, you moron!" the voice wailed, sounding much more agitated. "He died thihty-seven yeahs ago!"

"We-well, it—_ahem_—it was a long shot afteh all…" Cale whispered to Link.

"Did he leave anything behind?" Link called out.

"Yeah! Me!"

Link exchanged a look with Cale. "You're his son?"

"His _grandson_, stupid, his _grandson_!"

"I think you hit a sore spot," Irleen commented. Link glanced up to nod at her, pulling out his boomerang. He held it low against his side and opened it wings.

"What was that?" the voice asked. "What's in youh otheh hand?"

"It's a boomerang," Link said. "It's for my protection."

The voice hesitated. "Do that again."

This time, the look Link and Cale shared was one of mutual confusion. "Do what?"

"Close and open it again."

Link thought for a moment. "Will you shoot me if I do?"

"How 'bout I shoot you if you _don't_?"

Link held up the hand holding the shield. "Okay, okay. I'll do it."

"In plain view. I wanna see it."

"Link," Cale whispered. "This doesn't sound like a good idea."

Link did not reply. He set his shield on the ground, and then stood straight. Holding the boomerang out in front of him, he demonstrated how to close the wings. Then, inverting it so that the wings pointed up, he pressed the button to open it again.

For a moment, silence answered. Then a figure dressed in grey stepped into the open in front of them. Link hunched in alarm, ready to spring to one side if he had to jump out of the way. But the figure did not appear to want to harm them, both arms to his sides. He strode forward. Link saw that the robe he wore covered his whole body except a slit in the hood for eyes. As he came closer, Link saw a peculiar bow held in one hand. It was small even for a bow, with what appeared to be a stock from a rifle. Link could see that the figure was about a head taller than him, and he came to a stop just outside of arm's reach. Link stood up straight and offered the boomerang out.

The figure leaned over to set his weapon on the ground. Then he accepted the boomerang with a pair of rough, scarred hands. He stood examining it for a moment, even closing and opening it.

"Extraohdinary," he breathed. "Wheh did you find this?"

"In the Locomo crypt in the middle of the Lost Woods," Link answered.

The figure nodded. "Wheh my grandfatheh had left it. It was my thihd build. Springs to slap the wings into place. A locking mechanism to make suh the boomerang didn't collapse when it hit something. The lahge exterioh button made drawing and opening it a quick, easy motion foh the useh. The pouch?"

"Right here," Link replied, reaching around his back to pull it from his belt.

"No, no," the man said, raising a hand to stop him. "That'll due." He sighed. "My grandfatheh said that he had fohgotten this the last time he went to the Locomo Crypt. I often wondehed if I'd eveh see it." He started, as if remembering that Link and Cale were still standing in front of him. "You said you wanted to talk?"

"If it's possible," Link said with a nod, picking up his shield.

"Come on then," he huffed as if it was more effort than he wanted to give. One hand holding the boomerang, he retrieved his bow. "Let's at least get out of the trees."

The robed man led them onward, occasionally looking back to check that Link and Cale were following. He also checked his weapon frequently, and Link realized that there was a compass built into the stock just behind where a loaded arrow sat. Cale had yet to relax. Although he walked behind Link, he could hear Cale bumping into trees or bushes or tripping over bare roots. Irleen remained quiet, hovering just outside Link's field of view probably in anticipation of running back to Luggard. Link tried to let his guard down a little. He still had his shield on his arm, but he was sure to keep his left hand by his side and away from the sword. He did not want to test whether he could draw the sword and strike before their host wheeled around and planted his next arrow in between Link's eyes. He at least trusted that the man would not attack unprovoked, and he wanted to make sure the man felt as unprovoked as possible.

Soon, the steady stream of grey smoke was in sight through the trees above. Following that was a clearing with a single, wooden cottage sitting in the center. Wooden, but one wall appeared to be one, large machine from which the grey smoke floated. The bare ground immediately surrounding the cottage was littered with small pieces of metal and glass. The lack of intact glass in the windows partially implied why the mess existed. A pot sat on top of a campfire in front of the house, its contents just barely bubbling over the lip.

The man strode ahead of them and wheeled around, pointing the bow at Link. Link suddenly planted his feet in the ground, his hand halfway reaching for his sword before he stopped it. "Befoh we continue this little _convehsation_," the man said, "who the hell ah you?"

Link stared for a moment. Then he answered, "Lieutenant Link of the Skyrider Company."

"Lieutenant? _Company_? … A military ohganization?"

"It's just a title. I'm an airship captain."

"An aihship…" The arrow's tip indicated the sky. "You must be from one of the ships that fell."

Link found himself taken aback. "One?"

The man nodded. "Two in the last fifteen days. One fell on the otheh side of the Lost Woods, the otheh fuhtheh nohth, somewheh in the Snow Realm."

"Y-y-you-you-y-y-you s-s-s-saw them?" Cale asked.

"It wasn't easy," the man answered with a sigh. "I was attempting to find an opening in the haze above. The fihst one I witnessed while I was in Aboda."

"That must have been my ship, the _Island Sonata_," Link said.

"I would not have noticed the otheh had I not been experimenting with refrigeration on the southehn bohdeh of the Snow Realm. Someone you knew?"

Link frowned. "I can't be sure."

The man nodded again. "Yes, of couhse. I'll buy youh story. What about his?"

"I'm C-C-C-C-C-Ca-Ca-C-C-C-C-Ca-Ca-Cale."

Link could see one dark eyebrow in the eye slit rise. "I'll just assume that's long foh 'Cale'."

Cale nodded frantically. "I-I-I-I-I-I'm-I'm a s-s-s-s-sch-sch-sch-schol—I'm a scholah. F-f-f-from Library Town."

"Hovela?"

Cale silently stammered for a moment. "H-h-h-ho-h-h-how—"

The man pointed one wing of the boomerang to about where his neck should be. "Accent."

"Oh."

"In lieu of having to enduh moh of youh lengthy answehs, I'm going to assume that you'h just heh to follow youh captain friend and possibly write a book about him."

Cale bowed his head. "Okay."

"And the fairy?"

"Irleen. And I'm glad someone actually notices me."

"Ihleen?"

"She's a Sorian," Link explained, relaxing his stance. "She's a member of a race that lives in the clouds."

Irleen bobbed to one side. "The fairy… thing is, admittedly, my own abilities backfiring on me. In reality, I'm about the same size as Link. I fell in the same ship, and that was when this happened."

The robed man appeared to think for a moment. Then he set the boomerang and the bow on the ground next to him. "Sohry foh the bolts and all. I don't nohmally expect visitohs."

"Oh," Link commented, glancing at the front of his shield. "It's okay. I'm just glad you were aiming there." He put a hand around the bolt's shaft and started pulling.

The man began pulling the robe over his head. "You said that you weh looking foh Ryain, my grandfatheh. I'm afraid that you'h about thihty yeahs too late."

"We suspected as much," Link said. "I was hoping that he might have left something behind, something he used to help construct the first airships."

"What foh?"

"Irleen and I have to return to the sky."

The man pulled the rest of the robe over his head and dumped it on the ground. He revealed himself to be a thin man with visibly strong arms. His blue, sleeveless shirt was covered in grease spots, and his black trousers sported tears around the thighs. A fair amount of his visible skin had scarring from either scratches or burns. Underneath his black hair, Link could barely see that something had left a scratch just above his left eye. The tip of his right ear was missing, looking as if it had been bitten off by something. His sharp jaw had a trio of scars crisscrossing to form a star on the right side. "Well, as I said, all he left behind was me. I'm Leynne." He indicated the pot. "Have a seat. I'm afraid that the pot is a little baeh foh fouh people, but you'h welcome to some."

"Well, we don't want to interrupt your lunch," Link said as he cleared a space of glass and metal shrapnel before sitting on one side. Cale sat next to him while Leynne stepped to the other side to pick up a ladle. "And we're not sure if Irleen needs to eat or not."

"It's… complicated," Irleen said when Leynne cast her a strange look.

"I see," Leynne commented while he stirred the pot. "So you thought you would find the original aihship buildehs and ask that they build you a new ship?"

Link sighed and started tugging on the bolt again. "Well, I figured the task would be a little much to ask. I'm not entirely sure how I would _build_ the ship. If I just had an idea of how the first ones were put together, I thought I might have an idea from there."

"And… you thought finding the Locomo Crypt would be a good place to staht?"

"It was the only place we knew Ryain might have disappeared to when he left the Royal Engineers. We found our way from there to here."

"My grandfatheh told me stories of that crypt. You and youh friend must be mad."

"Uh…" Cale said, raising a hand. "I… actually just… kinda fell in. Link had to retrieve me."

"Hence the…" Link trailed off, indicating the front of his tunic.

Leynne nodded. "I thought youh clothes looked a different coloh from behind."

"So, your _grandfather_ made that boomerang?" Irleen asked. After Leynne nodded, she jumped in front of Link's face. "Told you it'd be worth it."

"No you didn't," Link said, finally pulling the bolt from his shield. "You just kept pestering me to open it."

"Yeah, yeah, believe what you want."

Leynne held the ladle up to his face to smell. Then he threw the contents to one side. "My grandfatheh left that boomerang in case someone eveh discovehed the crypt. He made anotheh, but I'm afraid I don't know what happened to it."

"Have you lived heah long?" Cale asked.

"Most of my life," Ryain said. He took another ladleful out of the pot and tasted it. After some thought, he decided that it was edible and stepped to a shelf outside the cottage. "My parents live in Hovela. I inherited this cottage from my grandfatheh afteh he died." He turned around, bowl in one hand, and glared at Cale. "I assume you wanted to know all that."

"D-I-I-I-I-I—"

Link held out a hand to calm him. Then he asked, "Will you help us?"

"Why?" Leynne asked, ladling some of the pot's contents into the bowl. "I can't put togetheh a whole aihship by myself."

"You're still an Architect, right?"

Leynne shrugged. "I wouldn't put so much meaning behind it. I find that I'm moh of an inventoh. My _grandfatheh_ was the Ahchitect."

"I don't expect you to build a whole airship by yourself. I'm going to find more Architects. With some time, I should be able to find some help."

Leynne paused with the bowl near his lips. Then he said, "If you can bring moh help, then I'll consideh it."

Link gave a reluctant nod. Then, as Leynne sipped from the bowl, he said, "I have a favor I have to ask."

"Yes?"

"I want to find that other airship you saw. The one that fell in the Snow Realm."

Leynne sighed. "You'h going to do all you can just to move me from this spot, ahn't you?"

Link shook his head. "I just need to know where it fell. It could be important."

"Well," Leynne said as he settled on the ground. Both Cale and Link winced at the sound of shifting metal as he sat, but he did not seem to notice as he pondered. "It was puh luck it fell two days ago; it's been the only break in the rain for some time. I couldn't be suah what it was at fihst. I know it landed somewheh inside the Iyuk Mountains."

"Oh, no…" Cale groaned.

"What?" Irleen asked.

"The Iyuk Mountains ah wheh the Yook live. And they don't really like Hylians; they blame us foh the constant rain."

"Well… did we have something to do with it?" Link asked.

"No, of couhse not," Leynne said in an indifferent tone. "But the Yook ahn't known to be especially reasonable."

"I wonder if Luggard will take us there," Link said to Cale. "I have to know what ship that was."

"If you'h expecting to find suhvivohs, it'd be a waste," Leynne said. "If anyone suhvived a fall like that, the Yook probably clobbehed them to death by now."

"Maybe," Link said. "Still. I want to know."

Leynne sighed and finished his bowl. "Okay, let's get going then."

"Wait a second," Irleen said as all three rose around her. "I thought you were just going to blow us off."

"Well, I can't exactly tell _wheh_ the ship landed," Leynne said. "I know its bearing from wheh I was at, but I need to be theh to make suh that the couhse I give you is cohrect. Besides, I'm ratheh curious as to how aihships ah built nowadays. It's not as if they'h built down heh anymoh."

A faint whistle blew in the background, and Cale, Irleen, and Link turned to it. "That must be Luggard. We've been out here for two hours now."

"You hihed a train?" Leynne asked. Link nodded. "Well, if you intend to take it to the Snow Realm, it'll have to be outfitted."

"And that would cost moah money," Cale said. "We'll have to stop by Library Town and see if Madame Seilon will hiah Luggahd foh anotheh outing."

"It'll probably cost moh if you'h going to the Snow Realm," Leynne told them. He started to the door of his cottage. "Wait a moment, and I'll come with you two."

Leynne disappeared inside the cottage for a moment. Apart from the sound of many things being shuffled around and falling over inside, one thing he appeared to do was turn off the massive machine comprising his wall. When he stepped out again, he was dressed in a brown, woolen tunic over a black shirt and tan slacks. The belt he wore around his waist sported a number of different pouches, the most prominent being what looked like a holster for his bow. This was confirmed after he locked the cottage door, when he picked up the bow, settled it into the holster, and secured it with a button strap. He had a bag strapped to his back, one which bulged with angles to signal that it was likely filled with some of the small devices he had made.

He picked up the boomerang he had left on the ground and offered it to Link. "You can have this back," he said. "It may yet come in handy foh you."

"Thanks," Link said, his smile indicating that he meant more than the boomerang.


	37. Wasn't This Hard Before

Chapter 37: Wasn't This Hard Before…

…

~~We met Leynne in the forest south of Diggerton. He agreed to help us find another airship which he saw fall into the Snow Realm. I have my suspicions; I think it might be the Horizon's Eye, Captain Koroul's ship. But I find that there are a couple of problems with that. First, the Horizon's Eye should have dropped out of the sky soon after the Island Sonata. The ship Leynne saw fell two days ago. I suppose it's possible that the Horizon's Eye managed to make it some distance before it finally gave out, but that's where the next issue appears. Both the Horizon's Eye and the Island Sonata were travelling south on the Dawn Line. The Island Sonata was shot down first. How did the Horizon's Eye fall out of the sky north of where my ship landed? These are why I doubt that the ship may be the Horizon's Eye, but the question becomes what ship it is. There couldn't possibly be anyone travelling that far north, could there? They would probably have to be somewhere in the middle of the Undying Storm if not further north. I can't be sure; I'm going to ask to see a map of the Snow Realm when we get back to Library Town.

~~I've been wondering how we should ask for more money. While we found the descendent of an Architect, it doesn't seem like much. We need money for supplies, fuel for the train, Luggard's pay, possibly some therapy for Cale; he's sleeping in the berths near me, and I can hear him mumbling about gigantic bugs in his sleep.—Then there's Leynne's needs, which I can't really begin to imagine beyond just needing extra supplies. He has a large bag full of stuff that rattles whenever he moves it. I don't know what's in it, I don't know what he's going to do with it. I just don't know.

The Seventeen's whistle blew, breaking into Link's thoughts. Although he looked up at the window to check outside, all his eyes met was the thin layer of grim covering an awkward view of the haze above. He stood and saw the large cliff that framed the north side of Library Town.

"Hey, Cale," Link said, bracing against the desk as the car turned. "Cale, we're here."

Cale snorted and rolled over, showing Link a face crisscrossed with marks from the thin bed sheets. "The Final Rest?" he asked in a deeper voice than usual.

"The what?" Irleen asked, bounding out of the top berth.

"The Final Rest," Link said. "The place where people go when they die. No, Cale, we're here at Library Town."

Cale pulled himself to the edge of the berth. "How long until we reach the platfohm?"

The brakes gave a heavy squeal. Link was just turning to the door when inertia decided to throw him to the floor, causing his head to knock into his fallen shield. Cale's hand slipped from the edge of the berth, and he rolled onto the floor hard. The train continued to screech and shake, and for a moment, Link thought that they would derail. So when the train stopped, he gave a large sigh of relief.

"Now," Irleen chimed with a giggle.

"Someone kill me…" Cale groaned into the floor.

Link picked himself up on the edge of the desk, one hand holding the temple that had met the edge of the shield. "That felt kind of rough." After checking that he was not bleeding, he walked to the door and pulled it aside. A crowd had formed at the head of the platform, but it dispersed after just half a minute. Link stepped out, casting the locomotive a confused look.

Leynne opened the cab and jumped to the platform. When he caught sight of Link, Link opened his arms up in question. "Luggahd had to pull into the platfohm quickly," Leynne called out. "We almost hit anotheh train."

_Fwaaah! Fwaaah, fwaaaaaaah!_ The train whistle hollered from the platforms further towards the center of town, and Link glanced out as the engineer of a bronze-painted train waved a shovel over his head.

Luggard stepped to side of the Seventeen's cab, inexplicably waving a boot over his head in response. "Learn keepin' yar rou'e 'n shove tha' too'er op yar hoo'er, ya styupid bag a' bastard!" he shouted at the other engineer, his usual accent sounding thicker than usual. The other engineer shouted something in return, but Link could not hear it over the Seventeen's sudden release of steam. Luggard returned to the side of the cab and hollered, "Ah don' _care_ who yar mother works far! Ah be' ya still a'e coal when ya's a maggo'!" The other engineer gave Luggard a dismissive arm wave and disappeared from sight.

Leynne crossed his arms. "Things always so exciting heh in the real wohld?" he asked Link, showing him an amused grin.

"No, not really," Link said, trying to control his own grin. "This is… pretty new, actually."

_Fwaaaaaaah!_ Luggard, just about to step down from the cab, changed his mind and disappeared from sight again.

_FAH, FWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!_ the Seventeen's whistle wailed, forcing both Link and Leynne to clamp their hands over their ears in surprise.

Luggard then shouted, "Look, look! Ah c'n be an ass with me whistle, too. Now piss ou'!" Then the Seventeen released the rest of its steam, causing Leynne to jump away.

"Remind me to neveh invite you to a fohmal occasion," Leynne chuckled after Luggard finally dismounted.

"Yeah, bu' didn' I tell ya?" Luggard said, one fingering pointed to his rival. "Didn' I tell ya he's gonna speed up?"

"Couldn't have called it a minute away," Leynne said.

"So wha's yar plan, Link?" Luggard asked.

"Well, I'm hoping you'll help us again," Link said. "Cale, Irleen, and I are going to the Library. We'll see if they're willing to sponsor us again; I have to know what ship fell."

Irleen made her presence known by fluttering out from behind Link and filling the space between the three. "I think the Library will be interested to get the remains of a Sorian airship. At least a plank or two from the side."

Link frowned at her. "Actually, I'm not sure if it's a Sorian ship. If any Sorian ships fell from the sky, they would've fallen close to the _Island Sonata_. This ship, for some reason, fell further north than most ships travel."

"You think it could've been Hylian?"

Link shrugged. "I don't know _what_ it could've been. That's why I want to see it."

"Righ'," Luggard mumbled, pulling his pocketwatch out. "Look, I owe Mel fifteen rupees 'n a new plate, so I's go'a catch up with ya guys la'er."

"Okay," Link nodded. "We'll be at the Library until sundown."

"If we can figuh out when that is," Leynne asked, glancing up at the sky.

"Funny," Irleen said.

"I'll find ya if yar no' a' The Rusted Boiler b'fore then," Luggard said. He turned and walked away, giving them one final wave before disappearing in the evening crowd.

Leynne glanced back at Link. Then, noticing something, he asked, "Wheh's Cale?"

Link glanced back at the office car. "Cale?" he called. "Hey, Cale?" Something sounded like it scraped against the bare wood floor inside the car. Cale came into view, his belly on the floor and face almost stark-white. Link took a step closer to him. "Cale, are you okay?"

"I… can't say at this point," Cale groaned. "I-I don't…" He gave an audible gulp which gave Link the impression that he had just swallowed a rock. "I can beahly move."

Leynne walked around Link. He leaned forward to place a hand on Cale's forehead. "Yeah, I would imagine you could use a doctoh soon," he said. "You feel as if you've a feveh."

"A _feveh_…" Cale groaned. Then his eyes became wide, and his head wobbled. Leynne quickly grabbed the back of his waistcoat and jerked him forward enough to retch on the platform.

Link quickly latched a hand over his nose and mouth. "Wow, Cale, how many of those rations did you eat?" he said through the hand.

"Let me know when the show's over," Irleen said, ducking into Link's hat.

"Must've been two this mohning," Cale groaned. "And—_hrup!_—may-maybe anotheh befoah I took a nap."

Leynne released his waistcoat. Noticing that it had a few spots of grime on the back, he wiped the hand on his thigh. "We should find a clinic."

Link nodded in agreement. Watching their footing around Cale's vomit, both of them hauled Cale out of the car. Link on the left and Leynne on the right, the three slowly made their way up the platform and into the crowded market area. Cale managed to point out a clinic halfway to the central area of town, so Link and Leynne carried him through the glass door and to the counter. The young man drifting to sleep at the counter just in front of the door succeeded in startling himself into action, taking Link's place so that he could direct Cale into a small room with a bed. Link, Leynne, and Irleen spent a few minutes waiting for the clinic's only available doctor to examine Cale, not saying much to each other while they tried to keep patient in the small waiting room next to the front desk. When the doctor appeared again, she informed them that Cale had food poisoning. She asked them what he had eaten in the past two days and, upon hearing what little Link could list, concluded that the rations Luggard carried had been the culprit due to the number of cases she recently had with the same explanation.

"I suppose that we've to infohm Luggahd that his rations ah bad," Leynne said with a sigh when they stepped back into the market.

"All three of you have been eating them, though," Irleen said. "Why would _Cale_ be the only one to get sick?"

"Didn't you heah? Wheh as Link and maybe Luggahd have some sense in the matteh, Cale decided to actually fill his belly with those things."

Link readjusted his hold on the paper bag holding Cale's dirty clothes. "I wonder how this might affect our request to the Library…"

Leynne glanced around at the nearby shops and booths. "Link, why don't you go on to the Library? Theh's something I want to take cah of."

Link gave him a confused look. "Really? What is it?"

He absently patted Link's shoulder before walking off. "Just thought I might procuh some funding. I'll meet you at the Library."

Irleen ducked back under Link's hat and asked, "Funding? What could he be talking about?"

Link glanced up at his brow as he responded, "I don't know. Maybe it has something to do with that large bag he brought."

"So… now what? Cale's sick, Luggard's gone to pay his bill, Leynne's… gone."

"Well, I suppose we can go meet with Madame Seilon." Saying as much, Link started towards the center of town.

Somehow, being back in Library Town felt a little strange. Link could not quite figure out why until he was almost at the Library. Then he realized that he had never had so much purpose returning back to a specific location. Skyrider Port had always fulfilled that purpose with the quarters he had shared with Line, and there had been times when he had wished he was there than any other place in the world. The port was safe, mostly because his crewmates would not regularly conspire to harm him in a new, inventive way. But it felt like Library Town now filled that role. This was his new home away from home. It made him wonder if he would ever look at Skyrider Port the same way again. Maybe he would, once he returned.

Entering the Library, Link knew that he would have a difficult time trying to look everywhere for Madame Seilon. So he asked a nearby student, "Excuse me. Do you know where Madame Seilon is?"

"Just straight ahead," the male student replied, pointing his pen in the direction of the Train History section of the Library before returning to doodling all over his messy notes. Link gave a nod of thanks before walking in that direction.

Madame Seilon was just on the other side of the door, her back to Link as she pondered over the bookshelf. But the creak of the door as Link closed it alerted her, and, before he could grasp the situation, Madame Seilon had her arms wrapped around him. Irleen quickly jumped out of Link's hat to see what had happened.

"Welcome back, Link!" she declared as she squeezed the air from Link's lungs. "Did yeh find anythin'?"

"Oh, boy, do we have stories to tell!" Irleen said, caught up in Madame Seilon's excitement.

"Ugh—elp," Link managed to choke out.

"Yeh better!" Madame Seilon said, releasing Link. Then she gave the door a questioning look. "Where's Cale?"

Link tried to stammer out an explanation, but he was too busy catching his breath, trying to keep himself standing by leaning on the door. He jerked his thumb at Irleen, who explained, "We had to take Cale to a doctor. He has food poisoning from a bad train ration."

"Oh, dear," Madame Seilon replied, fingertips of one hand covering her lower lip. "'E all right?"

"The doctor said that she's seen it happening lately, so he should be up in a couple of days."

Madame Seilon nodded her understanding. "So, yeh find anythin'? Any remnants o' the Architec' Ryain."

"Even better. We found his grandson, Leynne. He's in town right now, though."

Madame Seilon clapped her hands together. "Perfect! More than I 'oped fer!" She took stock of Link again, and her tone changed to that of a scolding mother. "Link! Wha' 'appened ta yer clothes?"

Link cleared his throat. "The Lost Woods. Lots of killer insects." He bent over and picked up Cale's dropped clothes. "I had a favor to ask."

At this, Madame Seilon crossed her arms. "Yeh wan' me ta wash 'em?"

"Huh? No! No. It's about the Snow Realm. Leynne told us that he had seen an airship crash into the mountains on the north side of the realm. I was hoping that we could get funding for another excursion; I want to see what ship it was."

Madame Seilon's mouth thinned for a moment. "I don' think yeh ge' 'ow this works, Link. If yeh wan' more fundin', yeh need Cale ta presen' 'is repor' ta me. Withou' it, I can' send yeh ou' 'gain."

"You're… you're _joking_!" Irleen said.

But Madame Seilon just shook her head, a grave look on her face. "Nope, no' this time. If yeh wan' more fundin', yeh'll 'ave ta wait 'til Cale's on 'is feet 'gain."

"But we may not have that kind of time," Link said, his voice tinged with urgency. "We have to reach that ship. There's no telling what'll happen to it out there. Talein told me that, when the _Island Sonata_ crashed, he got me out before the Bulblins would be pulling it apart."

"I's no' tha' easy, Link. I ain' the one with the money, or I'd send yeh maself." When Link covered his face with one hand, she added, "I'm sorry." Link sighed and turned to open the door. "Link, look. Yeh jus' go' back, didn' yeh? Cale's restin'. So shoul' yeh. Jus' relax."

Link opened his mouth to argue his point, but his senses as a former airman took over. Specifically, it was the knowledge that the argument was over. So Link just bowed his head and opened the door. "Come on, Irleen," he moaned. Irleen gave Madame Seilon a fleeting look before following Link outside.

"Come on, Link!" Irleen cried at him as soon as the door was shut. "Is that it? You're just going to take that? I thought you were a captain!"

"Irleen!" Link suddenly snapped. His voice echoed down the corridor, catching attention from nearby students. He tried to ignore it, reining in his voice so he could tell her, "I haven't given up yet."

"You—! … You haven't?"

Link leaned in closer to her and lowered her voice. "So we can't get a train. If I have to, I'll walk all the way there. All we need is a map."

"Well, we're in a _library_."

But Link shook his head. "We need something we can take along. Come on. I'll bet we can find a cheap one in town somewhere." He walked to the front entrance, not realizing that Madame Seilon had poked her head out after he left and signaled a nearby student.

Once he was outside, he glanced up at the sky. Night was beginning to fall, revealed by the dark grey of the haze and the fact that torches were being lit in the streets. If he left soon, like he planned, he probably would not get far before the darkness forced him to stop. And he still had to find a map. And maybe a few supplies. He pulled his wallet out and looked inside. He released his next breath in an exhausted sigh upon realizing that he had been reduced to a single, blue rupee.

"You don't look so confident now," Irleen observed.

"It's just occurred to me that we still don't have a lot of money," he said. He stuffed the wallet back into his pocket. "I only have the 5-rupee. We might need to think this through a bit more."

"I don't see what there's to think about. We have no money, no food, no place to stay… night's falling now, so we can't really go anywhere. Did I miss anything?"

Link scratched his scalp at the edge of his hat. "No, no, that all sounds about right…"

"So what do you—"

"Oi, Link!" Link's attention turned down the brick path going back into the center of town. Luggard approached him, looking a little more sluggish than usual. As he came closer, Link saw that he sported a black eye, a few bruises on his forearms, and blood on his lower lip. His waistcoat had been ripped open, and one sleeve was missing its hem, likely having been repurposed into the cloth piece plugging his left nostril. Still, he showed an unperturbed grin as he approached. Link was not sure whether to call attention to the fact that he looked like he was in a bar fight.

Irleen, fortunately, had no such inhibitions. "What the hell happened to _you_?" she asked, fluttering closer to examine his face.

"Heh," he replied, crossing his arms. "Go' in a fight."

"With who?" Link asked.

Luggard jerked his head to one side. "Tha' idio' on the Number Three engine, same one tha' nearly derailed us."

"He found you at The Rusted Boiler?"

He shrugged. "Prob'ly wouldn' 'ave if I didn' tell 'im 'ow t' read 'is daily schedule usin' 'is eyes instead o' 'is ass."

"You _started_ it?" The question came out a little confused; while Link was surprised that Luggard participated in a bar fight, he found himself wondering why Luggard would provoke it.

Luggard's grin widened. "Yep."

"Who won?" Irleen asked.

"Irleen!" Link whined.

"What?" Irleen said defensively. "It's a fair question, isn't it?"

"Can' 'elp ya there, Irleen," Luggard said. "Mel threw me ou' b'fore we 'ad it settled." He twisted his face for a moment. "I think 'e did."

Link sighed. "The airmen I knew usually scored it depending on who was thrown out. So… yeah, I guess you lost."

Luggard's grin returned. "Nothin' new. Wha's ya two doin'?"

"Debating suicide," Irleen said. Luggard raised an eyebrow at her. "We couldn't get funding."

"We need Cale," Link continued. "Madame Seilon can't guarantee us any more funding until Cale gives her his report. So… well, with him laid up in the clinic, we were thinking about just walking."

Luggard's face shifted between them for a moment. "In the clinic? Wha' 'appened?"

"Food poisoning," Irleen answered.

"You need to throw out your current stock," Link said. He paused before adding, "That might've been why I threw up yesterday afternoon."

Luggard put on a disappointed face. "I knew it. Should'a gone with the regular package. Sorry, Link. Guess those rations were cheaper than I though'."

"Yep," Link said, casting his eyes to the ground.

Luggard nodded. "So… no Cale, no rupees… no… train. Where's the suicide comin' from?"

"I was considering traveling to the Snow Realm on foot," Link said.

"Heh heh," Luggard chuckled, shaking his head. "Yeah, ya ain' goin' _tha'_ way."

"Why not?" Irleen asked.

"'Side from Snow Realm's excuse for bein' called 'Snow Realm', ya'd be driftin' 'way with the rain."

"Rain?" Irleen asked.

"The Snow Realm 'as a storm o'er it, it 'as. Been there for decades. Rains so 'ard, trains go'a cover up the smokestack or the engine gets ruined. Walkin' through it, yeah, tha's suicide."

"I _have_ to get to that ship before it gets torn apart," Link said. "Unless there's another way…"

Luggard put an arm around Link and started leading him down the road. "Think 'bou' this. Ya go' no money. So no food, no bed, no ride, no supplies, no way o' survivin'. Bu' ya wanna go t' the Snow Realm and, likely, drown 'n die. Now, if ya—Excuse ya!" Luggard, receiving a bump from behind, suddenly snapped at a girl student wearing a green robe.

"Sorry, sorry!" she called back, turning to show them an apologetic smile for a brief moment. Link caught sight of a journal cradled in her arm just before she ran off, wondering if she was on an assignment like Cale. The thought of it made him a little miserable, knowing that he could not do anything significant until Cale became better.

"Now. If ya's smar', ya a' leas' wai' 'til ya ge' a good nigh' sleep b'fore ya ge' in more trouble," Luggard continued as if nothing had happened. "And ''Ow's I s'pose t' do tha'?' ya ask yarself, righ'? Well, ya jus' go'a ask yar friend if ya can spend the nigh'. We can see if Cale's still livin' t'morrow."

"Have room foh one moh?" Link looked up, finally noticing that Leynne was standing in front of the stone fountain in the middle of town.

"I s'pose we can squeeze ya in, Leynne," Luggard told him. "Mainly, I's invitin' Link 'n Irleen; they ain' go' the rupees for a decen' place."

"Is that so? How do you manage to travel around so well?"

"Luck, I guess," Link said. "With Cale sick, though, I can't get the funding I need to hire Luggard for another ride."

"Big deal," Luggard huffed. "Worry 'bou' tha' la'er. B'sides, I'd 'ave t' charge three-fifty this time; I go'a prep the Seventeen for rain if we wanna ge' tha' far north, and then I go'a ge' more supplies."

Leynne pushed away from the fountain. "Three hundred and fifty rupees, was it?" he asked, pulling a leather wallet from his trouser pocket. He opened it and dug for a moment. "Well, I suppose I can live without it foh now. Afteh all, without Link, I won't have much reason to travel to the nohthehn paht of the Snow Realm."

Luggard gaped as Leynne held out a large red, a large green, and a purple rupee out to him. Luggard, taking the money into hand, stared for a moment longer before asking, "Where's all _this_ comin' from?"

"As I explained to Link eahlieh, I intended to hunt some funds of my own. That bag you saw me cahrying weh some of the wahes that I've put togetheh oveh the past few yeahs. Old ones, so I have no sentimental attachment to them. Just how was I expected to wohk without money?"

Luggard grinned and pocketed the money. "Well, looks like some o' yar worries is solved, Link."

Link clapped his mouth shut to get his vocal cords to work again. "Are you sure, Leynne?"

"I'm funding a trip foh us," Leynne said, his voice taking a bit of a stern edge. "That's it, though. I'm afraid that I'll be leaving you on youh own foh otheh needs."

"Oh, no, of course," Link said, waving his hands. "Thank you."

"Righ' then!" Luggard declared. "'O's 'ungry?"  
>…<p>

"Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, I's 'ooooooooooooooooome!"

Luggard shouted into a small house that he had led Link and Leynne to. It sat in a residential area set on the southern outskirts of Library Town, similar to the kind Link could find on any island in the sky. But the buildings here were made of clay and were mostly one story high; a handful reached two. This one had a smaller, upper story that was barely visible unless one stood further away. In a season that sported actual sunlight, Link supposed the patches of dug-up, bare earth on either side of the door would be flower beds.

Link heard stomping from the other side of the wooden door, and instinct told him to take a step back. Leynne did the same just before the door flew open.

"Luuuuuuggaaaaaaaaaaaard!" a large, wide woman cried out as she trapped the taller Luggard in her arms and squeezed tight. Luggard chuckled in response until an uncomfortable crack sounded from his back. The woman, clad in a red housedress decorated with leaves in autumn colors, released Luggard and looked him over. Then she crossed her arms and gave Luggard a frown. "Luggard! 'Ave ya been fightin' 'gain?"

"Oh, Ma, it was jus' the one fight earlier this evenin'," Luggard groaned like any child would to their stressing parent.

"And? 'Ow'd ya do?"

Luggard put on a silly grin. "'Bou' same as a'ways; I los'."

His mother sighed. "Ya a'ways were the lousies' fighter." Then she took note of the other two standing behind him. "Ya brough' comp'ny?"

Luggard stepped aside. "Me friends." He planted a hand on Link's shoulder. "This is Link. 'E's an airship cap'n from the sky."

His mother's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Is ya really? Ya'r so _youn'_. Wha' is ya doin' down 'ere?"

"It's… a long story," Link said with a bashful smile.

Luggard pulled Link's hat off, and Irleen immediately jumped up in surprise. "This one's Irleen. She's also from the sky."

"H-hi!" Irleen said before diving back into the hat. Link reached up and pulled the hat back down over his head.

"Kinda shy, is she?" Luggard's mom asked.

"Don't do that!" Irleen shouted from under the hat.

"And this is Leynne," Luggard finished. "'E's a… uh… wha' is we suppose t' call ya?"

"I'm an inventoh," Leynne offered, giving Luggard's mother a gentlemanly smile. "A pleasuh, madame."

"Oh, please, call me Elle," Luggard's mother said. "Ya three is ou' kinda late, ain' ya?"

"'Ad a few complications," Luggard told her. "Link 'ere, 'e don' go' a place t' stay, and 'e don' go' much money."

Elle leaned on one side of the doorway. "So ya though' ya'd jus' leave 'im 'ere with me, did ya?"

"I's 'ere, too!" Luggard declared, holding his arms wide.

"Sh, shush, Luggard," Elle told him in a hushed voice. "Joel 'n Blaine is sleepin'."

"Sorry," Luggard whispered.

"Lucky for ya I still go' food tha' wants t' be eaten," she told Link and Leynne. "Is ya spendin' the nigh', too, Leynne?"

"If it's not too much trouble," Leynne replied with a slight bow.

"No' a' all," Elle said, waving them in. "Been quiet 'ere lately, 'specially since Larrin lef'. And ya know Paul don' visi' anymore."

Link saw that the room they entered seemed to serve as both the kitchen and dining room, much like the downstairs at Talein's house. Candles placed on bronze mounting brackets adorned the two adjacent walls, providing an adequate amount of light for the room. A large table with seven chairs occupied most of the space in the middle of the room. A wash sink, stove, and dishware cabinet sat to the left of the door. On the right, shoes were piled up in front of a small closet door. Luggard began removing his boots, and Link and Leynne followed suit. Whereas they neatly placed their boots next to the wall, Luggard just kicked his boots at the closet door. Other than a table and chairs, the room sported a hammock suspended between the far wall and a wooden divider in the far right corner. From the pink nightgown laying across a chest of drawers on the outside of the wooden divider, Link guessed that the hammock might be Elle's. The opposite wall had two doorways. Through one, Link could barely make out a ladder leading to the second floor. The other looked like another bedroom.

"Still down in Papuchia with 'is girl?" Luggard asked.

"Still makin' eyes a' tha' youn' thin'," Elle said with a nod. She stepped to the dishware cabinet and pulled out a few plates. "A' leas' _'e's_ go' some prospec' t' give grandkids."

"I go' prospects," Luggard defended, taking a seat. "I go' a girl in Fishin'ton."

"Ya mean tha' Rin girl you met ten years 'go? 'Ow old is she now? Fifteen?"

"She's nineteen, Ma."

"And ya's _twenty_-six. Keep tryin'; no one said it'd be easy." She made place settings for four, so when Link and Leynne sat down, she gave a confused look. "Where'd the fairy go?"

Link saw the plate in front of her and said, "She doesn't eat. We think."

In between bites of stewed beef and vegetables, Link and Irleen gave the story of their fall in the next hour. Luggard joined in when they began talking about the Library and the Lost Woods. Leynne did not have much to add, even when it came to the part of how they found him. Link was surprised to hear the whole story so far, amazed by how easy it was to sum up his adventure in one hour when one day had been too exciting to put down in his journal. It made him wonder if he had really spent thirteen days wandering around the Forest Realm.

Elle thanked them for finishing off the stew. Then she ushered them to bed. Since her two youngest boys were sleeping in the upstairs addition, she put out a few more bed sheets on the floor. She told Leynne, Link, and Irleen that they could use the beds (Irleen was small enough that Elle assumed she shared beds with Link), leaving Luggard to gripe about sleeping on the floor. She had all three guys undress so she could wash their clothes in the morning, leaving them to put on some of Luggard's old clothes. At least Luggard and Link did; Leynne, being just a little larger than Luggard, opted to sleep in his underwear rather than put on a tight shirt and pair of shorts.

…

He sat on the pile of straw that adorned the corner of the cage. He kept his legs folded underneath his body, sitting up straight and proper as he had done all his life. The cage was dark, so he focused on the planks through the bars, lit by whatever light came from the stairs to the right. Hushed voices passed between her fellows nearby, but none of them were directed to her. He was going to be strong and bide his time. There had to be a way out.

His stomach hurt. How long had they been locked away? Days? Maybe a month? The days blurred together. Maybe it was not days. It could have been hours. He knew he at least slept some time ago, so it could not have been hours. It was hard to tell. No clocks. No daylight. He might have been able to tell when the wingless one brought down their meals, but he had lost count of how many times they had eaten.

He could feel it, though. Biding was the best course. But he had yet to convince the others, and he feared what they would do.


	38. Where Legends Rise

Chapter 38: Where Legends Rise

…

"Link! Link, get up!"

"Link, ya 'ave t' see this!"

"Link! Link! … Who's Link?"

"Yeah, who's Link?"

The cacophony of voices roused Link out of what he could vaguely describe as a slow dream. Some small part of him was troubled by it, but he was glad to have not woken up screaming.

He pulled the thick blanket over his head, trying to ignore the shouting aimed at him. His mind kept telling him that it was too early in the morning.

"Go ge' 'im!"

"Wakeupwakeupwakeupwakeupwakeupwakeupwakeup!" Link felt pushing and pulling on the blanket, and he covered his head with his arms to avoid taking an incidental strike to the face.

"Knock it off! Go away!" Irleen shouted, having been roused by the commotion. When the room settled, he could hear her fluttering near his head. "You okay, Link?"

Link sat up, pushing away the blanket to reveal his blond hair had been horribly ruffled. His half-open eyes located Irleen. "Whas goinon?" he asked through a mouth that felt like it was full of cotton.

"I don't know, but everyone's excited about something." Leaving him with those words, she disappeared out the doorway to investigate.

Link pulled himself out of the blanket to sit on the edge of the bed for a moment. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Then he stood to examine the room. Leynne and Luggard had already stepped out, Luggard leaving clothes discarded next to the doorway. Link's step was slow as he walked out into the kitchen/dining room. Luggard's mother had left their clothes clean and folded on the edge of the table. Well, _Link_'s clothes were there; Luggard and Leynne appeared to have already dressed. But no one else was in the room, the pot on the stove left to simmer on its own. Link's eyes eventually found the front door, blocked off by what he took to be Leynne's back. One hand raking at his messy hair, he made his way in a slow, half-sleepy pace.

When he stepped outside, his immediately covered his eyes from the bright light of…

A… rising… sun?

Link slowly moved his hand away from his face, revealing that the area around him shone with a brilliance that could only be produced by a heavenly body almost a stranger to this land. People filled the dirt streets of Library Town's southern residence area, all with varying forms of bewilderment and awe as their eyes stared at the eastern horizon. As Link's eyes adjusted, he pulled his hand away further to reveal a large storm cloud hanging in the air far above them. He put his hand up in comparison. It looked about as large as his palm and even less threatening than he remembered it now that it hung in a bright blue sky. The Undying Storm… He could just barely make out the Dawn Line leaving it.

Light invaded the left side of his face, and he turned in response while keeping his hand up. The sun formed a bright outline of his hand as he avoided looking at it. It seemed almost strange to him, having the warmth of a rising sun greet his skin. And at the same it… nostalgic. He was reminded of days when he would rise for his morning shift on the _Grand Sails_ just to watch the sun rise on the endless horizon, alone in the light as the new day began. He could hear his heartbeat against his eardrums. Somehow… somehow, he knew this day would be different from the rest.

"Goddesses above…" Link heard Elle breathe. He looked to his right and found her standing next to an equally stunned Luggard. "'Ow…?"

Murmurs floated around the neighbors, but no one said anything clear enough for Link nor the person standing next to them to hear. Everything just stopped. No one moved, and even less dared to breathe lest it turned out to be a mistake. Link could understand their confusion; where a haze had been over the realm for a very long time, now was nothing but blue sky adorned with a storm and a sun. Not a trace of the haze existed on the eastern horizon. Realizing this, Link turned around to look towards the west. He remembered Luggard's reasoning about the haze coming from the Lost Woods because of how thick it appeared there.

Nothing.

He heard Luggard and Leynne turn and glanced to his left at them. They returned his confused stare. Then Link saw Luggard's eyes widen further in understanding of something which he had only worked out in his mind.

Irleen, hovering above his head, was the one to put voice to it. "Link… y-you don't suppose… _you_ did that… do you?"

"Me?" Link replied.

"Tha' bug ya killed…" Luggard said. Then he started and looked around. As if deciding that talking in the open was dangerous, he grabbed the front of Link's borrowed shirt. Link silently stammered as he allowed Luggard to drag him back into his house, Irleen trailing behind. Intrigued by the sudden change in the nearby tone, Elle and Leynne followed.

Luggard released Link and spun, leaning forward to look him in the eyes. "Link… I think ya 'ad somethin' t' do with this."

"What do you…?"

Luggard grabbed Link's shoulders and shook him. "Think! Tha' _'uge_ bug in the Los' Woods! Don' ya r'member 'ow much mis' it threw ou' when ya was fightin' it?"

"Yeah, it almost made itself invisible," Link answered, still unsure where the conversation was going.

"Link, what if _that_ has been the source of the mist this whole time?" Irleen asked. She buzzed around his head. "Think about it! The mist disappeared when you killed it, right?"

"The mist it spat at me, yeah," Link said with a nod.

"No, think about it. What, besides that, has changed in the realm in the past two days?"

"But that's just it. I killed it two days ago! Why would the sky clear up _now_?"

"It isn't as if the envihonment could so quickly change, Link," Leynne pointed out. "It would take _some_ time foh a noticeable change. Without a souhce, the haze above would've been blown away with some of the prevailing winds in the sky above, possibly to the nohth."

Luggard gave him a confused look. "'Ow do ya know _tha'_?"

"I've flown kites into the haze to gauge the wind at those altitudes. Not entihely easy, of couhse."

"This is _amazin'_!" Elle said. "We _'ave_ t' tell someone!"

"Ah—No, no!" Link said, waving his hands around. "I-I mean we don't have any proof that I had anything to do with it!"

"We've got all the proof we need!" Irleen said, circling his head in excitement. "When Cale gets better, he can give his report to Madame Seilon, and we can see if she draws the same conclusion."

"All the same, then," Leynne said.

"Oh, wha'!" Luggard said to him, flapping his arms in annoyance.

"It may be best not to go around bragging that Link was the one who got rid of the mist," Leynne explained. "Aside from sounding as if _we_ ah tooting the hohn of a braggaht, we cannot exactly _guarantee_ ouh credibility."

"Why?"

"Well, what kind of proof is theah that Link defeated this bug?" Leynne said, one finger held up as if to illustrate his point. "Following that, what proof is theah that the creautuh's death is the cause of the loss of a mist that has plagued the Forest Realm foh decades?"

"Ya's sayin' we can' _prove_ Link did it?!" Luggard asked, one fist raised as if to strike Leynne.

Leynne held his hands up as if to exude his calm demeanor. "I'm saying that we should hold out on the bragging until we have something moh tangible. _We_ can credit Link all we want, but unless we all want to look like some soht of monsteh-killing frauds, we should wait foh the facts to present themselves to the public _naturally_."

Luggard glared at him for a moment longer. Then he dropped his fist. "Too bad. I's a'ways wantin' t' be associated with a 'ero."

"Theh's still the possibility, Luggahd. Just not now."

"Link," Elle said, shoving past Leynne to put her hands on Link's shoulders. "Why don' ya go ge' changed? I'll 'ave breakfas' ready in a minu'e."

"Indeed," Leynne said with a nod. "We have a long day ahead of us, especially if we want to find that aihship befoh the evening."

"Go, go," Elle whispered, nudging him towards the room. "Luggard, ge' yar brothers in 'ere!"

Link heard Luggard blow a raspberry as he scooped his clothes off the table. He disappeared into the bedroom and changed. He took a few moments to examine himself. Elle had done an amazing job of getting the creature blood off his clothes, leaving his tunic the same shade of green he had seen it when Princess Zelda had first given it to him. Princess Zelda…

He realized that it had been a long while since he last saw her or his crew. He wished he knew what had become of them, realizing that the last he saw of them was merely a dot on the horizon before the _Island Sonata_ was shot to pieces beneath him. Just thinking about them gave him a new form of dread. Even if it was unlikely… what if the second ship that crashed turned out to be the _Horizon's Eye_? Could he stand to see the bodies of the crew? Could he… see his crew or the princess with the knowledge that he could not do anything for them? Link felt tired, and he slumped against the wall. He assumed he had given a lot of thought to the theory that the second ship might have been the _Horizon's Eye_. Somehow, he had missed the implications. If he managed to return to the sky, to Castle Island, what would he tell Governor Lore? Or the King and Queen of Hyrule? Would he have to tell them?

"Link?" He looked up to find Irleen wandering into the room. She looked over at him and asked, "Are you okay?"

"Irleen…" he said, turning so that his back rested against the wall. "What if it _is_ the _Horizon's Eye_?"

"What, the second ship?" Irleen asked. He nodded, and she fluttered closer to him. "But you said it _couldn't_ be a Sorian ship because it's too far north."

Link covered his face with a hand. "I know what I said. It's just… what if I'm _wrong_?"

"Then you're wrong," Irleen said with a matter-of-fact tone. "Look, Link, I don't know what's got you scared about this, but there's only one way to know for sure. We have to find that ship as soon as possible. You can figure out the implications once you've found what you're looking for."

Link took in a deep breath and nodded. Still, even after he stepped into the dining room and joined the rest for breakfast, he found his mind still wandering towards the idea of finding his crew deceased. It bothered him enough that he fell into silence at the table. No one tried to speak to him about it as banter bounced back and forth between Luggard and his family. He barely noticed Luggard leave from the table early, not even hearing him explain to the rest that he had to go see the modifications put on the Seventeen before they left for the Snow Realm. Moments later, Elle shooed her two youngest boys out the door. Leynne, having been abandoned by anyone who would have a conversation with him, left after them.

Elle closed the door behind him, turned with her arms crossed, and addressed Link, "Well. Wha' 'bou' _ya_?"

Link looked up from the table. "Huh?"

"Ya's been starin' a' the table for a lon' time, Link," she said. "Somethin' wron' with me cookin'?"

Link glanced down at the half-eaten potato and scrambled cuckoo's eggs in front of him. "N-no, no, it's fine."

"I know _tha'_ much," she said with a huff as she approached him. "I go' _five_ sons, Link. I know when there's somethin' on a boy's mind. Now ou' with it. Wha's the trouble?"

Link shook his head. "I'm sorry. I ju—… There's… something that occurred to me earlier. About the second airship Leynne saw."

"Ya think ya know 'o it is?" she said.

"I'm _afraid_ I do. I… I think it might have been the ship that the rest of my crew was on. And, if it is…"

"Now, ya don' know if they's dead ye', Link," she told him in a stern tone. "Ya can' jus' si' 'ere 'n worry yarself 'bou' wha' _migh'_ 'appen.

"Link. I go' a 'usband workin' in the Fire Realm 'o could die in those mines any day. Me middle boy, Larrin, 'e wen' ou' tha' same way t' join 'im. I don' know if 'e made it there or no'. The floodin' in the Ocean Realm could take Paul 'way from me any time. An' Luggard! Well, it only takes one o' 'is crazy idea t' derail 'im. I can si' 'n imagine them dyin' all kinds o' ways, bu' it don' do me no good. Wha' 'appens 'appens. Sure, if ya find yar crew dead, ya'll prob'ly drop t' the ground cryin' 'n such. Bu' do it when ya _know_, no' when ya _think_. Ya jus' migh' be surprised."

Link gave her a somber nod. "I'm sorry. I…"

"Oh, don' go worryin' 'bou' me; I go' me own t' care for. Now." She smacked the table near him, causing his fork to rattle against the plate. Link looked up in surprise. She flashed him a smile before putting on a scolding frown. "Tha' breakfas' be'er be finished in the nex' minu'e, youn' man, or I's gonna throw ya on yar ass withou' any food!"

Link's mind was caught up in the mad dash started by his heart. He didn't have the time to tell if Elle was kidding or not. He quickly picked up his fork and plate and started shoveling food into his mouth as fast as possible. Elle gave Irleen, who was hovering just to the left of her head, a wink. Irleen replied by doing a mid-air twirl. Link finished his food, announcing it by slamming the plate back to the table. "Good!" Elle snapped. "Now ge' ou' there 'n impress us some more, _Captain_!"

Link knocked over his chair in a mad dash to leave, snatching up his cap from the table. Irleen chased him as he sprinted down the dirt road leading back into Central Library Town. It did not occur to him why he was rushing until he reached the fountain in the middle of the town, and even then, he did not care. He suddenly had a job to do.

…

~~Day 14

~~It's been so long since I last thought about the crew of the Island Sonata. Now I find that any thoughts about them fear for their eventual deaths when the second ship fell from the sky. I find myself horrified to realize that I've been looking at my compass the wrong way for years. As it turns out, what I once thought was 'north' is called 'south' down here. I didn't think about it until Irleen pointed out the direction the sun had risen from. I don't know why she hadn't corrected me when I said that both the Island Sonata and the Horizon's Eye were both traveling south before; maybe she just thought that the directions I claimed made sense to me. So it is entirely possible that the Horizon's Eye had fallen after my ship. But that still leaves a couple of questions. If it is the Horizon's Eye, why did it take so long to fall?

~~And… if I'm still getting these nightmares from Captain Koroul, could that mean that not only is he still alive, but part of my crew as well? Maybe even… Princess Zelda? Irleen and Luggard's mother, Elle, are both right. I can't jump to conclusions now, and I can't keep mourning for them when I don't even know if they're dead. I'm trying to keep all that in mind, lest I drive myself nuts believing that I'll have to explain my actions that lead to their deaths. I suppose I'm looking a little too far ahead at things. For now, we just need to get to the crash site.

~~Luggard's almost done with the modifications he needed to make to the Number Seventeen. But he says that, even when we reach the Iyuk Mountains on the northern border, we won't be able to take the Seventeen into the mountains because there aren't any tracks going that far north. Leynne explained this to me, and he also bought a few more supplies to help us trek into the mountains. Somehow, despite being almost rupee-less when we met him, he has had money to throw around ever since we returned to Library Town. What he brought in that bag must have been some really valuable stuff.

~~I visited Cale at the clinic earlier. He's still not feeling well, but I let him know what we were going to do. His journal is still on the Seventeen, so I told him that I would keep an eye on it for him.

A train whistle blew as Link closed his journal. He looked up in time to see the green supply train, looking more like a ground-bound garbage scow with its two cars full of spare parts, pull forwards away from the Seventeen's office car. His eyes looked over the Seventeen. The cab was covered by a fitted roof with sliding windows. A metal plate had been attached to the smokestack at the front of the engine, likely to keep rainwater from flooding whatever mechanics were accessible through there. Another plate was fitted over the coal tender, much closer to the top of the tender with a little open space between it and the cab's roof. Link guessed that this probably allowed the heat from the firebox bleed out of the cab; he could imagine how hot the cab might be if it was not exposed to open air as the Seventeen usually was.

Now, with the sun in the sky, Link could guess the time to be just about mid-morning. Not having much to do since visiting Cale earlier, he had sat on the train platform to watch Luggard and a couple of men from the supply train attach the extra parts Luggard had said that they would need in order to run the Seventeen through the forever-raining landscape of the Snow Realm.

"Oi, Link!" Link glanced down the platform as Leynne approached, waving a tube over his head. He stood and dusted himself off. Leynne told him, "I might've an idea of wheh that ship crashed."

"The northern mountains, right?" Link said.

"Yes, I know I said _that_ much," Leynne said, popping the top off the tube. "We still have to go to the suhvey point I found on the nohthehn bohdeh, but I thought I would show you about wheh I think it landed." He pulled out a map and unrolled it, careful to keep the tube in his other fingers. Link moved over to look at the map. "Heh," Leynne said, using his thumb to trace along the top edge of the map. "This is the Iyuk Mountain Range. The tracks come close, but we may be looking at a long trek inside."

"What's this here?" Link asked, pointing. While the tracks, a pair of black double lines running crisscross over the map, appeared to just barely touch the depiction of the Iyuk Mountains, Link saw that one pair of lines jutted just north of the east-west rails south of the mountains.

"I'm not suh," Leynne said with a frown.

Luggard, who had approached from Leynne's other side, took hold of an upper corner of the map to angle it where he could see better. "Oh, tha'?" he said, pointing to the same rails as Link had. "I think I know tha'. Some kinda construction the Good Travels Comp'ny was doin' 'bou' a year 'go. I think they's tryin' t' put a station in the middle o' those mountains so people don' go'a walk over them. Lo' o' good _tha'_ did; they canceled the projec' jus' after it go' started 'cuz the rain made it bad t' build there."

"It's spotty at best," Leynne said, "but I wondeh if that pahticulah piece of track might be close to the crash. If so, it would be a good place to stop, right?"

Luggard shrugged. "It'd keep the Seventeen off the main line, bu' I can' guarantee it'd be close."

Leynne allowed the map to roll up. "Then we'll make it ouh meeting point. Once we reach the Iyuk Mountains, it may be a few days befoh we retuhn. You can meet us at that line when we've hopefully an answeh as to the ship's origins. What do you think, Captain?"

Link started when he realized that Leynne was referring to him. "Uh, yeah, sounds good."

Leynne shoved the map back in its tube. "Right then. Let's go."

Luggard pointed a finger into the air and made circle. "All abooooooard!"

Leynne followed Luggard into the cab. Link, with Irleen silently hovering near him, stepped into the office car and closed the door. He dropped his journal on the desk and double-checked that his sword and shield were still fit. Finding that there were still smears of Skulltula blood on the sword, Link used the sleeve of his freshly-cleaned undersuit to wipe it off. He had his back to the berths.

So he did not see the stranger's face as it slid back under the covers.


	39. Rain, Leynne, Stow Away

Chapter 39: Rain, Leynne, Stow Away

…

The train ride felt longer than Link had imagined. He was not quite sure why. His mind still buzzed with the question of what airship had crashed in the north, but it was less focused on what he would do if he discovered his crew onboard. He was determined not to let those worries bother him again, and he constantly reminded himself of his resolve by balling up a fist and aiming it at the car's only window. Now that the sun shone properly over the realm, Link found that it was a little easier to gaze out the grungy glass at the plain. It may have been his unusual optimism, but the grass covering the plain looked a little greener. The northern perimeter of the Lost Woods appeared after a bridge over a river, and Link lost interest.

He tapped the blunt end of Cale's forgotten pen against the desk, his attention back to the open journal in front of him. After unsuccessfully taking a nap, he thought he might have more to write down. But he was just as stymied, and he found himself slowly losing patience. Irleen had fallen asleep in the middle berth, where Link had been lying; he could see her steady, green glow inside.

After a defeated sigh, he reached to the open ration pouch and broke off another piece of biscuit. Without anything to do maybe until they reached the mountains up north, Link decided to snack on one of the new rations Luggard had stocked the Seventeen with. He would eat the rest of the ration later, but he was peckish and, for reasons unknown to him, could not remember what he had for breakfast. He had to admit that this batch was a little tastier than the others; he decided that it would have been best if he had noticed this before he nearly wound up with food poisoning. Of course, without prior knowledge of what rations on the surface tasted like, he realized that he could not have made the judgment soon enough to prevent Cale's unfortunate illness.

So he wrote about that.

~~I've recently discovered the taste difference between good and bad rations. It would have been helpful information before; Cale would probably be with us. And if Cale was with us, we might have another person going hiking with us. Without anything to do in this office car, I nosed into the backpacks that mysteriously appeared in the night. It looks like warm clothes and camping gear. That's my best guess; I can't say I've ever seen either up in the sky or down here.

~~I do know cabin fever, though. It's probably only been an hour, but I can't help the feeling that I'm slowly losing my mind. I guess it's because I'm so used to having something to do. Even as I was recovering in Whittleton, I always had something to occupy myself. Recovering mostly, especially since my own actions left me too hurt to move around. I shudder to think what Doctor Beld would be shouting at me if he knew what kind of trouble I've been getting into lately.

~~Now that the sun is out for the first time, I wonder how Whittleton is doing. I imagine it would be years before the woods around the town recover; it took decades for it to die in the first place.

Link broke off another piece of biscuit as his mind wandered back to Whittleton. Again, the sight of Meilont on the edge of the platform gave him a bout of concern. Any kind of indication of what she said on the platform would have been nice; not knowing was beginning to torture him.

_K-krrch_. Link pulled the piece of biscuit away from his lips to look at it, confused as to why he heard a crunch when the food had not made it into his mouth.

_Gggkh, khhh khhh_. Eyes darting about, Link put the biscuit in his mouth and chewed slowly. The crunching sounded like it came from the berths to his left, so he carefully turned his head until he had the berths in the corner of his eye. Movement in the bottom berth caused him to shoot to his feet. Now that he had his attention on the bottom berth, he realized that there was a large lump under the white comforter. Too large to be just a feature of an unmade bed. Link picked up his sword and took a step forward, ready to draw at the first sight of trouble.

His heart began beating faster. He slowly drew the sword.

"Wait!"

Link, at the sight of more movement than he expected, leapt backwards, throwing his scabbard to one side to bring the sword to bear. His left arm swept back to swing, but his eyes managed to register the Hylian girl holding her hands up in surrender before he could lop anything off. She had her silvery-blond hair braided and draped over one shoulder with wispy bangs covering her forehead. If Link had to guess, she was probably just a little older than him. Her skin was milky-white, as if she had never seen the sun before (which, considering the days before today, was probably true). She clambered out of the berth, hands held up as she stood to reveal her height just a hand's width above Link. She wore a waistcoat of dusty orange, decorated with elaborate, floral stitching over a number of pockets closed by button flaps. Underneath, she wore a thick, brown shirt and blue work pants. Her boots looked like worn leather.

"Who-who are you?" Link asked as he lowered his sword.

She gave him a bright smile. "Valley."

"Valley?"

"Yyyyyep."

Link shook his head. "What are you doing on this train?"

"Madame Seilon sent me."

"Madame… Seilon?"

"Yyyyyep."

Link narrowed his eyes, but it was more out of confusion than anything else. "Why? I didn't think we were being sponsored again. Until Cale gives her a report."

"You isn't. I's just traveling with you. She wants me to watch you, observe you."

"What's going on?" Irleen asked, fluttering out into the open. "Who are you?"

Link sighed and leaned over to pick up his scabbard. "Irleen, this is… Valley, right?"

"Yyyyyep," Valley said with a nod, dropping her hands. "I's from da Library."

"Madame Seilon sent her," Link added, thrusting his sword into its scabbard.

"When did _this_ happen?" Irleen asked.

"I snuck on last night," Valley said as she sat on the edge of the bottom berth.

"Last night…" Link mumbled. Then he started and said, "Weren't you that girl that bumped into Luggard?"

"Da engineer? Yyyyyep."

"You had the same kind of journal that Cale used. I didn't think about it at the time. How did she know we were taking the train to the Snow Realm?"

"Da doors 'round da Library is thin," she explained. "She heard you talking to Irleen before you left."

Link used his free hand to cover his face. "Oh. I can't believe this."

"You's going to da Snow Realm. She said you wouldn't let go. She noes sent me? We noes gets more writings."

"You mean she sent you for more research?" Irleen asked.

"Yyyyyep."

"How far do you plan on following us?" Link asked, glancing at the three backpacks behind him. "I don't think we have the supplies for another person to go with us."

"Dat one noes is yours," she said, pointing to the backpack closest to the door. "Mine."

"Yours?"

Valley nodded vigorously. "Mine."

"Soooo…" Link said, trying to figure out the arrangements with only two backpacks.

"Link, I think Luggard was going to stay with the train," Irleen pointed out.

"Oooh. Right, okay."

"So you sees? We has enough supplies."

Link gave a groan and dropped into his chair. "I really can't believe this."

"What? I isn't gonna be a problem. Is I?"

"I think Link's just tired of scholars following us," Irleen said.

"I just… didn't think we'd have anyone extra," Link said.

"I isn't extra. I's gonna pull my weight. I's been to da Snow Realm before; I cans leads you 'round."

"Although we're going into the Iyuk Mountains?" Link asked her, one eyebrow raised.

Valley shrugged. "So? Has _you_ been to da Snow Realm before? Da engineer?"

"She has a point," Irleen said.

"I knows some of da landmarks," Valley said. "Towns, villages… you's gonna need supplies by da time we gets done."

"We have a _map_," Link countered.

"I knows the Anouki," Valley said, her grin returning.

"The what?"

Valley's grin turned sly. "Eeeeeeg-zactleh."

"I think we're stuck with her, Link," Irleen said. "Besides, you never know how useful another hand might be. We don't know how long we'll be traveling."

"You sees. I isn't a bad girl." She stood up and walked over to the desk. Her glance fell on the journal Link had left open. "So _dat_'s what you's writing in."

Link reached over and slapped it shut. "It keeps me busy."

"I said something? I does the same ding at home." Then she tilted her head as she thought. "I does the same ding here, too."

"Like Cale?"

"Yyyyyep, except I noes scribbles drawings all over it."

"Oh, so you _know_ Cale," Irleen said as she settled on top of Link's journal.

"I's worked with him a few times. He worries a lot. A little weird that Madame Seilon sent _him_ with you to da Lost Woods."

The Seventeen's whistle blew, causing all three passengers to look towards the locomotive. "I wonder if we're getting close to the Snow Realm," Link said. The car leaned, and he stood up to look out the window. "Looks like a switch track."

Valley nodded in agreement. "Yyyyyep. Dat's a switchman's booth out dere. We's probably turning north."

"Why?" Irleen asked.

"That's the direction of the Snow Realm, Irleen," Link told her.

"I thought that was south."

Link frowned at her. "I thought _you_ were the one who said that way was north."

"Yeah, down here. But aren't you used to the opposite directions?"

Link blinked at her for a moment. "Huh?"

"Remember? Earlier, when we figured out that what you called 'north' was actually 'south'. Like when you were trying to figure out if the crashed ship was the _Horizon's Eye_."

"Yeah, I _know_ that's south according to how we figure direction in the sky. We're going the right direction."

"But isn't the Snow Realm to the _south_?"

Link shook his head. "No, it's to the north."

"I feels dizzy!" Valley declared.

Irleen jerked around in the air, making Link wonder if that was how she paced. "So, let me get this straight. The Snow Realm is to the _north_ of the Forest Realm, right?"

"Yeah," Link said with a nod.

"But you said that the ship crashed too far north for it to be the _Horizon's Eye_."

"Irleen, you're the one that pointed all this out to me! I got them confused! What I thought was 'south' in the sky is 'north' down here!"

"Okay, okay, you don't have to scream it at me!" The car fell into a brief silence. "So we're going 'south', right?"

"Would you—"

_Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiir!_ Link, not anticipating the brakes as he leaned back in his chair, flopped onto his back due to the inertia from the stopping train. Valley gripped the edge of the desk and braced herself. Irleen, immune from bashing into anything, just laughed.

When the train stopped, Link picked himself up. "I could use some warning when that happens."

"He always brakes hard like dat?" Valley asked.

"Sometimes it's hard to tell if he _doesn't_. We must be at the survey point."

"This should be fun," Irleen said as Link pulled the door open.

The noon sun showed that the sky was still clear. The Seventeen had stopped in the middle of a field, where some of the grass growth looked healthy if a little off-color. A few minute's walk ahead of him was a large lake with two suspended tracks crossing it. One looked as if it went into the Lost Woods, but the other had a gentle slope into a tunnel running under the woods. He nodded in acknowledgment of its existence, realizing that traveling to the other side of the Forest Realm would be difficult without finding a way to bypass the Lost Woods. But then, he wondered if there was any power left to the Lost Woods without the mist.

Grey cliffs bordered the lake to Link's left. When his eyes searched in that direction, he saw where the clear sky ended. Rain clouds covered the skies over the nearby Snow Realm, and their falling cargo obscured most of what lay beyond. Link had never seen rain before, never known what a storm could even look like until the Undying Storm. The clouds over the Snow Realm looked tame. No lightning, no thunder… just the faint wash of rain over the plain north of them. He found some kind of comfort in this; he previously held the impression that he would find himself traveling through another storm which would threaten to tear the Seventeen apart.

Link stepped out of the office car with a look of awe on his face, followed by Valley and Irleen. Leynne jumped down from the locomotive and hustled past Link. Luggard bled some steam from the locomotive and leaned his head out the cab door. "Looks 'bou' as bad as ya imagined it, righ'?"

Link, having walked as far as the cab, glanced over at him. "Actually, it doesn't look too bad," he said in a normal voice, not really intending for Luggard to hear.

"That's just so… weird," Irleen said.

"What?" Valley asked. "You noes has seen rain before?"

Link shook his head. "We can't. We're up so high that the only storm clouds we see are a magical prison around Forelight Island."

"Only once in a few days to we ask the Great Tree in the middle of the island to make rain for us," Irleen said. "But this is so…"

"Weird?" Valley finished.

"Weird."

"Very… weird," Link agreed. Luggard jumped down from the locomotive and stood at Link's side opposite Valley. Link could sense him there and said, "Have you ever seen something so… amazing?"

Luggard gave the rain a frown as Leynne, tools tucked under one arm, stepped up beside him. "I… ain' though' o' it tha' way b'fore," he confessed. "T' me, it's the same, ol' Snow Realm blatantly pokin' fun a' us by rainin' instead o' snowin' like it's suppose t'."

"I'd have expected people to officially rename it oh some such nonsense," Leynne said. "It's been so long since theh's been any snow on that plain, it really becomes counteh-intuitive."

"But then we has to find all da maps in da land and correct dem," Valley pointed out. "I noes is doing _dat_ job."

Leynne and Luggard put on identical faces of confusion and leaned forward to see clearly who stood on Link's right. Link caught their movement out of the corner of his eye and sighed. "Luggard, Leynne," he said, one hand sliding back and forth for his meager introduction, "this is Valley. Don't ask me; I don't know what's going on anymore."

"I's a scholar," she said to them, showing them her cheesy grin.

"I thought the Library wasn't suppohting you this time," Leynne said.

"It isn't," Link replied, his eyes narrowing to an irritated glare at the rain. "Madame Seilon just sent her along. She stowed away on the train last night."

"I checked this mornin'," Luggard said. "Where's ya hidin'?"

"I isn't saying," Valley replied. "I might needs to hide again."

"She was hiding in the bottom berth."

She put on a pouty face and crossed her arms. "Liiiiiiink!"

"What should we do with heh?" Leynne asked.

Link shrugged. "She's already got the supplies she needs. She might as well come along."

"Welcome aboard!" Irleen declared.

"We go' a long day t' go," Luggard said. "Why don' ya ge' started, Leynne?"

"Because Link's standing on my suhvey point."

Link glanced down at his boots. He found that he was standing on top of a cross of bare earth and jumped out of the way. Luggard walked back to the locomotive and appeared to inspect some of the modifications. Valley backed away as Leynne set to work, watching him curiously. Leynne started setting up a complicated-looking device on a tripod. He kept placing one eye against the contraption, which looked to Link like a pictograph box with more knobs than necessary. Link stepped around Leynne to look at the front of the device. What he found looked like a telescope pointing towards some distant point beyond the curtain of rain.

"Link!" Leynne suddenly snapped. Looking up from the device, he jerked a hand to indicate Link to get behind him. "You'h in my sight; I can't calibrate this with you standing theh."

"Sorry," Link replied, stepping back behind the device. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to find a bearing," Leynne said. "I thought you would be familiah with that soht of thing."

Link nodded. "Familiar, but I've never seen it done. Most navigation in the sky is usually done by reading maps of the Sky Lines."

"The what?"

"The Sky Lines. They're like prevailing winds, except they're strong and regular streams which take us around the kingdom."

"You chaht them… how can you even tell wheh they ah?"

"They're visible."

Leynne pulled his eye away from the device. Then he slowly turned to Link. "They'h… visible."

Link nodded and turned to look for the Undying Storm. Pointing a finger, he said, "There should be a bluish line protruding from the northern side of that storm up there. That's one of the Sky Lines."

"You mean 'south', right?" Irleen asked.

Link sighed and dropped his hand. "Irleen, we're not starting that again."

"Well, I just want to make sure I understand which way you're going."

"I'm using directions according to how they are down here."

"Okay!"

Leynne glanced up at the storm. Then he told Link, "Why don't you lay out those maps I bought? I'll have some directions foh you in a moment."

Link nodded and started back to the office car. Valley bounded after him. "You's thinking that we's gonna find that ship?"

"No reason to doubt Leynne," Link said. "He sounds like a good navigator."

"But a grump," Valley added.

"Us being around when he working probably doesn't help," Link said with a shrug. He climbed into the office car and started looking for the tube he knew should be holding the map. "Whatever he's using, it's probably very delicate."

"Any idea what that thing was?" Irleen asked.

"Fancy pictograph box," Valley said.

"Some kind of scope, I think," Link said, shoving aside one of the backpacks. "You'd have to get Leynne to explain it to you; I've never seen anything so complex. Irleen, did you happen to see what Leynne did with the map?"

"Uh… no, I wasn't really paying attention."

"Could you go check the locomotive?"

"Sure." Irleen disappeared out the car door.

"So, you finds de other Architects?" Valley said. "What you's gonna do?"

"I guess ask them if they could build a ship for me," Link said. Valley tilted her head at him. "Yeah, I know, it seems irrational. I just… I don't have any other option."

"Actually, I thinks it's kinda cool. It's ambitious!"

Link blinked at her in surprise. "Really? You know, the last person I told pointed out that it was a really big job. And… I had the impression he thought I was a little crazy."

"Who was dat?"

"Leynne."

Valley gave him a nervous grin. "Oh."

Link nodded. "Even if I find more Architects, it still wouldn't be enough to put together a ship. We would need people to help put the ship together, and then we would need people to help me crew it; I can't do it by myself no matter how small the ship."

Valley scrunched her face in thought. "Hmmm. Interesting."

"It's a problem," Link said as he spotted Luggard walking into view over her shoulder. "One I'm not sure of a solution to yet."

"There's gots to be one."

"Ya lookin' for this?" Luggard said in an irritated tone, holding the map's carrying tube through the door.

Link leaned past Valley. "Yeah, thanks," he said, taking hold of the tube.

"Didn' notice 'til Irleen started screamin' a' me."

"Well, you weren't being very perceptive," Irleen huffed as she fluttered in the door.

"Flyin' 'roun' 'n 'roun' somthin' chirpin' a' me in a language I don' know doesn' tell me much. B'side ya los' yar mind."

"I don't chirp!"

Link stepped over to the desk. "Sorry about that, Luggard, but I couldn't find the map anywhere." He pulled the cap off one end and slid the contents onto the desk. And he found that not only was the map inside, a few more sheets rolled out. Curious, he picked up one and unrolled it. It appeared to be another map, and after a quick look, he recognized it as a closer map of the northern part of the Snow Realm. After double-checking with the larger map, he unrolled another sheet. This one, about half the size of the maps, showed a pictograph of mountains with a train track in the foreground. Link ran his fingers through the other sheets, finding that they were also pictographs of mountains as well.

Valley stepped up beside him. "What's all dis?"

"Looks like Leynne's pretty serious about finding that ship," Link said, shoving the pictographs aside to make room. He spread out the realm map and used the tube to hold down one edge. He grasped for a moment, then he picked up the boomerang he had left on the floor next to his sword and shield and used it to hold down the opposite edge.

"Rain's blockin' sight all way t' the mountains, though," Luggard said. "How's we gonna find it when we can' see?"

"I didn't have a very good view the previous day, eitheh." Luggard jumped to one side in surprise. Leynne stood at the doorway with a finger tapping against his left temple. "But that isn't what I needed to see."

"Wha'd ya need?" Luggard asked.

"You'll want to see this," Leynne said with a grunt as he climbed into the car. "What kind of traffic will we have to deal with?"

Luggard gave a shrug before climbing in. "Mos' traffic's t' the east, I think. No one comes this far wes'."

"Noes is much reason to," Valley spoke up. "Da old Anouki village's da only settlement on dis side of da Snow Realm."

"The _old_ Anouki village?" Irleen asked.

"Da Anouki moved west because the rains noes left," Valley said, stepping to the berths to give Luggard and Leynne some more room. "Da Anouki noes likes warm weather, but they hates rain even more. It makes them smelly. They lives on da west edge of da Fire Realm; dat's da closest they cans gets to da cold."

"Because the Fire Realm's frozen," Irleen said. "But they don't go further in?"

Valley shrugged. "Dere's a difference between 'cold' and 'frozen'. Dey noes cans goes further in because dere's a large ice plain cutting off da rest of da realm. Otherwise, yep, dey'd goes in further."

"Naturally," Luggard grunted. "So, Leynne, wha's this trick ya go' t' find the airship?"

"It isn't a 'trick', Luggahd," Leynne said, producing a pencil from his trouser pocket. "It's a navigation scheme I've thought up since I saw the aihship. It's useful foh finding things when you can't see it oh don't othehwise have any idea wheh it went."

"'Ow?"

"You look at everything else. Do you have a triangulah angle ruleh?"

"A wha'?"

Leynne sighed. "Something that looks like a triangle."

Luggard gave him a shrug while Link pulled open one of the desk drawers. "Why couldn' ya jus' say _tha'_?"

Link pulled out a triangular piece of wood. "Like this?"

Leynne snatched it from his hand. "Pehfect. Theh's a protractoh in the front pocket of that bag theh. Would you get it foh me?"

"Sure."

"We ah heh," Leynne said after measuring out an X in between the depictions of the cliffs surrounding them.

"'Ow do ya know?" Luggard said, rounding behind Leynne to see better.

"I've measuhed that spot foh my puhposes; I know its distance from the mountain and the track. I also have a pahticulah spot measuhed out from the top of the plateau behind Anouki Village as well as a control point fuhtheh down. I know foh a fact that we have to travel past the cliffs, it's just a question of wheh. If this is wrong, then we waste time having to retuhn to take measuhments again."

"Here you go," Link said, passing a protractor to Leynne.

Leynne took and set it on the map. "Fihst, the control point. And, Link, I have a drafting compass in that same pocket, if you don't mind."

"Okay."

Leynne put the point of his pencil on the X he made and used the triangle to draw a line past the cliff that served as the entrance from the Forest Realm to the plateau he mentioned. At the point where he stopped, he then used the pencil to strike a notch into the triangle's wooden surface. "Nohmally, I wouldn't have to do this if I'd the mind to remembeh to bring my own chahts, but this will have to do," he explained. "From heh, I know the distance to the point on top of the plateau. Link? My compass?"

"Here it is," Link said as he handed it over. "It was under the pencil shavings."

"Must be why I couldn't find it back in Library Town," he mused before setting the compass on top of the triangle. He opened it using the notch he made on the triangle as a guide, then he struck out an arc that bisected the plateau. "I've suhvey the distances between these two points on the plateau, so I know approximately how fah apaht they ah. I also know the distance between the landmahk on top of the plateau and Anouki Village." He used the notch again to readjust the compass and made another arc. Then he used the edge of the triangle to draw a line between the survey point and the intersection of the two arcs. "Thus, we have ouh second reference, and I can be suh that we ahrive in the cohrect spot."

"Wow…" Valley breathed.

"Makes sense, huh?" Irleen said, hovering over the charts.

"Nope. But I likes it."

"I have the angulah measuhments from my scope outside," Leynne said as he picked up the protractor. He placed the straightedge on the survey point and used the numbers on the curved edge to find the angle he wanted, using the triangle to count off the degrees he did not need. He made a short line from the edge of the protractor up, then he set the protractor aside, used the triangle to line up the survey point with the line he had just made, and struck the pencil almost completely across the map. From what Link could tell, the line was just a few degrees east of true north. Leynne used the blunt end of the pencil to tap the mountains. "And that's wheh ouh aihship is."

"Great," Luggard said. "But where? Ain' like these maps go' a clear picture o' the mountains."

"Link, did you find the otheh chaht I had in heh?"

"Yeah, I put it under the big one."

Leynne pulled the other chart out and held it to the side so that he could see both. "I found _this_ chaht because it has a cleareh rendering of the nohthehn topography. Due to all of the rain foh the past few decades, it looks as if the cliff face has been eroded away." He paused as he glared at the maps. Then he set the other chart down and pointed to a blur on the second chart. "This looks to be the most direct route to the aihship."

"Tha's good 'n all," Luggard said as Leynne started looking through the pictographs Link had shoved aside, "bu' 'ow's ya gonna find the ship up there?"

"I know that, if the aihship crashed on a mountain, it would have been one of the smalleh ones," Leynne said. He stopped on one pictograph and compared it with the map in front of him. "From theh, all we've to do is staht locating debris from the crash. I'm cehtain that most of its hull would have been crushed and flung foh some distance. Once we find remains, we find the ship."

"Dat's gonna take a long time," Valley pointed out.

"A few days, I imagine," Leynne agreed. "Luggahd, you may yet have the luxury of retuhning to Library Town foh some supplies; any trek we make will suhely take a day oh so."

"I go' fuel 'n supplies for me t' stay ou' 'ere for ten days by meself if I need," Luggard said.

"Good," Leynne said, handing a pictograph to him. "Because I believe that we have ouh destination."


	40. Rain-Soaked and Bad Doggies

Chapter 40: Rain-Soaked and Bad Doggies

…

Rain pelted the office car hard. Link had never heard such a racket before, let alone one which seemed to last for so long. Somehow, he found the sound a little more comforting than he expected. For what must have been hours, he lay in the middle berth and listened with his mind drifting between the sound of the rain and whatever thoughts it seemed to bring up. At one point, he had fallen asleep, but he woke up not long after, feeling a little more refreshed than he had for what seemed like a long while. He could not believe the quiet atmosphere in the car, especially since the chatty Valley sat at the desk nearby. She had fallen into silence when the train had gotten into motion once more, writing in her assignment journal for most of the time. Irleen stood on the desk near her, quiet as well. Link could picture her relaxing just like him, lulled into a half-sleep by the sound around them.

Then, a subtle shift in the train around him caught his attention. He propped himself up on an arm as he felt the car slow, brakes giving a light squeal under the rain's pounding. Valley, also aware that the train was stopping, closed her journal and glanced out the window. Irleen hopped into the air and pressed against the window.

Link, once the train stopped, slid to the edge of the berth. "We must be there," he commented.

"I don't see any mountains," Irleen told him. "A lot of trees, though. If you can call those 'trees'."

"Dere noes has been much sunlight here," Valley said, her tone sounding curiously indifferent to Link's ears. "Trees needs sun, too."

Link pushed off the edge of the berth and landed on his feet. "I don't mean any offense, but this is a pretty strange place you guys live in."

Valley offered him an amused grin followed by a shrug. "It's home."

"I guess the skies just aren't sunny everywhere," Irleen said, hovering over Link as he put his boots on.

Someone knocked on the car door hard, and Valley immediately stood and stepped over. She had to wrench the handle hard, but she pulled the door aside to allow Leynne to clamber in. "You's wet, Leynne," Valley said.

"I've noticed," Leynne grumbled, brushing the rainwater off his bare arms. He held out the selected pictograph to her. "What do you think?"

Link, finished pulling his boots on with his trousers tucked in to ensure their snug fit, crossed the car to look at the pictograph with Valley. After a good look, they leaned forward to look out the door. The Iyuk Mountains loomed overhead like giants with their heads pushed above the rainclouds. From where they stood, the sides of the door were framed by two larger mountains with four peaks arranged in the middle. Despite the difference in angle, the scene before them looked exactly like the pictograph.

"It looks good," Link told him. "Which one do you think the ship landed on?"

"Hahd to say," Leynne said as he opened one of the packs. "The closest possibility is the mountain on the left side of the pictograph. The problem is, without any reference, I can't be entihely cehtain how close it is. I'm hoping that it struck hahd enough that we might find debris at ground level befoh having to climb. I guarantee _that_ won't be a lot of fun, especially with all of this rain."

"So what's your solution to all the rain, then?" Irleen asked.

"Well, I can't say I found something foh youh protection, Ihleen," Leynne said as he pulled out a large sheet of black leather. He handed it to Link. "Link and I have these."

"What is it?" Link asked, finding a diamond-shaped slot in the middle of the sheet.

"Accohding to the stoh owneh I bought them from, it's a poncho made of cow leatheh," Leynne said, now digging through the other pack. "It's been treated with oils foh watehproofing, so they'h pehfect foh rain. I tried to find one appropriate to youh size. What do you think?"

Link allowed the poncho to fall open, curious about the square-shaped piece of clothing. "How do you put it on?"

"One moment." Leynne went back to the first pack and pulled a hunter-green shirt out of it. He tossed it to Link, who caught it on his right elbow. "Put that on fihst; the collah will protect youh neck."

Link took both pieces of clothing to the berths and dumped them into the bottom berth. He took off his hat and his tunic, and then he put the shirt on over his undersuit. He picked up the poncho and turned as Valley pulled her own poncho over her head, revealing a strip of the leather dyed blue in a square, swirling pattern at about chest height. Link pulled the poncho over his head as he had seen her do and adjusted it so that the slit was visible from the front. The leather begrudging folded around his shoulders, but the overall look made Link appeared a little wider than he really was.

"How does it fit?" Leynne asked him.

"It's a little… weird," Link confessed.

"I tried to get it in a size that lets you carry youh swohd with you," Leynne said. "If you need, you might be able to hold it closeh with the belt from youh tunic."

"No, I think this'll be okay," Link said as he grabbed his sword sitting next to the desk. Strapping it on was a little awkward, but he managed to fit the belt comfortably around his waist. He drew it and held it out so his arm protruded from under the poncho. "It'll be a little difficult, but I think I can make this work."

"I just realizes dat I noes has a sword or anything," Valley said.

"Neitheh do I," Leynne said. "I've a knife and a hunting daggeh. Do you want one?"

"The knife." Link turned just as Leynne handed a small, leather sheath to Valley. She examined it for a moment, and then she hooked it to her belt.

"What kind of wildlife is out here?" Link asked.

"Well, otheh than the potentially angry Yook when they realize we'h in theih tehritory," Leynne said, trying to pull out a poncho for himself, "we have the Wolfos."

"Dat's right," Valley said. "Dey stuck around after da rain started. Dey's tricky. Deir fur changes color."

"Their fur changes _color_?" Irleen asked.

"It's an adaptation," Leynne said just before wrenching the poncho free of the pack caused him to lose his balance. He stumbled into the wall behind him, bracing himself on the desk to keep on his feet. He gave the poncho an annoyed look before dropping it on top of the desk. "Much of the wildlife out heh used to use the snow foh protection and camouflage. Since the rains, though, what didn't leave slowly adapted. Dahkeh fuh, coveh undeh trees… I remembeh one man in Diggehton telling me how rabbits in this area take pieces of bahk to coveh theih buhrows. Suhvival."

"So what does that do for _us_?" Irleen asked.

Leynne started digging into the pack again. "The ponchos make us a little moh discreet. _You_ might have to hide, though."

"Under the hat it is, then."

"Link, you'll have to leave youh shield," Leynne said as he pulled a blue, long-sleeve shirt. He started pulling it over his head as he continued, "You'll need to cahry youh own pack, and you can't do it well with a shield on youh back. Unless you intend to cahry it on youh ahm the whole time."

Link held up a hand, although Leynne could not see it with the shirt over his head, as he picked up the boomerang. "It's okay," he said. "I understand. Besides, all the rain would probably ruin the wood; we've lost deckboards on the _Grand Sails_ because someone dropped their flask or something." As he affixed the boomerang to the back of his sword belt, he decided to omit the fact that some of those incidents on the _Grand Sails_ had been his fault. "Leynne, would it be safe if I put my journal in the pack?"

"It should; they'h meant to be watehproof."

"Here's a thought," Valley said, tucking her braided hair into the crown of the poufy hat she had donned. "It's always raining here. Da debris moves with the rain? What we's gonna do?"

"We have to trust that whateveh we find hasn't moved much foh the past two days. It was cleah two days ago, so whateveh we find can't have moved fah from its spot."

"Some of the heavier pieces should be better indicators of where the rest of the ship is," Link said, pulling his hat on. "The masts and the rudder should definitely help. Maybe even some of the metal pieces like part of the engine." Then he frowned and looked up at Irleen. "Sorian airships _do_ use _engines_, right?"

"I'm not sure," Irleen said, circling the lantern in the middle of the ceiling. "But there should be some heavy parts on the inside. I don't know enough about airships, Sorian or otherwise."

"Heh," Leynne said, hefting one pack towards Link. It landed with a soft thud, causing Link to cast a confused look to Leynne. "It has rations foh fouh days and some extra clothing. If we go high enough, we'll need wahmeh clothing." Link nodded his understand, grabbed his tunic, and stuffed it into the pack.

"I's wishing I thought of dat," Valley groaned, pulling the cord on her pack tight to close the top.

"My tunic's made for the cold winds we see when we're traveling through the Sky Lines," Link told her, stuffing his journal under his tunic. "So I might let you borrow some of mine." He leaned over to draw the main pocket of his pack closed with the cord.

When he looked up, Valley had moved close enough to almost touch his nose with hers. "Really?" she asked, wearing a mad grin on her face. "I cans wears dat tunic?"

"Uh… n-no, that's mine?"

Valley scrunched her face for a moment. Then she shrugged. "Okay." Link exchanged a shrug with Leynne before securing the flap on top of his pack with a pair of metal clasps which snapped into place. Then he shouldered it, finding it a little heavier than the thump against the floor had indicated.

The whistle blew, and Leynne, having just put his head through his poncho, cast the front of the car an irritated glance. "We should get moving; I asked Luggahd to wait foh us at that junction fuhtheh back. The one we found befoh we left Library Town?"

Link nodded. "Yeah, I remember."

"I noes does," Valley said, shouldering her pack.

"There's a small piece of canceled rail construction to the… east, right?" Leynne nodded. "It's just big enough to keep the Seventeen off the rails in case someone else comes through."

"If we get separated, Luggahd will have a steady bit of steam blowing from the smokestack," Leynne explained. He paused to put his pack on. "If you can find youh way south, he can't be hahd to find. Do eitheh of you need a compass?"

Valley shook her head. "I brought one."

Link put his hand to his chest. Then he realized that what he was looking for was missing. "No…" he murmured.

Leynne unshouldered the pack to place it on the desk. He searched the pockets for a moment, then he threw something to Link. Surprised, Link bumped into the berths behind him with his pack trying to catch it. He felt the metal case in his left hand, but he found that a thin, silver chain was dangling from between his fingers. Confused, he opened up his hand.

—To Link

—Happy 12th birthday

That was scratched into the blue coat of paint on the back side of a metal disk. Link, shock forming on his face, turned it over to find that the device was not just any compass.

It was his.

"Then it _is_ youhs." Link nodded, eyes still fixed on the compass. "I found it on a shop table last night. The owneh I bought it from told me that the Bulblin tradehs brought it in a few days prioh; they scavenged it from a bizahhe incident some time ago. He said they said a ship fell from the sky. They found that digging through some of the remains. From theh, well… I couldn't think of many othehs who go by the name 'Link'."

Valley craned her head forward. "It special?"

Link nodded as he put it in his pocket. "Captain Alfonzo, the captain who got me promoted, gave it to me for my twelfth birthday. He… he said my mother wanted me to have it."

"I thought you said you didn't know your mother," Irleen said.

Link shook his head. "I'll explain it all later. We should get moving."

Valley, eager to start, tripped on her way out the door. Link and Leynne heard a great splat among the thrumming of rain on metal and moved to look out the door. She had missed the ballast at the base of the track and landed face-first into the track's muddy foundation. The landing had produced a large slide mark, and she picked herself up at the base of the foundation. She spun and, astounding both of them, waved at them. "I's okay!" She spat and wiped her face with her bare forearm.

"That was an incredible fall," Leynne said to Link. "Do you think she felt it?"

Link watched Valley run for the hill ahead of them. "I… don't _think_ she did…"

"We had betteh catch up befoh she finds a different way to huht hehself."

Link quickly latched onto Leynne's arm as the older man prepared to step down. "Hey, Leynne. Thanks. For everything."

Leynne nodded at him. "Sheah luck we happen to be going the same way, but you'h welcome." Link released him, and Leynne used the handrail near the door to carefully put his feet on the ballast underneath.

"Ready to go, Irleen?" Link asked, looking back into the car.

"Am now!" Irleen said as she dove into Link's hat.

The sudden rush surprised him, and his foot slipped from the edge of the car. Leynne barely dodged out of the way, and Link swung forward to meet the mud. His and Irleen's cries of surprise met a sudden stop when Link's face smacked into the track's muddy foundation. Leynne reached back up to pull and lock the car door.

Then he dropped down and pulled Link up by his collar. "Ah you still alive?" he asked, trying not to smile.

Link spat mud out of his mouth and used the blade of his hand to wipe more mud off his face. "I hate gravity."

…

Fortunately for both Link and Valley, a few minutes without their hats let the rain wash their faces. Leynne pressed them on up the side of the hill near the tracks. Then he stopped and used a hand wave to signal Luggard, who blew his whistle before starting the Seventeen forward. From there, they crossed a slippery hill onto the base of the first mountain.

The lands in between the mountains were particularly hellish swamps sporting massive, twisting, thorn-covered vines which appeared to be made of rock. Some of the flatter areas required the trio to wade through pools that reached above Link's knees. Spiny grass took up residence in patches away from the pools and brooks, and they quickly discovered not to tread on these; one of the many flies swarming the swamps wandered into a patch, and all three watched as the grass suddenly snapped up around the fly. Although the flytrap had been small, Leynne noted that some of the nearby patches looked far too large to chance walking through. Bugs were aplenty, the local dragonflies being the most noticeable as they hovered through the air. And bit. The trio found out that they liked flesh and had to take to swatting at them to keep them from landing. The area felt muggy, and the fact that they were wet made the warm air all the more uncomfortable.

Then there were the hang-ups.

"Hey, guys?"

Valley sounded exhausted, and that in turn exhausted Leynne and Link as they turned around to see what had happened. Since entering the swampy area, Valley had found it easy to get a single, awkward strap on one side of her pack snagged on whatever twisted protrusion she happened to walk past. They had just descended a small slope, but Valley's pack had been caught on one of the large vines near the top. Valley hung by the pack's straps halfway down the slope, her arms straight out to keep her from falling to the pebble-covered ground below.

"You okay?" Link asked.

"Yeah, just a sec," Valley replied. She dug her boots into the slope until the ground packed enough for her to stand straight. Then she pulled her arms from the straps and turned around to start tugging on the pack. Leynne and Link tried to look interested, but the first four times left them weary of her mishaps. They watched her jerk the pack free of the tree and drop it down the slope. She slid down after it and picked it up. "Okay!"

"What did you say that strap was foh?" Leynne asked as she shouldered the pack.

"It's for hanging pans," she said.

"It's hanging _you_."

Valley shrugged. "It has to hang _something_."

Leynne put a hand over his face. "Let's just go."

"Okay!"

As Link and Leynne turned around, Leynne asked in a quiet voice, "Does youh comrade in the Library realize the chaos this gihl comes with?"

Link gave him a nervous grin. "I like to believe Madame Seilon didn't have a choice. We couldn't bring Cale, after all."

"Hey, guys!" Valley called.

Leynne groaned as they stopped. "What _now_?" he asked, turning around.

But they found her staring across the pool of water to their left. They tried to follow her gaze, but all their eyes met at first was a pool edged by dull, green scum. So Link asked, "What is it?"

"Look," Valley said, pointing across the pool. "Dat. What is dat?"

Link passed his eyes over the opposite edge of the water. "I don't see anything."

"It's right dere, on da edge."

Link exchanged a shrug with Leynne before stepping into the water. "Where?"

"Keep going." Link crossed the water, finding that it rose almost to the top of his boots at about the center. "Right, to your right." Link turned. "Noes, your other right."

"That's my _left_," Link called back.

"Okay, your _left_ den. Dere, it's in front of you." Link still could not see anything out of the ordinary, so he swept a hand across the water in search of Valley's illusion. He found water, algae, something which resembled a wet sock…

And a board. Link would not have noticed it if his fingertips had not met the smooth, flat surface under the water. He traced the board's surface to the edge and curled his fingers underneath. When he lifted, he saw that the board was covered in a thick layer of algae. He also saw that the board was long enough that it protruded on the shore. It amazed him that Valley had seen it across the pool; she must have had a better angle to see it from. He had to step aside when he realized that he was standing over one end. When he lifted the end in the water, he guessed the board to be about as tall as him. The end in the water was splintered. The board itself looked a little warped from the water, so Link could not tell what part of the ship it might have broken from. But considering that the board was probably some distance from the rest of the wreck, he was willing to guess that it was part of the hull.

"Did you find something?" Leynne called over the rain.

"Yeah," Link replied. He lifted the board higher so Leynne could see it. "It's a piece of wood."

"From the ship?"

Leynne's question made Link think about his assessment. It did not occur to him that it might not be a piece of the ship. So he answered, "I'm not sure. I think it might be."

"Link," Irleen said from her perch under his hat. "Look back at the wood."

"Why?"

"Just do it." Link glanced back down at the board. "I need to see the surface of the wood."

Link dunked the end of the board back into the water, then he picked it back up and brushed off the surface. "How's that?"

"Hold it still for a moment." Link waited for a moment. Just as he was about to say something, she spoke up, "Yeah, that's Sorian wood."

"How can you tell?" Link asked.

"I can see the life flow in the grains," Irleen said. "The wood's been damaged, but it's still there."

Link glanced up at his brow, then angled his head to examine the board. "You mean this wood's _alive_?"

"It used to be. It's dead now; it's probably been dying for the past few days, around when the ship was sighted."

Link gave a gentle nod. He realized with a sigh that this was the first evidence that the _Horizon's Eye_ was the crashed ship. He let the board drop back into the water and crossed back to the other side of the pool. "Irleen says it's the kind of wood the Sorians use. In all likelihood, the airship we're looking for is Sorian."

"The ship you mentioned?" Leynne asked.

Link's acknowledging nod was slow and grim. "Yeah, probably."

Leynne nodded and asked, "Ah you all right?"

"I'll be fine."

"Soooooo…" Valley droned, her eyes jumping between them. "What we has?"

"Did it feel heavy?" Leynne asked.

"Uh…" Link said, stretching his fingers as he tried to remember what it was like to pick it up. "Not too much. About what you would expect from a piece of wood. All the water and the algae probably makes it heavier than it really is."

Leynne's eyes passed around the gully they were in. He pointed in the direction they had been traveling and said, "I'm willing to believe that it came from that direction. So fah, we've been traveling higheh, so any rainwateh will flow from ahead of us."

"But dere isn't any flowing," Valley said, moving aside so Link could step out of the water.

Leynne nodded. "Not now, anyway. But this area might still have been flooded befoh; the ship fell on a relatively cleah day. That boahd probably floated down to this spot befoh the wateh level around heh dropped. So we'h likely moving in the cohrect direction."

"Then we should keep going," Link said. He looked up the steep slopes on either side of the gully, using a hand to shield his eyes from the rain. "Unless you think we're closer than that."

"No, we would see lahgeh wreckage from heh. We definitely have to move on; that boahd could have traveled quite fah in a single day, provided the nohmal conditions in this area."

"Yes! More walking!" Valley declared, drawing confused looks from Leynne and Link.

They continued out of the gully and across a large plain of mud which Leynne explained as probably the base of a (relatively) dried-up rivulet. This widened a bit before narrowing again as they approached a pair of peaks. Leynne led them up the side of one peak for a while.

Because they were soon stopped by a river crossing the path they had previously been on. The trio looked down as the water flowed before them, looking quite fast and dangerous. They stood atop a plateau with two vertical surfaces on one side and a steep, rising slope on the third, the way back a steady slope which they had just used.

Leynne slid a foot across the wet rock beneath them. "We should stop heh and eat," he told Link and Valley.

"Okay," Link said, sliding his pack off.

Valley wandered to the rising slope to their left and sat down on a flat boulder. "Whew! I's thinking we weren't gonna stop for a while. You thinks we's close?"

Leynne shook his head and dropped his pack. "We might be spending an evening out heh. That boahd we found, if I have an accurate undehstanding of the land, was probably brought down that fah by this riveh."

"But it isn't flowing that way now," Valley pointed out, slipping her arms out of her pack's straps.

"Do you see that mud?" Leynne asked, pointing to a slope of mud blocking the river into its current path. Link glanced over as well, seeing that the slope blocked off the trench they would have been in if Leynne had not led them out. "That was probably the result of a recent landslide. It's the closest fohm of flow we've encountehed, and everything else around us flows downhill."

"So," Link said, pointing with the same hand holding a cloth ration packet, "we need to get to the other side of this river and follow it to its source?"

"At least until we find moh paht of the aihship," Leynne said. He jerked the cord from the top of a ration packet and dug into it. "We can cross at the landslide."

Link, with a hard biscuit between his teeth, glanced back at the landslide. Then he took biscuit out of his mouth to say, "The landslide? Are you sure it's safe?"

Leynne held up a hand while he chewed and swallowed a slice of crisped carrot. He made a face before replying, "The landslide is still theh. If it wasn't stable, the riveh would have washed it away." He flicked his tongue. "Ah these cahrots supposed to be so salty?"

"I thinks the guys who makes dese has weird tastes," Valley said, peering into her packet. "Dese potatoes tastes like dey was pickled before they was chopped and dried."

Link shrugged, picking through the nuts at the bottom of his packet while he allowed his saliva to soften the biscuit in his mouth. After a bite, he said, "I'm used to it. I had to make a living on rations like these when I was traveling on the _Grand Sails_."

"I suppose I cannot complain myself," Leynne sighed before eating another piece of carrot. "I've had to cook foh myself foh quite a few yeahs. While I can go to lengths about spring enehgy and motion transfeh between control points inside a machine, I've found my culinary skills to be ratheh lacking. When I hadn't the occasion to stop foh a meal in Diggehton, I had to put togetheh my meals from the soup stocks, vegetables, and fruits which I retuhned with. I was hunting rabbits when I saw the Seventeen's smoke." He scrunched his face for a moment. "Link? What do you expect me to do to help you build an aihship?"

"Well…" Link said, sitting on the ground with his pack behind him. "You build all kinds of machines, don't you?"

"Granted," Leynne said with a nod. "But I don't know much about structural oh locomotive engineering. Oh aerodynamics. The best I might do is put togetheh a trap dooh foh the ship's toilet."

"You're a navigator," Link said. "And, from what I can tell, you're good with mechanics, at least when it comes to simple machines. If I can get a ship started, I'll need someone to put together its flight controls. My first ship, the _Island Sonata_, used her sails to steer, and it had a control wheel on the bridge. I don't know how to get those to control each other. I'm hoping you will, though."

"Wait, what kind of control ah we looking at?" Leynne asked.

Link, after setting his ration packet on the ground next to him, held up his hands like he was at the helm. "One wheel controls how all three of the booms on the masts move to adjust how the ship turns. All at the same time."

Leynne, with an intrigued look, gave a nod. "Uh huh."

"I also need someone to design controls so that the ship's engine can be controlled by the same person manning the helm. And I need someone to design the safety devices so we know when the engine or something has a problem."

Leynne chuckled and shook his head. "Link, have you eveh sold masks to children?"

Link put on a confused look. "Uh… no."

"I've a feeling you missed a careeh oppohtunity."

…

After their meal, the trio started on their way by crossing the landslide redirecting the river. They followed the bank along the hillside until the hill's muddy slope became steep enough to force them to climb further up the hill. The mud became the rock face of a vertical cliff which they occasionally had to peer over in order to see that they still followed the river. On this cliff, they found that while there was still spiny grass hiding flytrap-like plants, the massive, thorn-covered vines did not reach as high. Instead, bushes dotted the cliff, most of them with spines which tended to break off after attaching themselves to one of the travelers' trousers. The rain had let up to a light drizzle, but the path ahead of them looked a little darker from heavier rainfall. Or perhaps the sun was setting. Link could not tell, realizing that the rainclouds above them were acting similar to the mist which had covered the Forest Realm.

The path they took narrowed at one point. To the left, the distant river in the ravine below. To the right, a large bowl of a pit with muddy slopes. The trio had to narrow themselves into single file in order to have enough room to continue.

"We might have a clearing ahead," Leynne called back to Link and Valley. "If it's safe, we can camp foh the night."

"What are we going to use for shelter?" Link asked.

"Link, you and I have collapsible tents with us."

"I noes has anything," Valley spoke up.

After scratching his thick hair for a moment, Leynne replied, "Link and I might be able to shah tents. We can figuh out accommodations in a—"

"Wah—AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!"

"Valley!" Link spun just in time to watch Valley tumble into the pit. She rolled down the slope, flinging mud everywhere as she was coated in it. The pack tore loose and rolled ahead of her. When she stopped, she slowly stood and began wiping mud from her exposed skin.

Irleen, her light barely visible through Link's cap, commented, "You seem to be surrounded by a bunch of klutzes."

"Ah you all right?" Leynne called to Valley.

"I's fine!" Valley replied. "I's gonna be back up in a sec."

"Are you sure?" Link called down as Leynne rushed towards the clearing on the other side. "It looks pretty steep."

Valley picked up her pack and slung it onto her shoulders. "Yyyyyep! It noes looks _dat_ steep!"

Link watched her start a run in the same direction Leynne was moving. However, the first step at the base of the pit appeared to trip her up, as she immediately planted her body into the mud. Link cringed at the way she had landed, her arms open wide as if trying to put comedic effect into her escape. The area she ran towards was definitely too steep for her to climb; it was only her luck that mud covered the slope. Valley pushed herself out of the mud and wiped her face off. Then she turned and gave a wave to Link as if nothing had happened.

"Valley, just wait there!" Link called out. "I think Leynne has an idea!"

"Ooooooookay!" Valley replied.

"Uh… L-Link?" Irleen said. Link looked up to find her hovering above his head. "What are—what are those?"

"Huh?" Link glanced into the direction she appeared to be looking. He could not see anything distinct at first. The far side of the pit was a narrow opening, and Link considered pointing it out to Valley as a way out.

Until he saw something moving along the edges of the opening. Link squinted and used the back of his hand to wipe rain off his face. What he saw next caused him to call down, "Valley.

"Turn around _slowly_ and don't move."

Confused, Valley turned towards the opening.

A pack of four-legged creatures, black fur matted to their slender bodies, stalked forward from the opening. Link counted six of them, which meant six pairs of almond-shaped, red eyes locked on Valley. The largest stood at the lead of an arrowhead formation, baring its teeth in what appeared to be a sinister grin.

"Wolfos…" Irleen breathed.

"Another monster you fought in your games?" Link asked.

"Actually, any time we encountered a pack of them, we all got killed." Link gave her an incredulous look which mixed with his horror. "The rules made it hard to win against a pack, okay?"

"Anything _useful_ you'd like to tell me?" Link said, walking in Leynne's direction.

"They used to be able to stand on their hind legs," Irleen said, "but these modern ones are just so different. Sharp teeth and claws… kind of like a butcher's knife collection come to life."

Link reached a part of the trail wide enough to move around and took his pack off. "Any weaknesses?"

"Anything that didn't evolve to kill things. Which, considering that _everything_ about a Wolfos is meant to kill you, might as well be its tail."

"What is it, Link?" Leynne, who was digging through his own pack, said when he noticed how tense Link looked.

"Wolfos," Link replied, nodding into the pit. "They've got Valley trapped."

Leynne glanced into the pit. "Shit," he breathed, immediately pulling things out of his pack. "I've fohgotten my crossbow on the train."

"How about rope so we can pull her out?"

"I've rope, but I can't find anything to tie it to."

"Find something quick. I don't think I'll be able to hold them for long."

Leynne looked up from the pack. "What?"

"What!?" Irleen sounded a little more hysteric.

But then, she may have been reacting to the fact that Link had just jumped into the pit. Link landed on the muddy slope and held his balance so that he slid into the bowl standing. When he reached the bottom, he moved to stand between the Wolfos and Valley. The Wolfos stopped at about the middle of the bowl, still some distance from their prey, and started growling.

"Are you okay?" Link asked Valley over his shoulder.

"Um… s-scared, really," she replied in a small voice.

"Take off your pack."

"Why?"

Link drew his sword, and the Wolfos' growling became louder as their fur suddenly stood up from their bodies. "Because, if you have to run, it'll slow you down."

"I thinks you's making them mad," Valley said, carefully removing her pack.

"I'd like to point out that you've lost your mind," Irleen said.

Link followed the sound of her voice to find her hovering to his right. "I just thought they might chase her if Leynne started pulling her out," he said.

"Yeah, well, now they've got _two_ Hylians to feast on!"

"Leynne!?" Link called as his eyes swung to the Wolfos again.

"Theh's nothing to tie to!" Leynne shouted. "Just… wait a moment! I've an idea!"

Link watched the Wolfos' formation widen and stalk a little closer, forming a semi-circle which made a trap with the edges of the pit. "So do they! Hurry!"

The Wolfos' heads suddenly glanced up the side of the pit. When Link heard something hit the ground behind him, he turned. A thick rope had been thrown from above and landed next to Valley's feet. "Valley," Link said, "get going."

Valley snatched up her pack again. Then she wrapped the rope around the end of her arm and grasped it with both hand. "Leynne!"

"Okay, staht walking up the side," Leynne called down.

Link heard growling close in fast and whipped his head around just in time to see that one of the Wolfos had left the pack. Caught off-guard, he swung his sword with an awkward upswing and clocked the Wolfos with the flat of the blade as it jumped at him. The Wolfos lost the viciousness in its leap, but its body was heavy, and it collided with Link. Both hit the ground, and Link lost his sword. The Wolfos landed in between him and the others, but he could see two more charging for him. Without any indication of where his sword went, he rolled away from them. He used his momentum to get on one knee and ripped his boomerang out. There was no time for him to wind up and throw it; the closer Wolfos would be on top of him in moments. So when Link triggered the boomerang open, he swung his arm forward to bash the next Wolfos in the side of the head. The Wolfos reeled to one side until it collapsed in the mud.

Link did not have time to strike the other one, so he rolled out of the way as it snapped for him. Upon recovering, he saw that the Wolfos had already turned for another strike. When it came in range, however, Link swung the boomerang into its jaw. The Wolfos stopped in its tracks, dazed by the hit. Link took the opportunity to smash the metal base of the boomerang in between the Wolfos' eyes. The Wolfos' head reeled skyward, and it slumped into the mud beneath it.

Behind it, next to the second Wolfos, Link caught sight of his sword. Then his peripheral vision alerted him to movement to his left, where the other Wolfos stood. He jerked his head to see that the next two were stalking closer to him, evidently cautious of what he would do next. The large one, however, stood in place. Link needed a distraction so that he could make a run for his sword. He looked to his right, up the slope. Valley had only made it halfway up, probably making Leynne's job difficult by carrying her pack with her.

So he threw his boomerang at the large one as hard as he could. Then he tore across the ground. Throwing the boomerang caused the two smaller Wolfos to pause to watch, caught off-guard by the sight of a yellow object sailing across the air. When it bashed into the larger Wolfos' face, they immediately turned and gave chase. The first one jumped over its fallen brethren to catch Link.

Link picked up his sword and, in the same motion, swung the blade back-handed into the Wolfos' face. The sword gratefully slid into the Wolfos' flesh, opening a cut across one eye. The Wolfos gave a yelp of pain and backed away. Link then jumped out of the way as the second one tried to get a jaw around his left foot. He tensed the muscles in his left arm and swung it down on top of the Wolfos. A sickening crack, like the sound someone breaking open a melon with a rock, sounded from the Wolfos' skull when the blade landed between the Wolfos' pointed ears. Link slid the sword out and sliced open the shoulder of the previous Wolfos as it reached for his right thigh. It retreated again with another yelp.

"Link! Come on!" Link glanced over at the area where he had last seen Valley. Only the rope remained, and he looked up to find Valley watching eagerly.

"Link, go!" Irleen urged as she flew back up the side of the pit.

But Link cast his eyes across the pit. The three Wolfos that had attacked earlier were starting to move again. The large one remained in a motionless heap in the middle of the pit. Link spotted his boomerang to the right of the large one, apparently having bounced a considerable distance off its target's skull. Link ran to the boomerang as fast as he could.

"Link, huhry up!" Leynne shouted, aggravation flavoring his voice.

Link stopped next to the boomerang, switching his sword to his right hand. He picked up the boomerang and used his thumb to close it.

"Watch out!" Irleen hollered.

"Link!" Valley screamed at the same time. Link turned as he put the boomerang back in its holster.

His eyes only had a second to identify the large Wolfos charging at him.

Link leaped to one side, narrowly avoiding the Wolfos' jaw as it reached for the hand holding the sword. He recovered and swung for the Wolfos as it jerked to a stop in the mud. The Wolfos ducked the blow and snapped forward.

"Gah!" Link breathed as he felt the Wolfos' teeth pierce his boots. The Wolfos jerked backwards, trying to drop Link to the ground. But Link maintained his balance, so the Wolfos tried to shake his leg. "Hk—gakh!" The teeth dug deeper, and it felt as if the Wolfos would tear his knee apart. So Link swung the sword at its head, tearing open a clean cut across the bottom of its jaw. But the Wolfos did not relent, unfazed by Link's horrible strike. Link tried to jerk his leg free, but the Wolfos' jaw only clamped down harder.

Link inverted his grip on the sword. Then he thrust it down into the Wolfos' neck, exposed as it was due to turning so that the Wolfos could rip his leg off.

The Wolfos suddenly stopped moving, its visible eye wide with surprise. Link pulled the sword out with an equally violent motion, and red blood spattered the front of his poncho. He felt the pain in his leg lighten when the Wolfos' bite let up, and he wrench his leg from the dead creature's teeth. The Wolfos collapsed to the ground as if it had been using Link to stand in those final moments.

"Link!" Leynne snapped. "Behind you!" Link spun. He saw that three of the unconscious Wolfos, in addition to the wounded one from earlier, had watched the fight.

And they looked about as unpleasant as when Link first drew his sword. There was no more fooling around for them, evident when they all charged.

"HAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!" Link charged back, waving his sword over his head. He swung it, and the three Wolfos that had met unconsciousness jumped aside with wild energy. But Link continued to charge, running straight for the edge of the pit.

For the rope. The Wolfos took a moment to realize what was going on. The wounded one charged from one side, but Link was already close enough to the rope that he grabbed it with a sweep of his left hand.

"Go!" Link screamed. "Pull me up!"

"Dammit!" Leynne, who had suddenly felt Link's weight on the rope, hollered. "Valley, help me!"

Link spotted the wounded Wolfos coming closer and took a swing with his sword. The tip of the blade slashed across its other eye, and it quickly retreated. He saw the other Wolfos closing in on him and started pressing his feet into the mud to help Leynne and Valley pull him up.

"Hurry, hurry!" Irleen urged from above.

"Shut up!" Leynne shouted.

Link was only halfway up the side, and the Wolfos did not seem to have a problem with running up the shallow curve at the base of the pit. He turned and swung his sword to stave off their advance. The lead Wolfos pulled to a sudden stop, and it fell backwards onto the Wolfos behind it. The third one, not even bothered by its brethren's fall, reached forward and snapped at Link. Link swung his sword back the other way and sliced into its shiny nose. Then he lost his footing, causing Leynne to swear an oath to the Goddesses he had never heard before nor could really stop to think of what it meant. But when his feet came down, one boot smashed into the Wolfos nose, and it howled in pain as it rolled back down the pit.

In the next moment, Link got his arms onto the ground above the pit. The rope fell slack, but Valley and Leynne were beside him in a split second, hauling him out of the pit. All three collapsed to the ground, Valley and Link caked in mud. Link thought he felt sweat on his face, but he realized that it was still raining, so it could have easily been that. His heart raced, and he took in a few deep breaths in hope to slow it down. He crawled to the edge of the pit to see the four remaining Wolfos glowering at him. Then they turned and walked to the opening in the far side of the pit, their stride sulky.

Link sighed and turned to Leynne and Valley. "Thanks, you two."

"I'll have to remembeh that you've some soht of idiotic hero complex," Leynne replied.

Link glanced down at the rope and saw that Leynne had tied it to himself. "Looks like we both do."

"Yeah," Irleen sighed as she dropped to hover in the middle of all three. "It's starting to be a problem."

Valley grinned at her. "I thinks I cans lives with dat."


	41. Found and Lost

Chapter 41: Found and Lost

…

~~Day 15

~~It's early in the morning by Leynne's guess. I'm writing this by light of a small lantern which Leynne let me to use while he surveys the area around us.

~~We arrived at the Iyuk Mountains. And we found evidence that an airship, more than likely a Sorian airship, is nearby. While there isn't any solid evidence that it is the Horizon's Eye, I feel it in my gut that it couldn't be any other ship. Leynne expects us to find more wreckage further up the stream in the ravine below us. I'm not sure if I'm as eager anymore, but we have to move on. If it is the Horizon's Eye, I have to know what happened to my crew. And the princess. I don't know if it's some kind of captain's instinct or not, but I seem to be more concerned for my crew than her. Maybe it's because I've known them longer than her, especially Line.

~~Valley and I were attacked by a pack of Wolfos towards the end of the day yesterday. Well, Valley was attacked; I was just stupid enough to fall in after her, thinking I could defend her. I almost had my leg torn off. When we set up shelter about an hour's walk away from the Wolfos attack, Leynne finally got mad because he could hear the limp in my step. It's hard to keep footsteps quiet around here with all the mud and rainwater covering everything. Fortunately, the wounds weren't deep enough for serious damage. Leynne says they should close in a few days. He's got it bandaged now so it won't bleed, but my left boot is covered in blood. I feel a little naked because I had to cut off the lower legs from my body suit. Now there's a drafty spot around my knees because I cut them too short. I'll have to get a new suit when I get back up to the sky.

…

The rain fell harder, forcing Link and Leynne to keep their heads bowed against it pelting their eyes. Mist shrouded the bottom of the ravine they followed, and the increased rainfall cut visibility to half.

"Hey, guys, I sees something over dere!"

Except for Valley.

Leynne groaned and said, "Valley, I hope this isn't anotheh bouldeh; you've found three so fah."

"But I really _seeeeeees_ something dis time!" Valley insisted, bounding in front of Leynne to stop him. "You isn't even looking! You keeps staring at the ground."

Leynne looked up, shielding his eyes with a hand. "I don't like rain in my eyes. Besides, you can't see _anything_ out heh; theh's too much rain!"

"I saw da boulders," she said, a finger pointing at Leynne's nose.

Leynne indicated the slope to his right with an arm. "They wehen't that fah away!"

Link sighed and stepped up next to him. "Leynne, why don't we rest for a bit? My leg's beginning to throb."

"Ah the bandages bothering you?" he asked.

"N-no, no," Link quickly said. "It just hurts a bit."

Leynne gave him an irritated look. Then he told Valley, "Okay. Wheh is it?"

"Over dere," she replied, one hand pointing toward the ravine.

Leynne gave another groan as both he and Link stepped closer to the edge of the ravine. Leynne removed one strap of his pack so he could get into one of the side pockets. In a moment, he jerked his fist, producing what almost looked like a canteen to Link. Link took notice of the pair of lenses in the front when Leynne put the other end of the device over his face. "What is that?" he asked.

"It's a duoscope," Leynne answered.

"A… duoscope?"

"Something I put togetheh a few yeahs ago. It doesn't magnify like a telescope, but it makes judging distances a little easieh." He paused to make an adjustment on a small wheel in between the device's twin cylinders. "While the angulah telescope is fine foh suhveying, this is a lot simpleh and pohtable."

"The… angular…"

Leynne took the duoscope away from his face for a moment. "The thing that looks like it used to be a pictograph box," he said in an annoyed tone. Placing the device to his face again, he added, "I can't possibly use that out heh because it would be too much to cahry. And I don't have level ground to… set…" Then, he sighed and put the duoscope against his chest. "I can't believe how incredible heh luck is."

"Huh?" Link asked.

But he turned to Valley. "How can you even _see_ that? _I_ had to pull out a telescope just to see it."

"I just looked for da funny colors," she answered. "It looks all whirly and shiny from here!"

"Whihly and… shiny…" Leynne shook his head. "You have a gift foh description."

"Why? What is it?" Link asked.

"Have a look," Leynne said, handing him the duoscope. Before Link looked through it, Leynne pointed to the right mountain on the other side of the ravine. "The base itself is hahd to see, but if you look above that, you can see it."

Link put the duoscope to his eyes. He could see a few more details on the mountain Leynne had indicated, so he started looking around. But when his vision suddenly took on a green color, he pulled the duoscope away and said, "Irleen, your glow is in the way."

Irleen gave an irate "hmph" as she jumped from Link's hat. When Link put the duoscope to his face again, she fluttered into the left lens and said, "Excuse my curiosity."

"Cut it out," Link said, leaning over to look past her.

And he saw it. It was a little difficult to make out against the muddy mountainside, especially since its flat form let it blend into the slope. But now that Link was looking at it, he found his heart pounding against his chest. At his best guess, it was a rudder. The smooth inside slant that would have sat flush with the ship's stern, the stylistic, outer double-curve which kept the piece light while offering more lateral control from the boat's underside… The _Horizon's Eye_ had been controlled by the ship's wheel, so the tiller should still be with the rest of the vessel.

"Anything you recognize?" Leynne asked after a moment.

Link nodded. "Irleen, can you see where I'm looking?"

"Yeah, why?" Irleen said, sitting on top of the adjustment wheel in between the cylinders.

"Can you tell if that's Sorian out there?"

Irleen moaned as she sounded as if she was concentrating. "I see _something_ which looks like Sorian wood," she said, "but I-I can't tell what it is from here."

"That's fine," Link said, lowering the duoscope. He glanced aside at Leynne. "It's a rudder."

"A ruddeh?" Leynne repeated. "As in a _ship's_ ruddeh? Used to control a ship's direction?"

Link nodded. "It's usually a strong piece; you have to ground a ship to snap it off. I might have a better idea of what happened if we can get closer."

"Heavy?" Leynne asked.

At this, Link shrugged and handed the duoscope back. "Not especially. Most of the weight on the stern of an airship is in the aftcastle; the forecastle usually has to be weighed down in order to balance the ship. It should be a relatively light piece in order to save weight, but since it's on the outside of the hull, it's likely to come off due to something hitting it."

"Do _all_ of you sailing kinds have this level of detail stohed in youh minds?" Leynne asked as he slung his pack around to replace the duoscope.

"If I understood right," Link said, "the _Horizon's Eye_ and the _Grand Sails_ were both rigged the same way. They used square sails for travel, and they can't be turned by a wheel like gaff-rigged sails, so they have to use a rudder for steering. This, well… it's something I had to know as an airman on the _Grand Sails_."

"They evidently lost a serious well of infohmation when you fell," Leynne remarked in a surprised tone.

Link shrugged. "It's… something _any_ airman should know about a ship. The question is how we're going to get over there. We haven't seen any bridges or anything around here."

"Agreed," Leynne said with a nod. He indicated the ravine with a sweep of his hand. "If we follow along heh, we might find a path across." He turned to the slope behind them. "We must be reaching an apex soon. Then this mountain will begin to slope down, and we might find a place to cross."

…

Almost an hour later revealed a descending slope along their path, followed by another mudslide which bridged the ravine. Although the bridge appeared dodgy, the trio crossed without incident. The other side was a rock slope clear of mud, so they rested there. Leynne quickly set up one tent so that he could look at Link's leg in a dry environment. The rain had seeped in through the holes in his boots and soaked the bandages around his leg, so Leynne changed the bandages and tied a long, wool stocking around the boot to prevent rain from soaking the new bandages. He told Link that he had applied alcohol to the wound (which Link did not need to be informed of, considering the kicking he did during the application), but he might need to take some medicine when they returned to the Forest Realm in case he had an infection. To Link's fortune, whatever infection he might have picked up from the Wolfos' teeth, the alcohol was staving it off so far. Link was not particularly worried about the bite; as long as he could walk on the leg, he determined that it would be all right.

After eating, they rounded the base of the mountain. The slope on what Leynne had deemed the southern side of the mountain was covered in mud and dead patches of grass.

Link spotted the rudder first and picked up his pace. "Here it is!" he called behind him.

"Link, slow down!" Leynne shouted to him. Then Valley rushed past him. "Wait!"

"Hurry up!" Valley shouted back.

Link stopped next to the rudder and dropped to his knees. One hand brushed the damp, warped surface as if to be certain it was real. "Irleen?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah, Link?"

"Is this it?"

She jumped out of his hat and hovered over the rudder. "Yep. It's definitely Sorian wood. Only some of its timbers still appear to be alive."

"Dat means what?" Valley asked. She glanced over as Leynne stepped up next to her.

"It's about as old as that board we found yesterday," Irleen said. She moved closer to the wood.

Then a stream of gold mist flowed up from her as she mumbled something to herself. All three Hylians stared in awe while the stream formed a ball around her. Then—"Wah!"—it suddenly forced itself at Link, causing him to fall backwards in surprise. His back met the mud in an undignified splat, and Leynne quickly rounded the rudder to help Link up.

"What was dat?" Valley asked.

"If I did it right, we'll see," Irleen replied as she moved away from the rudder. Leynne helped Link to his feet, and Link glanced down at the board.

Link was astonished to see the same gold mist flowing along the lighter grains in the wood, swirling like a building cloud forced into a faster pace. It was faint, and one board in the middle of the rudder did not show any at all. "Wha… what is all that… swirling?" he asked, using a finger to trace one stream.

"That's the life flow of the wood," Irleen said. "And the result of an experiment."

"An _experiment_?" Leynne asked.

"I wasn't sure at first until Valley spotted the rudder earlier," she said. "I don't know how she sees it, but it looks like Hylians can see the life flow in Sorian wood. I just used the life flow in one board to allow Link to see it."

"You means…" Valley had to ponder for a moment. Then she pointed a finger at the rudder. "Da wood noes shines like dat? I just sees things?"

"Valley, when did you first start seeing it?" Leynne asked.

"I noes knows," Valley said with a shrug. "I noes saw wood do dat before. You said it's Sorian wood, so I just thinks dat it's suppose to look like dat."

"There's your answer, Leynne," Link told him. "That's how she saw the rudder before you pulled out your duoscope."

"Yes, but that _doesn't_ explain how she sees it in the fihst place," Leynne said.

"She must have come in contact with Sorian materials before," Irleen said. She turned to Valley. "Have you bought anything weird lately?"

"I noes _thinks_ so," Valley said. She put a hand to the tip of her ear and started rubbing it. "I just bought da supplies with me. And… maybe a new earring? But I left dat at home."

"Something to be concerned about?" Link asked.

"Well, when Leynne told the story about finding your compass," Irleen said, "I began wondering if any of my gems might have also found their way on the market in Library Town. I want to see that earring when we get back."

"Okay, but I wants to keep it," Valley told her.

Leynne stepped forward and slipped his fingers under the rudder. He lifted it with a bit of effort, then he released it. "Well, it feels heavy enough. I suspect that _this_ mountain may yield ouh crashed vessel."

Link, Irleen, and Valley looked up the side of the mountain, following its slope up until it disappeared into the rainclouds. And Valley pointed and said, "Look! More shiny!"

Link could see it, too. It was a dim spot further up the mountain; a rock formation would have blocked it if he had not seen the glow. He judged it to be much larger than the rudder. It was definitely taller.

"Leynne," Link said as the inventor reached for his duoscope. "I think we've definitely found our mountain."

"Yeah," Leynne said, placing the duoscope on his face. "It'll be an interesting climb from heh."

…

They started up the slope with ease. Their first climb brought them close enough to inspect the other object. Link judged it to be a mast due to its size and the broken quarters slung across its round, battered length. The investigation also yielded large pools or divots in the mud further up the mountain. They followed these further up. Thanks to Irleen, Link was able to spot more vessel fragments with Valley as they continued further up. The number they reported to Leynne convinced them that they were on the right track. Many of the smaller fragments were higher up, where the rain was not strong enough to wash the mud down the mountain right away.

They reached high enough that they were climbing through the rainclouds wrapped around the mountain. Leynne used the rope from his pack to tie the three of them together while Irleen kept the way lit. While she was not helpful for seeing through the rainclouds themselves, her light allowed them to find holds on the steeper rock further up the mountain. And they needed every handhold they could find; the rock was slick due to the rain, and none of them had brought proper climbing equipment. Fortunately, after Leynne outlined the consequences of falling from their current height (citing the mast they had found as an example), Link and Valley were _very_ certain to not lose their grips. They had to stop at a relatively level spot to rest and eat, and then they changed clothes. Link exchanged his poncho for his tunic, offering his shirt to Valley. He also gave her the fur-lined jacket Leynne had packed in the bottom of his pack, reminding Valley that his usual outfit was made for cold environments. Cold, but Link quickly realized that, as they resumed their climb, his tunic and body suit became useless once sufficiently wet. Which took only a few minutes.

The cold worsened when they reached another level area, which was covered with a thick layer of snow. Leynne was the first to get his arms to the top, and Link followed close behind. After pulling himself up, Leynne moved over to help Valley up the side. Link rested against a bare rock sitting on the edge of the mountain, slowing his breathing and hoping that the new cold he experienced would help relieve the soreness in his arms. His eyes closed, he could hear Leynne and Valley panting nearby. He let his head loll in the cliff's direction, and he found himself gazing across the top of the rainclouds that obstructed the mountain range below. From here, only a couple peeks stood above the clouds with them. His eyes wandered up, spying a ball-sized cloud much higher in the sky. The Undying Storm, cast red against a deep blue as the sun set somewhere behind him. It amazed him that, although they had climbed so much in the past few hours, the storm still lofted about in the sky far above them. One hand crushed a handful of snow. He could not believe how far he had fallen.

"Interesting climb," he told Leynne, his eyes still focused on the Undying Storm.

"Interesting view," Leynne replied. "That stohm fohmation… it looks _fah_ too high. What is it?"

"That's the Undying Storm," Link answered. "It surrounds the Sorian's home. They call it the Storm of Purgatory."

"Why's dat?" Valley huffed.

"There's a demon airship inside," Link said. "That's what shot down the _Island Sonata_."

"Link…" Irleen whispered from somewhere nearby.

"Hang on, Irleen," he told her.

"No, Link," Leynne said. "Look."

Link looked before him. Valley was leaning back on a rock like him, only her chin visible because she allowed her head to rest at an odd angle on the rock behind her. Leynne had dropped to the ground close to her, looking a little more relaxed. His eyes focused on a sight to Link's left, so he turned his head in that direction as well.

Fragments of timbers littered the ground near them, and Link could see a large patch of bare rock showing through the snow. The skid mark led to the wreckage of an airship, her stern permanently listing to starboard and part of her hull collapsed under what had undoubtedly been a tremendous fall. From where Link sat, he saw that the aftcastle appeared intact and most of the ship's length was still whole along the weather deck and maybe the first deck beneath that. He used his rock to pull himself back to his sore legs so that he could move closer. The port face was visible to him, and he saw that one mast had snapped against the rocks to the left after the landing, its lines strewn about.

But, most of all, he could see the hull glowing with life. Half of the ship was dead, mostly the hull below the bulwark.

"Irleen," he said, untying the rope from around his waist. "Do you… know if the _Horizon's Eye_ had any outward identifiers? Markings or anything?"

Irleen, hovering not far from him as she stared up at the airship, shook from side to side. "Sorry, Link. I don't know."

"Dis is… horrible." Link and Irleen turned to see Valley staring up in awe at the vessel. "It's… Goddesses above, it's so…"

Leynne, standing just over her shoulder, heaved an audible sigh. "Come on, you two. If we'h to discoveh wheh this aihship came from, we'll have to boahd it."

Link walked close enough to touch the hull, but he avoided the urge; something in his mind told him to wait. Instead, he grabbed one of the stays dangling from the bulwark high above. After a tug, he told Valley and Leynne as the stepped closer, "I think we can climb up this. It feels secure enough."

"Let me see," Leynne said, squeezing through the narrow gap between the ship and Valley. He took the stay from Link and tugged it in the same way. Then he jumped and hung onto it for a moment. When he released, he said, "You'h right, but we should leave the packs heh foh now. I don't know about you two, but my shouldehs ah soh."

They discarded their packs and used the stay to haul their aching bodies onto the weather deck. Once Link was on, he almost recognized the deck from the dream he had had so long ago. Almost, because there were still a few things out of place. First, the forecastle, along with most of the bow, had been smashed apart from the fall and crash into the rock face at the front of the airship. Second, the first time he had seen it, it had been from behind the helm on the aftcastle, where the captain would have stood.

Third, the weather deck had not been covered in signs of battle. Holes had been blown into the deck amidships. All three masts had been torn out of the deck, taking some of surrounding deck planks with them. There was no sign of the bowsprit; Link remembered that, in his dream, one of the shots from the other ship had blown it to bits. Only the rigging for the mizzenmast littered the deck; most of the stays for the foremast and main mast were missing, and the rigging looked to have been wound and piled against the bulwark only to be tossed around when the ship had crashed. Link could not be sure what to make of this. He did not give a lot of time to think. Instead, his attention had fallen to what those lines were covering.

Blood had soaked into the deck boards. Someone had attempted to scrub it out, but it had only spread the blood around. Most of it covered the starboard side of the deck. Holes also peppered the deck. For a moment, Link thought he forgot to breathe.

"Goddesses above," Leynne breathed, breaking into Link's thoughts. "Link… just… what _happened_ heh?"

Link looked down at his feet. "They were attacked. Just like I dreamed."

"Like what?" Leynne asked.

Link stalled, removing his hat so he could run his fingers through his damp hair. "I had a dream, a… vision, I guess. I saw a ship under attack. I had forgotten about it until the _Island Sonata_ reached Forelight Island. I couldn't figure it out until Irleen told me about the storm and the gem she gave Captain Koroul."

"Captain Koroul?" Leynne asked.

"Gem?" Valley asked.

"I placed an impression of his crew on one of my magic gems," Irleen spoke up. "Anyone who holds it knows as much about Link's crew as Link. Sometimes it causes the holder to share dreams with whoever's impression is on it."

"Somehow," Link continued, "I had a dream of the attack on the _Horizon's Eye_ a day before it happened. I saw it all from the eyes of the _Horizon's Eye_'s captain, Captain Koroul. I couldn't warn the crew in time and had to chase them in the _Island Sonata_. That's… when we were shot down." He looked across the deck again. "This is… all that's left of the _Horizon's Eye_. There's no doubt anymore."

"But… _who_ attacked the ship?" Leynne asked.

Link sighed. "If what Irleen told me about the Undying Storm was true, it was probably Cunimincus's ship, the _Smiling Gunner_. In fact… I _know_ it had to be. I saw the ship in the storm while we were approaching the island."

Leynne attempted a smile, but he faltered. "It… it sounds like some kind of fairy tale," he said, his voice colored with a humorless chuckle.

"A bad one," Valley said, stepping closer to Link to place a hand on his shoulder. "You's gonna be okay?"

Link shook his head. "I don't know…"

Leynne glanced to the south, where the Undying Storm hung over the kingdom. "It's traveled a long way from that stohm, Link," he said. "And, somehow, I don't think it came undeh its own poweh. We should look around."

Link sniffed and nodded. "Yeah…" Without another word, Link turned and wandered towards the open doors of the aftcastle. Valley, Irleen, and Leynne watched his back for a moment before spreading across the deck in search of something to look at.

Link had stepped into what appeared to be the captain's cabin. Unlike his cabin on the _Island Sonata_, Captain Koroul had had a vast room for which to sleep, eat, and command his ship. He had a fair-sized bed on the right, reminding Link of how large the captain had looked when they first met. At the foot of the bed was a small cupboard, its doors left open so that extra pairs of boots could spill onto the floor. A wardrobe with one of its doors broken from a hinge revealed extra clothing, multiples of the same red, sleeveless uniform hiding whatever else the captain might have worn. In the middle of a room sat a desk and a large table. Link saw that maps had been tacked to the table. Most of the items that had sat on top of the desk, pens, books, a complex-looking compass, had all found their ways onto the red rug on the floor. Drawers on the table had slid out and fallen to the floor as well, scattering their contents as far as the wall next to Link. The windows in the back were intact, but the glass had been cracked, probably a result of the hard landing. On the left side of the room was an empty wine rack. Only a couple of bottles had survived the crash. The rest littered the floor as shards of glass and purple stains in the deck boards. A small closet sat in the corner to his left. The door had been knocked open, showing Link where the captain would relieve himself. Looking down, Link saw a few droplets of blood that had soaked into the boards. To his relative relief, it appeared that no one had been killed in here.

Link crossed the cabin to the windows. He gazed out at the large spot of bare earth in the middle of the snow-covered rocks. Then his eyes slowly moved up until he saw the bottom of the Undying Storm hanging from the top of the window. He could not believe how far the ship had come. Who had sent it so far out? How had it been able to sail it after the attack? What happened to the captain? To the crew?

To _his_ crew? Line? Albert? Flower? Leonard?

Princess Zelda?

Whose blood stained the deck?

One tear. Then two. The soft sound of sobbing came after. Link's lips shivered as he tried to control his voice. But he could not think of any other conclusion.

His crew… the princess… Captain Koroul and his men… They all had to be dead.

Link slowly slumped to the floor. His back against the bulkhead, he sat and curled up. For what seemed like eternity, he sobbed into his knees.


	42. Warm Offerings

Chapter 42: Warm Offerings

…

~~We found the ship.

That was all Link needed to write. This journey would forever be seared into his mind. The horror of reliving the _Island Sonata_ being shot out from under his feet lost the right to be his worse waking memory, knowing that the attack and crash of the _Horizon's Eye_ by far took more lives than his first ship. And worse, it had taken the lives of people he was suppose to be responsible for.

He closed his journal and stashed it in his pack. Then he pulled himself up the rope onto the weather deck. No matter how many times he saw that same deck, he still felt shock from seeing it torn and stained. It must have been guilt, he decided. Which of the blood belonged to the Sorian crew? Which of it belonged to _his_ crew? Leynne wandered about the weather deck, examining the deck planks as if looking for a clue to a mystery. Valley was on the aftcastle, examining the helm. Irleen fluttered about the deck, noticeably avoiding the large bloodstain on the starboard side.

Link decided to return to the captain's cabin. Inside, he immediately stepped to the table to look at the maps. He recognized one as a chart of the area around the Undying Storm, the one which he and Line had used to determine the _Island Sonata_'s course. Another was a simpler chart of the Sky Lines, probably another chart Line had pulled from the _Island Sonata_. This one had writing on it.

—"You suck."

Link recognized Line's messy handwriting and smiled to himself. He could not remember when he had written that; it must have been…

—"Ha ha! You can't read this!"

—"Here lies the Undying Storm, home of the murdering bastards!"

—"This island has a waterfall. Maybe I'll chuck you over the edge of it someday."

—"I can see myself in your skull. Do you know how wrong that is?"

—"If you follow this Sky Line, you'll reach heaven. But, before that, you'll reach starvation!"

—"I wonder what kind of noise you'd make if you hit the surface."

Link's head recoiled as he read the nasty notes that Line had left. At first, the notes looked like Line was railing one of Captain Koroul's crew, using Hylian to cover up what he really wanted to say. But, the last time Link had seen Line, Line was quite enthusiastic about sailing with the Sorian crew. And some of these notes seemed pretty harsh for Line. Sure, Line could pull out a number of hurtful insults when he was angry; Link remembered when his mouth started at least three fistfights in the same day. But Line would never sound so vile in the open like this, no matter how mad he was. Link could only conclude that these might have been written after the _Horizon's Eye_ was attacked.

When someone else was on board, someone Line did _not_ like.

That could only mean that Line had been with the ship _after_ it had been attacked. Link stepped around the table and pulled open the only drawer that had not fallen out. He found an assortment of pencils and old shavings but not what he needed. He walked over to the desk and started checking through the drawers. Nothing, nothing, nothing, a nice letter opener, nothing, and a collection of broken wine glasses. Next, he strode to the bed and checked underneath.

Leynne stopped in the doorway and watched Link pull out a storage drawer almost as large as the bed. "Link?" he asked. "What ah you doing?"

"Looking," Link said as he rifled through the contents, which seemed to be just a few small novels mixed in with fabric samples.

"This I can tell," Leynne said. "Looking foh what?"

Link slammed the drawer back under the bed. "The log book."

"What?"

Link walked over to the wardrobe and pulled the doors open. "The captain's log. Every ship has one: sailing ship, airship, Hylian, Sorian…" He paused as he stretched up to feel around the shelf at the top of the wardrobe. "A record book. A journal. Something. I've never known a captain to not have one."

Leynne shook his head. "Why do you need to find the log book?"

Link, finished with the wardrobe, stepped into the middle of the room and looked around. "Because it's missing."

Leynne tilted his head, trying to think. "So… you'h looking foh something… that's missing."

Link pointed a finger at him, a triumphant smile on his face. "Exactly."

Leynne put on a difficult look, scratching his wet hair. "Okay… okay, I think I've a solution…"

"No, it's really simple," Link told him, bending over to check under the table. Then he smacked the table top before wandering towards the wine rack. "Look at this."

Leynne leaned out to signal Valley into the cabin. Then he stepped over to the table. "It's a map," he observed, trying not to sound sarcastic.

"From the _Island Sonata_," Link said, checking inside the small toilet closet. "Line must have grabbed it before the _Horizon's Eye_ left."

Leynne angled his head so he could read some of the scribbles on the chart. "Whoeveh wrote these seemed to have had a problem with the crew. Oh the captain."

Link turned back to the rest of the room and looked around. "Notice anything about them?"

Leynne glanced down at the table as Valley stepped into the doorway, Irleen hovering over her head. "I… don't see anything _unusual_…"

"It's Hylian."

Leynne followed Link with his eyes as Link moved to look around the floor under the rear windows. "You… _did_ say that this map came from _youh_ ship."

"Line doesn't scribble all over maps like that."

Leynne exchanged a shrug with Valley. "Maybe he had a change of heaht?"

Link stood up and shook his head. "I don't think so."

Leynne opened his mouth to say something, but then he froze to think about it. One hand making a circle in the air, he said, "What is this mad fohm of logic leading to, Link? Cleahly, youh ranting has some kind of puhpose, unless you've lost youh mind."

Link, halfway across the room, froze. He looked back and forth between Leynne and Valley. Then he asked Valley, "Am I ranting?"

Valley gave her head a slow nod while Irleen matched her movements by bouncing up and down. "You isn't going loopy on us, is you?" Valley asked.

Link quickly shook his head. "No, I jus—… Okay, here's what I'm thinking. Line was on the ship when it was attacked. You know, _obviously_. But!" He stepped over to the table and jammed a finger on top of the depiction of the Undying Storm. "(Ow.) The_ Horizon's Eye_ was in the storm when it was attacked. So why didn't it fall after the _Island Sonata_?"

Leynne shrugged. "It…might've followed the Sky Line heh."

Link held up a finger. "Yes, but not unmanned. An airship can't go anywhere without a crew; it would just fall out of the Sky Line and probably fly circles until its engine ran out." After he finished winding his hand in circles, he paused to think. Then he rushed past Valley out the door. "The ship must have been manned. And then it was scuttled."

"Scuttled?" Valley asked.

"How do you know _that_?" Leynne asked, following him out.

Link stopped, turned, and indicated the coils of rope with a hand. "Those spare lines shouldn't be there; they're a walking hazard."

"I's gonna say," Valley said, stopping beside Leynne. "I almost fell over dem earlier."

"They're the stays for the foremast and the main mast," Link told them. He pointed out the rope which they used to board. "That's a line from the mizzenmast."

"Meaning that this ship only had one mast when it crashed," Leynne said. "Right?"

"It's gotta be," Link said. "Meaning that someone _used_ this ship to sail before it hit the ground."

Leynne squeezed an eye shut as he thought. "What does this have to do with a missing log book?"

"A log book doesn't go missing unless the ship is sunk on purpose," Link explained. "Otherwise it'd be in the captain's cabin. Someone has it. Someone alive."

"Okay," Valley said. "Who has it?"

Link scrunched his face for a moment. "I don't know. But we need to look around some more."

"Wait, Link," Leynne said. "How do you know the ship was _scuttled_?"

Link shrugged at him. "It's down here, isn't it?"

"But it couldn't have possibly crashed?"

"Oh, no, it could have. I just don't believe it did."

Leynne held up a hand. "Okay, just calm down foh a moment. It's getting late, and it'll be getting coldeh when night finishes falling. The ship is the only souhce of shelteh we have foh the moment, so let's make the best of it."

Link glanced up at the sky. He was right; the sky looked to be in its last moments of twilight. Night would make it hard to search around the ship for any more clues as to what happened above. So Link nodded and said, "Okay, let's go get the packs."

…

Link and Valley used the broken stay to haul up their packs while Leynne scouted the airship for a clear place to sleep. Crew quarters were out of the question since the bow of the ship, where they were located, was smashed, although when Link and Valley found Leynne again, he revealed to have scrounged some extra blankets from what little of the crew accommodations were left. The deck immediately beneath the weather deck was out of the question, as food storage, tools, and replacement parts were scattered all over the area close to the stairs, blocking off most of the deck. But they found a better spot on the deck below that, which must have been cargo storage due to all the battered barrels and destroyed crates lining the walls. While Link and Valley set up their beds (which consisted of the meager bedrolls at the bottoms of their packs in addition to the extra blankets), Leynne used his dagger to investigate the barrels' contents. They found a few barrels of grog among the leaking or spoiled contents, and Link told them that just a little bit should not do any harm. Unfortunately, that little bit left Valley unconscious almost immediately. After finishing a late dinner on more rations, Leynne and Link decided to turn in. Irleen decided to stay up a little longer, claiming a need to clear her head a bit.

_Eouuuuuuuuuuuuh_._ U-eouuuuuuuuuuuuh_. Some kind of wind began blowing against the outside of the ship, causing Link grief in his venture to get some sleep.

_Eouuuuuuuuuuuuh_._ U-eouuuuuuuuuuuuh_.

_Kyauuuuuuuu-tih_. Link opened his eyes, suddenly aware of the hushed voice in that last gust. Even more eerie, though, was that the wind seemed to just die after it. Link could not see anything moving around him, faintly illuminated by his view of the ship's life flow.

Or he thought, anyway. But he could see movement in one corner of his eye, something near the stairs which was not consistent with the ship's structure. It disappeared the moment he looked at it, though. After checking that Leynne and Valley were still asleep, he shoved his blankets aside. He was careful about his steps as he crossed the deck and descended further into the ship.

The deck below offered a bit of light through a crack in the hull, which was just a little better than what he could see with the ship's life flow. Here, the ship seemed a little dead, probably the result of the number of damaged planks nearby. Only one or two in the deck itself shone bright; the rest looked very weak. This deck did not hold much, maybe a few spare supplies which probably had not fit onto one of the upper decks. Like the decks above, Link looked toward the bow from behind the stairs to find that the front of the deck had been smashed to splinters from the ship's final impact. Small bits of twilight peeked inside. His eyes passed around the deck as he started toward the stern, although he was more convinced that he had just been seeing things. The deck creaked horribly under his feet, making him wonder if it might wake Leynne up or attract Irleen's attention.

Then the deck collapsed from underneath him.

"YAAAAAAAAAAH! Gohf! Ugh!" Link fell through to the next deck. From there, he rolled along an incline before something soft stopped him. He had landed on his stomach, his face pressed into a harsh cold. He lifted his head and pushed away from the ground, waiting for his eyes to stop spinning before he looked around.

When his head cleared, he realized that he had fallen through a hole in the bottom of the ship. His landing had brought him to another plateau covered in snow.

A plateau bearing gravestones.

A shiver scampered up Link's spine, and he was hollering in the next moment, "LEYNNE! VALLEY! IRLEEN! GUYS, WAKE UP!" He scrambled backwards, pushing with his feet until he was sitting under cover of the ship's hull again. Banging sounded from above, signaling that someone had awoken from his cry.

Link sat on boards which used to comprise the hull, huddled against the cold as he looked at the gravesite. His heart and his breathing calmed, allowing him to look on the site with composed thoughts. The gravestones were little more than slabs of unshaped rock thrust in the ground. The darkness around him made it difficult to see, but Link noticed that the snow dipped in front of each gravestone. The graves were arranged in rows of three, six, and four. Thirteen in total.

The _Horizon's Eye_ was too large to be manned by a crew of thirteen.

Link saw spots of light move along the ground in front of him and turned around. At the same time a light descended into the same space he had fallen, he said, "I'm over here."

"Link," Leynne said first, a lantern's light obscuring his face. "Ah you all right?"

Link stood and stepped forward to avoid hitting his head against the hull above him. "I'm fine," he replied with a nod. Then he swept a hand out to the gravesite. "I found part of the crew."

"Really?" Irleen asked as she fluttered into view. She dodged past Leynne as he stooped to navigate the narrow opening, a drowsy Valley holding his jacket as she followed. She stopped just outside the hole in the hull. "Oh, my…" she trailed off in a soft voice.

"Goddesses above," Leynne agreed as he stepped out of the ship.

Link moved out of Valley's way so she could see as well. Upon seeing the site, Valley's eyes widened. "Is… is dey…"

"Buried," Leynne said. "And it doesn't appeah they've been heh too long; theh's a fresh layeh of snow on top of them."

"But how?" Irleen asked, fluttering to one of the closer graves. "Who buried them?"

"You thinks someone survived?" Valley asked.

"_We_ survived," Link said.

"Any indication who they ah?" Leynne asked.

"I don't—" Link started.

"Hey!" Irleen snapped. She started spinning in front of one grave. "Link, look at this!"

Link stepped to the grave and looked at it. Irleen was hovering over a spot the snow had not yet covered, her light revealing dark earth. And in the middle of that earth was a metallic glint. Link, careful not to step in the grave itself, moved to one side and dug his hand around the metal. His fingers found very little, but he pulled out something the size of a rivet. He found it, once he could angle it in Irleen's light, to be a small plate with a chip in one side. Although plain, Link could see that it bore Sorian script.

"Irleen?" he asked, showing the plate to her.

Irleen hovered closer. "Flip it over; you're holding it backwards." Link turned the plate in his fingers. "'Airman Wokeen, _Horizon's Eye_'. It's an identity tag."

"An identity tag?" Leynne asked.

"Sorians in the air fleet wear them for identification. In case their bodies are found and can't be otherwise recognized."

"Whoeveh buried them must have left them in the open so they could be identified," Leynne said.

"But the Skyriders never used anything like that," Link said. He glanced around. Then he dropped the tag back where he had found it. "Help me start looking."

Link moved to the grave behind him while Leynne took the other grave and Valley started on the next row. After presenting three more Sorian tags, Leynne and Link moved to the next row as well. Link started at the far right.

And Irleen's light revealed something blue buried in the snow. "I've got something!" he said, using his hands to scoop a handful of snow out of his way. He pulled on the blue cloth, unfolding a tunic soaked and caked in snow. Link stood with the tunic held in his arms, his heart sinking. One of his airmen was buried here.

"Link?" Valley asked.

"Link," Leynne asked, "who is it?"

The upper part of the tunic was stained with blood. Link also found a hole around another bloodspot at about the stomach. The tunic was large, too large to have been Line. He turned it inside out and found the owner's tag sewn into the back of the elastic waistband. "Albert…" he muttered. Then, louder, he told them, "It's Airman Albert. He was one of the airmen Captain Alfonzo had assigned to me from the _Grand Sails_."

"Oh, noes, Link," Valley said. "Your own crew."

Link examined the front of the tunic again, dropping to his knees. He could see that the hole had been a round from a pistol. The rest of the blood… Link did not want to imagine what had caused the blood around the neckline. He did not know Albert very well, and the same went for Flower and Leonard. He wished he had, though. Somehow, it did not seem fair.

"Link?" Valley's voice snapped Link back to reality. They were standing in the last row of graves, Valley not far from him. "We checked all the graves. It looks like the rest is all Sorians."

Link nodded and placed the bloody tunic back on the ground. His voice came out shaky as he said, "We should… c-copy their names down. Someone will want to know what happened to them."

"Okay," Valley nodded. She stepped around the grave and leaned over to look into Link's eyes. "Is you gonna be okay?" Link nodded. But she put a hand up and wiped a tear away from his cheek. "You's crying."

Link nodded again and wiped his face with the back of his sleeve. "I'll be okay," he said. "I just… never lost a man before. Back on the _Grand Sails_, the other airmen could start five bar fights in a single day, and we only had to drag the unconscious ones back. I've never seen an airman die before."

"Theh _is_ some good news," Leynne pointed out. "While we've found thihteen graves, it appeahs that youh friend Line is alive somewheh else. Along with othehs."

"Yeah, I guess," Link said as he turned around.

Leynne glanced out beyond the graves. Then he reached over a grave and tugged on Valley' coat. "Hey," he whispered. "We have visitohs."

"What?" Valley asked, glancing in the same direction. "Uh oh. Link?"

Irleen spotted the lights and ducked into Link's hat. Link spun, at first surprised to see that other people appeared to be up here with them. But he picked up on his companions' worry and waved his arm. "Hurry. Back to the ship."

They could not do much to silence their hustle. Leynne blew out his lantern before ducking into the ship with the other two. Even then, as Link peered through the splinters of the hull boards, he could see even in the dim light that their footprints mucked what had once been a pristine sheet of snow. Furthermore, he had left Albert's bloody tunic on the ground, and all of the Sorian crew's tags had been unburied.

The first things to come into view, Link mistook for fairies. But they were only candle-bearing glass bulbs on the end of misshapen tree branches, each one just barely taller than their carriers.

Their carriers being twice Link's size. Link found himself awed by the lumbering creatures walking into the gravesite, their bodies nothing but massive plates of muscle underneath thick fur representing many different shades of white. Even in the lantern light, their faces looked black. Their prominent brows cast their eyes into shadow, making it hard to tell what they were looking at. Their lantern jaws reminded Link of the many airmen who had liked to bully him. Link glanced at Leynne, just barely visible due to being further inside the ship. Leynne caught Link's glance and, with the lantern light outside illuminating his face through a hole in the hull, mouthed to Link, "Yook."

The few things Link had heard about the Yook had left him unprepared for their next action. They split off from each other and started positioning themselves in front of each grave, except for Albert's. Each Yook jammed their lantern stick into the ground near the stone of the grave before them and placed one knee on the ground. After bowing their heads, they simply remained where they knelt.

Scratching sounded to Link's right, and he turned just as Leynne relit his lantern. After shutting the door, he signaled Link and Valley to follow him further into the ship. Even though they had not been noticed, Leynne still asked in a whisper, "What do you think?"

"I think I'm a little confused," Link admitted with a helpless look.

"What is dey doing?" Valley asked. "Dey's mourning?"

"Strangely enough, I think so," Leynne said, nodding.

"How come?" Irleen asked, her light slipping through Link's hair. "That's not _their_ dead."

"Da Anouki does something similar," Valley offered. "Dey finds dead people near dem? Dey buries da bodies and visits da graves until others comes."

"Well, they're one short," Link said, bitterness tainting his voice.

"Noes, it isn't like dat, Link," Valley quickly said. "Da Anouki leaves at least one grave alone. Dey expects da friends or family of da dead to mourn at da empty grave. It's so dey knows dat someone is dere for da dead."

"But you'h assuming that the Yook follow a similah tradition," Leynne said. "Is theh any reason to believe that the Yook do this as well?"

"I has seen dis before, Leynne," Valley replied, taking an insulted tone. "I knows da Anouki. Dey does it da same way."

Link sighed. "There's… really only one way to find out."

He removed his hat and gave it to Valley. Irleen, confused as she fluttered off his head, circled in the air for a moment. "What are you _doing_?" she asked.

"What I should be." Then he turned and stepped back out of the ship. First, he waited to see if any of the Yook would invite him. None of them moved, all of their backs turned to him as if he was not important. When he thought about it, though, maybe he _was_ unimportant. Why else would there be such an elaborate ritual for the nameless deceased?

Link was certain to keep his eyes on the closest Yook as he walked back to Albert's grave. He wanted to keep at least out of arm's reach, as it appeared that all a Yook had to do was swing a fist to kill him. Or at least send him into the next mountain with a reasonable thud. But, as he came closer to Albert's grave while still not having caught the Yook's attention, he realized that he would have to walk into strike range because the graves were so close together that the Yook were shoulder to shoulder with each other. He lowered his head as he came closer. Then he dropped a knee into the snow like the Yook. After a timid glance at the Yook next to him, he bowed his head to look like a mourner.

It felt awkward to him. The lanterns around the gravesite tricked his eyes, making him feel isolated in the snow with Albert's improvised headstone. Link had never attended a funeral before, or at least any he could remember. He had never seen anyone die on the _Grand Sails_, although stories about dead comrades passed around airmen in a tavern as often as arm-wrestling money. Most other airmen seemed to die on airships that Link had not been on; even one of his own crew died on someone else's ship. Link always felt at least a twinge of sorrow for the spoken-for dead, sometimes even hurt if it was someone he had actually known. He definitely felt that hurt for Albert's passing. However, it seemed trivial to him since he had only known Albert for two days. Two days in such a short command that, in the end, it had cost him his crew and his ship. The same situation existed for Flower and Leonard. He thought he would have known them from the _Grand Sails_, but Link just could not place their faces or their names on the crew before he had taken command of the _Island Sonata_. Was that… leaving Link heartless? He had barely noticed the tear falling down his cheek moments before; it might have gone completely unnoticed if Valley had not said anything. Is that all he had for the blood-stained tunic on the ground in front of him?

"I'm sorry… I'm sorry… I—" Link choked on his words when a large hand gave him a gentle pat on his left shoulder. It seemed to snap him back to reality, and he realized that he had planted his hands (almost numb with cold by now) in the snow to keep from falling on top of Albert's tunic. He sniffed, shaking the tear hanging from the end of his nose. He slowly settled back on his legs. He felt a little confused as he tried to remember when he had fallen to his hands and knees. His mind feeling dazed, he stared at the headstone as if he had no indication of its purpose.

Then the hand gave him a comforting rub, reminding him of who was near. Trying not to look alarmed, he slowly turned his head up to see the Yook next to him. The Yook's face was soft, understanding even with a pair of red eyes glowing in the lantern light. It showed Link a mouthful of thick, yellow teeth as it told him in a deep voice, "Okay be sad. Be sad, be happy."

Link could not wrap his mind around what the Yook was telling him. Still, he felt a little comfort that someone was talking to him. After using a sleeve to wipe his face, he told the Yook, "You know, somehow, it feels worse that I didn't even know him that well."

"You know," the Yook replied. "He happy."

Link nodded, thinking he caught the Yook's meaning that time. "His name was Albert. He… he was part of my crew. I was his captain."

"Kohg believe Albert happy Captain find."

"Kohg?"

The Yook tapped a finger from his other hand on his chest. "Kohg."

"Oh."

"Captain cold. Kohg take Captain to shelter."

"Uh…" Link droned as he glanced back at the ship. Kohg glanced back, too, as Leynne, Irleen, and Valley stepped out of the ship.

"Captain friends come. Captain need warm."

"Could you… wait for us a moment?" Link asked. Kohg tilted his head in confusion. "We… we want to get the names of the people here. So we can take them back to the sky with us."

"Family?"

Link nodded. "Yes, to their families."

Kohg nodded, removing his hand. "Yook wait Captain."

"Thank you." With that, Link stood and walked back to the ship.

"That was… unexpected," Leynne commented, raising an eyebrow.

"I think they're going to take us to shelter," Link told them. "We'll go get our bags, and then we need to get the names off these tags."

"And… dey's gonna wait for us?" Valley asked.

Link glanced over his shoulder to find that Kohg had moved to a slope at the far edge of the gravesite and stood there, watching them. "Yeah. Go on." After ushering them into the ship, he called out to Kohg, "We'll be right back! We need to get our supplies!"

"Yook wait!" Kohg called back.

Link let his eyes wander among the graves for a moment before stepping back into the ship.


	43. Up And Down Again

Chapter 43: Up And Down Again

…

The Yook party escorted Link, Valley, Leynne, and Irleen back into the cloudbank. One side of the mountain bore a cave with a solitary Yook standing watch. This Yook nodded the other twelve in and paid little attention to the Hylian travelers. The opening tunneled into the mountain for a while before widening into a large, circular cavern. Lanterns similar to the kind that the mourning Yook held had been set up along the cavern wall. A number of thick mats had been placed about the floor with a small pack next to each. In spite of the cold, the Hylians found this cave a little more comfortable than the _Horizon's Eye_'s battered remains. The Yook did not say anything else as they found their mats and laid down to sleep. The Hylians were not in a conversational mood either and set up their beds together at the center of the cavern. The late hour and activity of the day aided in simply knocking them out as soon as their heads hit the spare clothing they used as pillows.

Link could not remember his dream. He could not remember waking up, either. Between entering the cave and realizing he was standing on a wooden bridge spanning the gap between two mountains below the raincloud felt like a large blank. The only reason he seemed to snap back to reality was the nice breeze across his wet skin. It reminded him of better times on the _Grand Sails_. And the time that he had been dunked in a barrel of grog and strung up to a shroud to dry, which had decidedly not been fun. Still, it was a little refreshing to feel the breeze and let his eyes take in the sight of how high he had come. Then he spotted Leynne carrying a visibly frightened Valley on his back and decided to just keep focused on the bridge. After crossing (and prying Valley off), they took a trail up this new mountain.

With Valley prattling on about her fear of heights. Presumably.

"… and after he threw my melon over da cliff, well… da way it _splat_ against da ground made me see how bad heights is."

"Wait, wait!" Leynne finally shouted. "Ah you saying, that afteh almost an _houh_ of listening to you prattle on about youh school life and youh inability to keep a boyfriend, youh reason foh not liking heights is because youh seventeenth boyfriend _threw a melon_?"

"Yyyyyep," Valley said with a grin. Then she quickly added, "But he was my _eighteenth_ boyfriend."

"Who keeps track of that!?" he shouted, arms wide to indicate his confusion and disbelief.

"I does," Valley said, raising a hand.

"Girl talk much," Link heard Kohg grumble. When he glanced down at Link with an exhausted look, Link could only offer him an understanding smile.

The path they walked began to widen as it led them out of the rainclouds. It became a small plateau before a tall, glittering spire of snow. At different levels, small, oval-shaped holes appeared to have been cut into the spire. A large cavern entrance at the foundation had been decorated with piles of snow like a bottom row of teeth. The smaller Yook who had erected them were shooed away by what Link assumed was a female Yook, a little shorter than the men surrounding him and a body shaped like a pear. Large mounds which appeared to be made of snow dotted the base of the spire. Link concluded that they were homes because that was where families appeared to gather. The whole plateau looked about as large as Whittleton, and the homes were pushed together as best as possible so that a large number of them would fit into as little space as possible. The cloudless sky around them reminded Link of the sky kingdom, and it made him feel that much closer to home. At the top of the spire stood a solitary, white flag bearing a blue diamond with an additional angle intersecting the top half in opposition to the top angle. It flapped in the wind, and Link pulled his compass out of his pocket to see the wind's direction.

"Whoa…" Valley and Irleen awed, Irleen sitting on Link's right shoulder.

"Wind's moving south," Link mumbled to himself.

"Wha?" Irleen asked.

Link replaced his compass. "Nothing. Kohg… how long have you been living here?"

"Birth," the Yook replied.

Link allowed a short chuckle. "No, I mean how long have the _Yook_ been living here?"

"Long time."

"I don't think they have a method foh _recohding_ time, Link," Leynne said as his eyes thoroughly glanced over the area. "Cleahly, it has been some time."

"Since snow go," Kohg said. "Kohg not see snow below."

Link watched as the other Yook in their party walked past them. "Where are they going?"

"Speak leader," Kohg said as he started walking with them. "You follow."

Link turned to look at Leynne, who gave him an uncertain shrug. After Link responded with his own shrug, all four followed behind their Yook escort. There was some hesitation on the part of the Hylians, but they decided to follow the Yook into the cave.

The entrance was a wide, flat floor illuminated by a single chandelier suspended in the middle of the ceiling. The chandelier appeared to be made of silver, but it actually did not hold any sort of candles or active illumination. Instead, most of the light appeared to enter through some of the windows on the far side. Strong beams of sunlight shined on the dust which covered the floor, and that appeared to be enough to spread light around the room.

Leynne stopped to stoop and picked up a handful of the dust. "What is this?"

Kohg stopped and turned to usher Valley and Link along to the stairs on the far side of the room. "Dust."

Leynne opened his mouth to clarify the question, but then he thought better of it and dropped the dust in his hand. "Ask a foolish question…" he mumbled as he quickened his pace.

The stairs, made of stone dug into the wall and without any sort of handrail, led up to a similar chamber. Valley visibly shivered and wrapped her arms around her. Link could understand why; this room felt as cold as the outside. Here, the walls appeared thicker, and there was not as much light because there were fewer windows. The dust from the lower room was nowhere to be found, the room's floor bare rock with piles of meat here and there.

"W-wh-w-w-w-wh-w-w-wh-w-wh-wha?" Valley chattered as Leynne's head poked up through the floor.

"Cold save meat," one of the other Yook commented.

"Meat for food," Kohg said as he started nudging Link and Valley with a single hand.

Leynne wrinkled his face as he thought. "Interesting…"

The stairs continued to the next level. This was another brilliantly-lit room thanks to the same dust from the entrance as well as numerous windows in the wall. A thick ladder, which appeared to be made of bones, led to the next room up. The Yook escorts filed into the room and lined up along the wall on either side of what looked like a throne covered in dark-furred Wolfos pelts and sitting on the other side of the room from the stairs. When the Hylians entered the room, a large Yook, larger than any of the males that had already entered, stood up. This Yook had grey fur and could probably touch the ceiling with a hand. Link's eyes took in the number of blunt weapons on the wall behind the throne before Kohg nudged him toward the center of the room. Link took a few timid steps of his own, Valley and Leynne flanking him, until he stopped.

The large Yook held up a hand and motioned. "Closer," he said with a deep voice.

Link gulped. As much as he did not want to approach this Yook, he felt that he did not want to anger him, either. This Yook appeared to have a permanent scowl on his face, and the red eyes did nothing to produce a nicer image. Link stepped forward until the Yook stopped gesturing. He found that he stood in the center of the room. He also found that he was not sure what to say or do.

"Who are you?" the large Yook asked.

Link drew himself up and answered, "I am Lieutenant Link of the Skyrider Company."

The Yook blinked at him. "Long name. You have shorter name?"

"Link," he answered. "J-just call me Link." He saw the Yook's eyes wander to Leynne and Valley standing behind him. He turned and used a hand as he offered introductions. "Uh… this is Leynne, and she's Valley. And, um…" He started glancing around.

"Up here," a small voice said above Link's head.

Link glanced up at the ceiling, then pointed out the small dot of green light. "That's Irleen."

The Yook gave a satisfied nod. "I am Soog, leader of Yook. Why are you here?"

"W-we came… we came here to find the ship. The airship on the neighboring mountain."

"You know dead?"

Link stammered for a moment, trying to process the question. "Know de—know the dea—yes! Uh, yes. One of the dead was… well, he was a member of my crew. My… former crew…"

"His death brings you sadness."

Link nodded. "Albert. I was his captain, his leader."

"Sad for young to see death," Soog told him. "Leader may see death at any time. You must understand."

Link scratched his head. "I know. I mean… I _thought_ I knew. I wasn't a leader for very long."

"You give up?"

"No." He took in a deep breath. "I am—_was_… I was captain of a ship. My ship was destroyed."

Soog indicated Valley and Leynne with a hand. "But you are still leader."

Link turned around for a moment. "N-not exactly. I-I—"

"I's just following him!" Valley offered in a voice which caused some of the other Yook to flinch. "He's my research!" Link slapped a hand over his face.

"To Link's credit," Leynne offered, casting Valley a brief glare, "I would not have come this fah if he did not want to find the ship. Without him, I wouldn't have made it heh."

"And he saved my life!" Valley said.

Soog glanced up at Irleen. In response, she slowly spiraled down. "Link's… he's the only friend I have. Without him, I'd be lost in this world."

"Link is still leader," Soog said with an approving nod. "Humble. Not yet strong. But you can become strong. Soog live long time. I become strong even now. You still have time."

Link was not sure how to respond, so he just said, "Th-thank you."

"What you do for other dead?"

Valley removed her pack and dug into it for a moment. She pulled out her assignment journal and turned through its pages for a moment. "We has deir names," she said, showing the page covered in scribbling. Because the Sorian writing had been difficult to try to reproduce (even for Irleen), she had placed each of the tags under a few pages in her assignment journal and scribbled over the top of them so that the names stood out. "Link goes back to da sky? He takes dese names with him."

Soog nodded. "Wise." He glanced around at the other Yook. Then he gave a grunt, and the room emptied except for the Hylian group and Kohg. "You free Yook from obligation. Thank you."

Link nodded. "Thank _you_ for caring for them."

Soog indicated Kohg. "Kohg will take you into his home. Stay as long as you wish. Link, Valley, Irleen, and Leynne are friends to Yook."

"Soog," Leynne spoke up. "Link injuhed himself two days prioh. I wondeh if you have any medicines to treat Wolfos bites."

"It isn't bothering me, Leynne," Link whispered to him.

A large hand wrapped around Link's arm. "Wife help," Kohg said.

…

"YAAAAAAH!" Link wailed as the ice-cold rag of Wolfos skin was slapped over his shin. But he could not move from the chair, his shoulders held down by Kohg while his wife, a round Yook with ice-blue fur, carefully rubbed the rag on Link's scabbed-over wounds.

"Link feel good?" Kohg asked.

"Agh! Trying to…" Link squirmed, but between Kohg pushing him down into the fur-covered chair and Kohg's wife keeping one hand clamped on his foot, he could not stand to run away like he wanted. He attempted to keep himself still, but the cold applied directly to his wounds hurt.

"Try not to move so much," Leynne, sitting on the couple's bed-mat, said as he rolled a piece of paper around a small amount of the same ointment Kohg's wife was using. "You need something to help with infection. This might wohk."

"Aaaaah…" Link breathed when the rag was removed from his leg. His shin felt numb; he could not even feel Kohg's wife probe his skin with her thick fingers. "Thank you."

"Mohk not know Hylian," Kohg said. "I tell later."

"Okay." Mohk released his leg, and Link settled it against the stone floor of their home. He looked around to better take in their humble existence. The walls, contrary to the snow on the outside, were actually made of ice. Other than the chair Link used, Kohg only had another chair and the mat he and his wife would sleep on. A wooden chest sat opposite the doorway, and Link ventured a guess that they kept their other possessions in it.

"We get food," Kohg said. Then he grunted at his wife, and the both of them left.

"So what do you want to do now?" Leynne asked him. "We've found the aihship. The Yook ah willing to put up with us, but we've no fuhtheh reason to be heh."

"I know," Link said with a nod. His pack sat next to him on the floor, and he pulled open the top. "This would be a good time to look around, but I suppose we should consider getting back to Library Town."

"It's still kind of shocking to find a Sorian ship down here," Irleen said as she hovered over Leynne's head. "I wonder what happened to the rest of the crew."

Link pulled out his journal and opened it on his lap. "So do I. Line, Flower, and Leonard are out there, too."

"And your princess."

Link paused before pulling his pen from his pack. "Yeah. I wonder what she thinks of me _now_."

Leynne shrugged. "Pehhaps she'll not fault you foh trying." He stood up. "I'm going to look around."

Link nodded as he left and scribbled on the page a bit before writing.

~~Day 16

~~I found out last night that Line might be alive, and I have reason to believe that he took the Horizon's Eye for a final voyage before it was scuttled. Now that I think about it, I wonder if the ship made Autumn Island before it got down here. It might not be much, but it's enough that I want to get back up there a whole lot more.

~~We discovered that the Yook had buried the bodies of the Sorian airmen and Airman Albert from my crew. The fact that there were so many other airmen missing has to mean that they are alive somewhere else. Though it's occurred to me that they may just as well be dead wherever they are, I'm trying to keep positive. The Yook brought us to their village, I guess you can call it. It's almost as large as Whittleton, yet they've crammed all of their people onto this one plateau on top of the mountain neighboring where the ship crashed. They're a lot nicer than Leynne made them sound. I have to admit that, for a moment back on that other plateau, I was worried we'd be getting into another fight. I think I've had enough battle wounds for now. I sure don't want to have any more treated; all the treatments I've received so far feel like they hurt before they get better. It's like they all went to the same school of medicine and pain. It has made me miss the days when I would just bang my head on something.

~~Everything around me feels like such a mess. I want to get back to the sky, and I know I have to in order to help Irleen. But all I seem to be doing so far is touring the surface. Now that I think about it, Luggard joked that we'd probably be going to the Fire Realm soon. I wonder if it might be true. I suppose, if there's another Archit—

"Hey, Link?" Link glanced around, realizing that Irleen had moved. "Is it natural for a mountain to be on fire at this height?"

Link found her floating in front of the doorway. "What do you mean?"

"There's a mountain over here, and its top is covered with thick smoke."

Link stood up. "What?"

"You've gotta see it for yourself."

Link turned, dropped his journal and pen on the chair, and slipped his sock and boot back on. Although it stung to walk without his bandage, he followed Irleen out of the house. She rounded the house and dodged through the narrow spaces between the other homes. Link noticed that they were going towards the back side of the mountain from the trail. When she stopped, Link found Valley and Leynne standing on the edge of the plateau.

They were looking out at the larger mountains further out. Irleen was right; one of them was on fire. Thick, grey smoke billowed and bubbled around the top of a mountain not far from the Yook's home mountain. It was as if it had grown its own cloud. One whole side of the mountain was colored lighter than the edges.

"You weren't kidding," Link said in awe. "What is that?"

"It's called a volcano," Leynne told him. "A vault of temperamental eahth waiting to go up in what would likely be a spectaculah explosion."

"I has read about dem," Valley said, "but I has never seen one before. It looks a little… scary."

"And it should," Leynne said with a nod. "While we'h feeling temperatuhes that would leave us blocks of ice in the middle of nowheh, that mountain will be hot enough to melt a train engine."

"A hot mountain? In the _Snow_ Realm?" Irleen asked.

Leynne gave a grin. "This place has had its practice in contradiction."

Valley slowly turned to Leynne and Link. "A hot mountain in the _Snow Realm_!" she declared.

"I think we got it, Valley," Link told her.

"No, no, think about it. Da Snow Realm is always raining, right?"

"That's what _we've_ been told," Irleen said, hovering next to Valley's face.

"But _why_ it rains?"

Leynne exchanged a look with Link. "Well, generally, it's because the weatheh is too wahm foh snow to fohm. It's been that way foh _yeahs_."

Valley pointed a finger at him. "_Dat's_ it," she said. "It's too warm!" Then she indicated the volcano. "And _dat's_ why!"

Leynne frowned and glanced out at the volcano again. Then he looked up the spire of the Yook's home. "Link, you checked the wind direction eahlieh, didn't you?"

"Yeah. The wind's blowing south."

Leynne nodded. "So if it's the prevalent wind in this area… I suppose it's possible that the volcano _could_ be the cause of the rainfall."

Link glanced out to the volcano again. "Leynne, do you have your duoscope with you?"

"Right heh," he answered, holding the device out. "Why?"

Link took the duoscope and looked through it. From where they stood, the grey substance covering the side of the mountain looked like dark snow. A shadow at the base of the volcano caught his attention, and he stared at it for a moment, ignoring Leynne's questions.

"Leynne, what's that grey stuff out there?"

"Most likely ash," Leynne said. "I suppose the wind coming from the nohth all the time protects the ash on this side of the volcano."

"It's covering something."

Leynne shrugged. "Paht of the volcano."

"No, more than that. There's something manmade down there."

"How do you know?"

Link passed the duoscope back to Leynne. "Because it's square."

Leynne gave Link an intrigued look before putting the duoscope to his eyes. "You'h kidding…"

"Down at the base of the volcano. It's on the right side of the ash, just before it ends."

Leynne looked in silence for a moment. "Yeah… yeah, I see it now. What is that?"

"I don't know," Link said, watching as Valley formed her hands into circles and look through them as if they were another duoscope. Then he had an idea. "But I bet I know someone who does."

"Who?" Valley asked.

"Just wait here," Link said as he spun around. "I'll be right back."

"Wait up!" Irleen called as she flew after Link.

Link moved with a quick pace through the homes. When he reached the open area of the plateau, he broke into a run against the pain of his boot rubbing his leg. He rounded to the entrance of the spire. Yook just leaving through the large entrance gave him growls of annoyance as he ran past. Up the stairs, past the meat storage and into Soog's room.

Soog turned his head in surprise, having been occupied with a sight out his window moments before. "Link?" he asked.

"Soog," Link said, crossing the room. "Where did you learn to speak Hylian?"

Soog turned completely to him. "Learn from friend. Hylian friend. I teach other Yook to speak."

"Is this friend here anymore?"

"Thanks for waiting up," Irleen said as she caught up with Link.

Soog shook his head. "He leave long time. Go to mountain god home."

"Mountain god home?" Link asked.

Soog nodded his head. "Fire mountain. Mountain god punish Yook. Yook come here. Mountain god think Yook abandon mountain god. Punish by making mountain burn. Mountain burn. Make old home rain. Make Yook live on this mountain."

"So your friend went to the volcano?"

"Volcano… that is his word for fire mountain."

"You mean someone went _into_ that thing?" Irleen asked, circling Link's head.

"He go with other Hylians," Soog said. "Not see for years."

"Who was he?" Link asked.

"His name is… Meat… Head?"

"Meathead?" Irleen asked.

"Neektam," Soog corrected himself. "He take strange object. Say he can make machine that stop mountain god."

Link paused for a second to let his excitement turn into coherent thought. "Irleen, are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"I think so, Link, but does a mountain god actually _take_ sacrifices nowadays? It seems like a cliché…"

"Wha—no, not _that_! Think about it! It's a Hylian who builds machines!"

"You're right. He's probably important enough to calm the god. But then… well, if he makes machines, then the mountain god might find it offensive an—"

Link shook. "_No_, Irleen! He's an Architect! Neektam's an _Architect_!"

"Oh." Silence. "Oh~!" Link waited until the realization settled in. "Ooooooh! All _right_!" She started spiraling higher.

"We need to get to that volcano." He immediately turned and started across the room.

"Wait," Soog said. Link stopped at the top of the stairs and watched Soog step to his throne. He reached behind it and appeared to open it. "Take this."

Link met Soog in the middle of the room and accepted a blue, triangular piece of cloth. He glanced it over for a moment. "What is it?"

"Yook charm. Wear on arm. Protect from heat."

Link shrugged and slipped it under his right arm. He tried to tie it, but he found it difficult to use just one hand. "I-Irleen, do you mind?"

"Oh, right." Irleen dropped down and grabbed one of the corners. The tinkling sound her wings made grew stronger as she pulled hard against Link. Link managed a double knot and turned so that he could see the diamond. "Will that work?"

"That'll do," he said. He nodded at Soog. "Thanks. We'll be back as soon as we can."

Soog stepped over to one window and pointed. "Path on side go to fire mountain. Good luck."

…

Link ran back to Kohg's home and emptied his bag of everything except rations. Kohg invited him to at least have a quick meal before leaving, which Link decided to partake in since they had forgotten to each breakfast. When Leynne questioned him, Link said he was going to the volcano to find an Architect. Naturally, this had Leynne a little worried. He explained that the volcano could be hazardous with lava flows and pure heat. Unnaturally, Valley begged to come along. Link tried to explain to her that it could be dangerous, as Leynne had explained.

Unfortunately, Valley had chosen that point in the conversation to feign deafness. Link trudged along the muddy path trying not to appear miserable.

"Is you okay, Link?" Valley asked him about halfway down the mountain. "You has been very quiet."

"I really wish you'd stayed with Leynne," Link groaned.

"I isn't staying with Mister Grouchface," Valley told him with a huff. "I isn't supposed to be following _him_. How cans I does my research?"

"It wasn't like you couldn't see us walk down the path," Irleen told her.

"Why is _you_ going, Irleen?" Valley asked. "You is _small_. Dere is things around here dat eats bugs smaller dan you."

Irleen flew angry circles around Valley's head. "I'm _not_ small! I'm just temporarily under-size! _Temporarily_!"

"Da Keese," Valley said. "Dere's probably Keese in dat volcano."

"Oh, come on! You can't tell me that Fire Keese actually _exist_."

"I isn't saying 'Fire' Keese. Regular Keese. Dey eats anything. Dey likes bugs."

"I'm stuck in the body of a _fairy_."

"You's shiny-shiny. Dey sees food."

"Would you stop trying to convince me I'm going to get eaten!"

"I's just saying you's in bigger danger dan me."

"Valley, watch ou—" Too late. Link's warning about a small dip in the slope did not make it out of his mouth in time. Valley's foot fell farther than she expected, and she dropped face-first into the mud. Link slapped a hand over his face, sighed, and said, "Never mind. You found it."

"Somehow, that felt a little satisfying," Irleen said, hovering over Valley as she recovered.

"Come on, Irleen, that's not nice."

Valley spat mud from her mouth. "I's okay."

"Do you fall down a lot?" Link asked her.

"No, noes before coming here." She used a jacket sleeve to wipe her face off. "I noes knows. I thinks mud just noes likes me."

"Well, at least you're not hurt."

"Yyyyyep, but my clothes is all muddy again. And it isn't raining down here."

"You know, she's right," Irleen said. "It _isn't_ raining down here."

"I think it's because the rain's over there," Link said, pointing in the opposite direction from the volcano. He indicated the mountains to the south, partially shrouded by the rain.

"Oh," Valley uttered, standing. "Well, I supposes I gets to take a nice bath back in Library Town."

"How nice," Irleen commented in a flat voice, "but that's days away."

"It's something to look forward to."

"Let's keep moving," Link said. "I think I'd prefer to get back to the Yook's settlement instead of spending the night near a volcano."

"Yyyyyep."

Link, Valley, and Irleen continued down the mountain into a small area of wetlands below. After trudging over the muddy path, they found themselves standing on the far side of the trail leading to the volcano. From here, the trio looked up at the volcano's menacing presence. Link felt quite small, especially since the late afternoon sun had cast a shadow on them from a small mountain to the west. As expected, the ground was covered in ash all the way to the beginning of the path. Even now, a thin fall of ash added to the ground around them. Perhaps the most surprising of this area was how warm it was. Valley had to ask Link to wait up while she removed the warm clothing she had borrowed from him.

It was during this time when Link noticed that they were not alone. The path to the doors at the base of the volcano was level and straight, confirming Link's belief that there were manmade structures here. Ledges lined the path, and on either side of that ledge was a slope leading further down into a field of black rock. Link peered down one side to get an idea of what was down there, and he saw a large pair of eyes staring back at him from the ash on the ledge.

"Yikes!" Link shouted, jumping backwards. At the same time, a large blob of grey slime stood straight up out of the ash. It wobbled for a moment, as if standing had disoriented it. Then its eyes focused on Link. "What the…?"

"Oh, hey, a Chuchu," Valley said, shouldering her backpack again. "Dat's rare."

"Really?" Link asked.

"Yyyyyep. Dey's funny, but dey's harmless."

The Chuchu formed a seam under its eyes and gave Link a large, toothless grin. "Why-why is it smiling?" Link asked, his left hand resting on his sword.

Valley giggled at him. "I thinks he likes you."

"Is that good?"

She shrugged. "It noes cans be bad."

"There's another," Irleen spoke up. Link and Valley turned to look down the trail they had just used, in the same direction Irleen's voice had come from. Another Chuchu had stood up at about where ash met mud, also flashing them a smile.

"Oh, look," Valley said, pointing at the first Chuchu. "He has a buddy." Link turned back to see another Chuchu standing next to the first one.

Link saw two more pop up on the opposite ledge. "Um… Val-Valley? What, uh… what do Chuchu eat?"

Valley frowned as she thought. "You knows something? I noes really knows. I never saw Chuchu dis big before."

More started to appear from the ash behind Valley. "Um… I'm not sure if I like this…" Irleen said, her voice uncomfortable.

Valley produced a pencil from her pocket and used it to tickle one of the nearby Chuchu. "D'aaaw. How bad cans dey be?"

The Chuchu suddenly leaned over and bit the pencil with its toothless mouth. Valley quickly pulled her hand away and took a step back. She, Link, and Irleen watched in horror as the Chuchu's translucent body dissolved the pencil in a second.

"Okay, maybe _dat_ bad," Valley said to herself.

"You said they were _harmless_!" Irleen snapped.

"I _thought_ dey was!"

"Forget it," Link said. "Let's just get—" But as he turned toward the volcano, he tripped over a mound hidden in the ash.

"Link!" Irleen cried out.

Valley started forward to help him up, but then she saw what Link had tripped over. "Uh oh," she uttered.

She looked up from the skull half buried in the ash to the Chuchu around them. As if knowing that their sinister cover was blown, the Chuchu's eyes switched from idiotic abandon to evil intent to accompany their permanent grins.

"Run for it!" Irleen screamed.

The Chuchu lunged for the Hylians. Link had already kicked against the ground to get him started in his run. Valley ducked under one and dodged around another that had dove for Link. They ran toward the mountain at full speed, Link having a good lead on Valley. Irleen tailed them at a higher altitude so she was out of the Chuchu's reach. But as they ran, more Chuchu started revealing themselves along the path. Link drew his sword and swatted at some of them as he ran, hoping to reduce the chances that they would jump at him or Valley.

"Wah—ugh!" Valley fell against the ground. The sound of her grunt caused Link to slide to a stop and turn. The Chuchu were bearing down on her, hopping along the path from behind her and simply walking from ahead. Link dashed back in her direction, swinging his sword to take out more Chuchu as he passed.

He stopped next to Valley and helped haul her to her feet by her shoulder. "Hurry! Go!" he urged, swinging his blade at one just inside his reach. Valley started running again, and Link followed close behind. He got a view past her to see that the Chuchu were putting up a wall ahead of them. Thinking quickly, he pulled out his boomerang and popped it open. Hoping that the boomerang would not get stuck in one, he slid in front of her and threw. The boomerang curved a bit, and Link was worried that it would fly over the side. But it produced a solid hit on one Chuchu, bounced into another, and hit the ground just behind them. Both Chuchu wobbled in place with dazed looks, and Link swung his sword at the first one. The Chuchu was sliced in half and disappeared into a grey puddle. Link and Valley then dodged past the next one, and Link swiped up his boomerang on the way.

They made it to the doors Link had seen from the Yook's mountain. It was a pair of double doors with a down-pointed triangle atop a pair of wings carved in the center. They both pushed on the left door, but they found it far too heavy to move. "Come on, open!" Link demanded as he and Valley switched to the other door.

"It isn't opening!" Valley cried. Link reared back and speared the tip of his sword into the doors' gap.

"Switch, switch!" Irleen cried out, hovering near the front of the doorframe. Valley peered around the corner. She saw what looked like a bunch of meaningless curves carved into the outside. Irleen hovered in front of one of the shapes made by those curves, and Valley realized that it had seams around it. She tried pressing with her fingers, then she braced one palm against it with the other on top and pushed hard. The stone sank in, and Link jumped away as the doors opened outward with a gravelly growl. They both looked back to find the Chuchu still chasing them and ducked into the doors.

"Close it, close it!" Irleen chanted as they followed.

"How?" Link asked.

Valley looked along the wall next to her, a flat surface of red rock with similar markings. She noticed a wedge of stone protruding from the wall and pushed. The doors immediately reversed until they closed. One of the Chuchu had gotten trapped in the door, and its existence ended with a slam which oozed the remains of its body through the seam in the doors.

Both Valley and Link heaved a relieved sigh. "That was close," Link told her.

She grinned at him, huffing to catch her breath. "Dat… was awesome."


	44. The Volcano Tunnels

Chapter 44: The Volcano Tunnels

…

The tunnel Link, Irleen, and Valley found themselves in was definitely manmade. The entrance had been built with large slabs of rock (probably to accommodate whatever mechanism operated the doors) while the continuing tunnel had been carved out of the mountain. The tunnel was large enough to fit a locomotive inside with plenty of room to spare. Glass tubes filled with lava and set into the walls at about head-height provided a red glow, enough for the three of them to see. Unfortunately, it had a side-effect.

"Okay, I's done."

It made the tunnel unbearably hot. Even worse, Valley and Irleen seemed to be the only ones to feel it. Even wearing his tunic and work trousers over a long-sleeve, heat-retaining undersuit, Link, while noticeably no longer cold, could not tell how hot the tunnel was. However, Valley's perception had forced her to strip off her warm clothing and stuff it into her pack. Even after, she found she still had to strip off her waistcoat. Minutes after that, she had told Link to turn around so she could make a few more modifications. Link had not been sure how she would do that, but the sound of ripping had given him an idea.

When he turned, Valley had her orange waistcoat on again, but her shirt's sleeves and torso had been cut off. Her work trousers had been sliced off at the knees, and the removed legs had been folded over the tops of her boots. This change allowed Link to see the sweat glistening all over her exposed skin. Suddenly, he felt a little uncomfortable.

She giggled at him. "Wow, Link," she said. "It's a good thing da light here's red. It hides what color your face is."

"W-what's that supposed to mean!?" Link's voice cracked, and he felt his cheeks warm up.

She gave him a dismissive wave. "Oh, come on, now, Link. It isn't like I noes knows what goes on in a boy's head."

"You're just teasing me, aren't you!?"

"It's all circumstantial."

"Come on, you two," Irleen said, carefully circling the air above her. "The sooner we get out of here, the sooner we can get back to the mountain. You know, where it's _nice_."

"Take it easy, Irleen," Valley said as she and Link started walking. "Between climbing up one mountain and down another, you has to allow _someone_ to have fun at Link's expense. Personally, I thinks dis innocent demeanor is a little cute."

Irleen dropped so she was in Valley's face. "Don't get any ideas, Valley," she said in a threatening tone.

"I's kidding," Valley told her, holding up her hands. "I prefers older boys anyway. You gets Link aaaaaaall to yourself."

"_Thank_ you."

"You two… know I'm here, right?" Link asked over his shoulder.

"Yeah, we knows," Valley said. "Dat's why we's having fun."

Irleen circled her for a moment. "At least you're a lot more obvious than the _last_ girl I had to drag Link away from."

"What 'last' girl?" Link asked. "You mean Meilont? What did she do?"

"I tried to _explain_ it, but _you_ kept interrupting me."

"_What_ were you explaining!? None of it made _sense_!"

"Because you kept _interrupting_ me."

"What was you telling him?" Valley asked.

"How a girl's heart works. How a mysterious boy like Link couldn't even begin to understand a girl on the surface. How poor Meilont had her heart broken."

Link's mind flashed back to the train platform outside Whittleton again. He saw Meilont's lonely figure at the end of the platform, catching just the movement of those last words leaving her lips before she was out of sight. Link forced the image out of his head and said in a loud voice, "How would you know?"

"I'm a girl, Link," Irleen said, fluttering around his head. "Remember?"

"It's not like I won't ever see her again."

"Of course, unless you intend to become a lonely captain out on the sea—"

"I'm an _airship_ captain."

"—forced away from your home and your heart by a storm of magical proportions—"

"We don't get that kind of weather."

"But! You've come upon another girl, an educated, sophisticated girl whose knowledge is rivaled by the elders of her race."

"Oh, oh!" Valley called out, stepping up next to Link with her arms in the air. "Dat's me, right? Right?"

"See?" Irleen said. "She gets it."

"Mm hmm," Valley said. "So, how dis educated girl meets da captain lost at sea?"

"Found adrift as if thrown out by the world!" Irleen continued in a grandiose voice. "Rescued by the captain from oceans as cold as they are merciless."

"I'm an airship captain," Link said, although his interest in the conversation was waning.

"Ooh, cans she has a fancy dress?" Valley asked.

"Yeah, I suppose," Irleen replied. "But it'll be messy from being in the water."

"Still an airship captain," Link sighed, noticing that the tunnel was curving.

"So I's gonna have to change out of it, right?" Valley asked. "I means _she_. Right?"

"Of course," Irleen said. "After all, how else will she have a majestic encounter with the captain?"

"Which way?" Link asked.

"How else, Link?" Irleen said, spinning around his head.

"No, I mean _which way_," Link said, pointing to the fork in the tunnel ahead of them.

"Oh," Valley uttered.

"Hmm…" Irleen said, bobbing left and right. "Which way looks safer?"

"Irleen, there's nothing else in here but _us_," Link told her.

"Riiiiight, just like we thought there weren't any creatures outside that would like to kill us."

"I says dat way," Valley said, pointing to the tunnel on the left.

Link craned his head a bit. The left tunnel looked like it rose as it curved, while the tunnel on the right seemed to go deeper before turning the same way. So Link asked, "Why that one?"

"Because I's standing closer to it."

"That's an _insane_ reason!" Irleen snapped at her. "I say we take the other one."

"Why?" Link asked.

"Because it _isn't_ the one she's standing closer to."

"That's an even _worse_ reason!" Link shouted.

Valley strode forward, towards the tunnel on the right, and held a hand up. "Da air here feels warmer. I noes wants to go where it's warmer."

"What's wrong, Valley?" Irleen asked as she fluttered by Valley's head. "Afraid of a little heat?"

"I's running out of clothes!" Valley cried.

"Too bad you haven't gotten out of that taboo like me~."

"Didn't you used to wear clothes when you were in your normal body?" Link asked as he stepped up behind Valley.

"Not that it matters now," Irleen called back as she moved deeper into the tunnel.

"Irleen!" Valley called out, cupping her hands around her mouth. "We should probably stays together!"

"I thought you were too busy…" Irleen's voice faded as she continued alone.

Link exchanged a worried look with Valley. "Irleen?" Link called out.

Irleen flew back into sight.

Then she called out to them as she sped up the other tunnel, "Isaywetakethisone!"

"Irleen, wait up!" Link called.

Then he felt Valley tug on his sleeve. "Uh… Link?"

Link followed her gaze back to the tunnel on the right. Five or six balls of fiery light approached them from the tunnel. And they approached fast. As soon as Link realized that they were Keese, he had grabbed Valley's hand and was running up the other tunnel after Irleen. "Irleen, wait for us!" he shouted.

"You said Fire Keese didn't exist!" Irleen screamed backwards.

"Obviously, she was wrong!" Link shouted back.

"I'm not taking advice about monsters from her _ever again_!"

"I's sorry!" Valley shouted.

"You were wrong _twice_!" Irleen shouted.

"I's _very_ sorry!"

Link saw Irleen ahead, her green light almost lost in the large flow of—

Link immediately stopped, and Valley almost fell to the ground trying to stop with him. The way forward was blocked by a flow of lava falling from some source above them into a hole in the floor. Not a drop spilled on the floor in front of them, as if the floor had been carved to prevent it. Through his strange defense against the ambient heat around them, even Link could feel the hot air produced by the lava brushing against his skin. Although he had never encountered lava before, just being able to feel how hot it was from a distance told him he probably did not want to chance running through it.

"There's no way around," Valley said, her grip on Link's hand tightening.

Link looked back. The Fire Keese were still following and would be on them in a moment. He steeled himself, pulled his hand from Valley's grip, and drew his sword.

"Is he doing what I _think_ he's doing?" Irleen asked.

Link charged, calling out as he dove straight for the Fire Keese. They responded by scattering as Link swung his blade into their glowing cloud. He could feel the heat from them, too. It amazed him that they did not suffer from being on fire, but he pushed the thought aside as he spun around to prepare for their inevitable attack. He had to keep them away from Valley, unarmed as she was, and Irleen, whom he feared would become a snack just as Valley had mentioned.

The Keese had the advantage of being small. They were all turning on Link in the next moment, and the two closest dove for him at the same time. The quick movements alarmed Link, and he jumped aside instead of taking a swing as he had intended. There was loose rock where Link's feet landed, and he dropped a knee to catch himself from slipping and planting his face in the stone. He looked up as a Keese (he did not see which one it was) dove at his face, giving him a glance at its large eyes and wide ears. Link did not have the time to set up a strike, so his reflexes settled for swatting at it with his sword. The Keese bounced from the blade to the floor, giving Link room to stand back up. He took advantage of his hand position and delivered a backhanded swing as the cloud attempted to swarm him. His blade found one while the rest scattered again, cleaving its wing and sending it into the wall nearby. Link took a step forward and gave the sword an upward swing which nicked the wing of another. This one flipped backwards and thumped against the floor.

Something landed on his right arm, and Link quickly swung his arm to remove the Keese. He could feel the heat from his body now that he knew it had been there, but he did not stop to see if it had done anything. As much space as they gave him, the Keese seemed eager to attack him as soon as they had their chance. Link was losing track of them; he could not tell how many of them were still attacking. However, to their disadvantage, Link could see them moving in for a strike due to the fire they cloaked themselves in. Just a flicker of motion caught Link's attention, and he struck another one out of the air with a quick slice to his left. He dodged out towards the middle of the tunnel, where he had enough room to swing for another without hitting the wall. Without a target, Link swung around to see if any were still in the air. This allowed him to see that his pack, being thick enough that he would never feel an attack from behind, had caught fire. He pulled his arm from one strap and flung it down the tunnel. The pack released black smoke, and Link started to wonder what exactly it had been made of as he backed away, free hand over his mouth and nose to protect them from the rancid smell. The Keese seemed to like it even less, as he caught sight of two of them fleeing back down the tunnel under the smoke. He turned to the lava flow that had cut off their escape to make sure that none of them had tried to reach Valley.

He bolted down the tunnel as soon as he saw Valley collapsed on the floor. "Valley!" he called to her, trying to sheathe his sword as he ran. Valley did not respond, and Link dropped next to her unmoving form to turn her over. "Valley! Oh—… oh, no. Valley!?" Valley's face looked an unnatural red color under the bright glow of the lava near them. Small blisters had formed on her shoulders and in patches down her arms. She appeared unconscious, but once Link put one arm under her shoulders to hold her up, she stirred. "Valley! Come on, say something!"

"You's… cool, Link," she said, her faraway eyes giving Link the impression that she might be delirious.

Link coughed out a smile. "You… you scared me for a moment," he said.

She looked down at her cupped hands, and Link followed her gaze as she opened them. Irleen rested in her palm, her light noticeably pulsing between dim and bright every few seconds. "She just… fell out of da air," Valley said. "I… tried to help her, but I started to feel… so exhausted…"

"It must be the heat," Link told her. "I have to get you two out of here."

Her eyes formed a relieved look. "Dat sounds nice. I wants to go back to da Yook."

Link nodded. "Okay. We're going to get out of here."

"Ugh," a small voice groaned. Link looked back down as Irleen's wings began to move. "Wha… what happened?"

"You and Valley passed out from the heat," Link said. "It's so hot down here… And being next to this lava probably didn't help."

"Yeah, but I'm feeling much better now," Irleen said. "It's like this place got cooler."

"Link, I thinks it's coming from _you_," Valley said. "I feels more comfortable, too."

Link shook his head. "But why? I haven't done anything to stop the heat."

"Link?" Valley asked. "When you started wearing an armband?"

Link started and glanced down at the Yook charm still wrapped around his right bicep. He thought back to his discussion with Soog, and the answer dawned on him. "Soog said this would protect me from heat," he said. "I-I guess I didn't take him seriously enough." He set Valley's head on his lap and reached up to grab the charm.

"Link, wait!" Irleen cried out. "Don't take it off. If you do, you'll just wind up like us."

"I've got to give you _some_ protection," Link said as he prepared to remove it.

"No, think about it," Irleen said. "It protects us, but only as long as we're touching you. If we just keep in contact with you, we should be safe as well."

"Okay," Link said, nodding slowly. "How do we do this, then?"

"I'm too weak to fly," Irleen told him. "Put me on your head; I can just hitch a ride." Link held out a hand and watched Irleen climb onto it from Valley's. When he held his hand near the edge of his hat, he could feel Irleen pulling herself by his hair until she settled under his hat. "Thanks. Did I ever mention that you're head is very soft and comfortable."

Link gave a half-smile. "Is that why you're always up there?" Irleen gave a little hum of response, but she did not say any more. Link glanced down at Valley. "How about you?"

Valley smiled. "Actually, I cans walks," she said. "It's probably better; I noes wants to share your head with Irleen."

"Good," Irleen said.

Valley put a hand on Link's shoulder and pulled herself to her feet as he stood up. She gave him a larger smile and said, "Dere. All better."

"Good," Link said with a nod. "We should move before those Keese come back with friends."

Valley, sure to keep one hand latched to Link's sleeve, bent over and retrieved her pack. "Where? Dere noes is a way past here."

"You two need to get back outside," Link told her. "If we get attacked again—"

"I cans hides and waits," Valley said. "Until then…" She took his right hand. "Dis makes it easy to move, right?"

"Uh…" Link looked down at his hand. "S-sure, I guess."

"Den we explores more!"

"I think I might've seen a door back there as I went by," Irleen said.

Link glanced up at his brow, then back to Valley. "Are you sure?"

"Yyyyyep!"

Link gave an uncomfortable shrug. "Okay."

Valley glanced at Link's back as they started walking. "Where your pack went?"

"I… had to get rid of it," Link said in a nervous tone. "It caught fire."

Valley hooked a thumb under one of her pack's strap and examined it. "Dese isn't supposed to burn," she said. "What was your pack made of?"

"Stuff that… burned?" When they reached the burning pile of the pack, Link pointed it out. "See? Burned."

"You had anything in dere?"

"Just rations."

Valley frowned. "I wishes I left _my_ stuff behind…"

"We'll just have to make sure yours doesn't catch fire."

They continued down the corridor, heads ducked down under the smoke for a bit. The tunnel began to descend, and the smoke was no longer an issue. They found the door to their left soon after. It was a circular door made of metal with a pipe protruding from the upper-left like a handle. As they came closer, Link reached his left hand to grab it.

"Hold it," he told Valley, freezing in place. Only an arm's length away from the door, Link could feel the heat radiating from the metal. "Do you feel that?"

"Yyyyyep," Valley said. "You thinks dis door has lava behind it?"

"I don't think we should touch it until we know for sure," Link said. He knew that they should try opening it. If there was lava on the other side, it should flow down the tunnel before them instead of catching them. But _how_ was he supposed to open the door? Trying to touch it would surely be a bad idea. Then he had a better idea and asked Valley, "Do you have anything long in your pack? Something we can tie to that handle?"

"I cans checks," she said.

Then she stood on Link's foot. "Ow!" he cried.

"Sorry," she said as she unshouldered the pack. "I noes wants to let you go."

"Yeah, but… you stepped kind of hard."

Valley dropped the pack to the ground and started rummaging through it. "I noes knows if I has anything… Oh. You wants a rope?"

"Uh… sure," Link said as he accepted the rope. "Wait… what were you just about to say?"  
>"Oh, I noes knew I had something long in my pack. I guesses I was wrong."<p>

Link glanced down at the rope. "You couldn't remember this?" Valley just replied with a smile, and Link shrugged. "Okay, well, let's get going then."

Valley shouldered her pack again. Then she held onto Link's shoulder as he reached up and tied the rope to the handle. He hoped that the door slid the way they needed and backed to the up-slope side of the tunnel. He had to tug a few minutes before the door budged.

When it opened a bit, lava poured out. Link jumped back, bumping into Valley. He held onto the rope, not wanting to let it near the new flow. The lava, true to what Link had hoped, followed the tunnel down away from them. Both he and Valley could feel the heat. Link tugged more on the door, and it squealed open enough that they could fit through. Still, they allowed the lava to flow out before going near. It took a few moments, and a new patch of black covered the ground where the lava had dried.

"Wow," Link said. "That looked like quite a bit."

"Dat was done on purpose? I wonders," Valley said, her eyes watching the last glow of molten lava disappear down the tunnel.

Link glanced down at the black rock coating the metal frame of the door. "I wonder, too. Come on." He took a few moments to untie the rope and loop it around his shoulder. Then, carefully, he squeezed between the door and the frame, feeling heat still venting from the metal surfaces. Valley kept a hand on his sleeve as he went through, then she followed with Link helping her through with his hand. Their boots crunched on black rock here as well, and it coated the new tunnel all the way until just a bit of the top was the same, red rock as the other tunnel. This tunnel also had tubes filled with lava running its length at head height.

"Whew," Valley breathed. "It feels a little warmer in here. I's still holding your hand."

Link nodded in agreement. "It might be because of all that lava we just released. We shouldn't stay long. Are you sure you want to go on?"

"Link," Irleen spoke up, "stop arguing with us. You're never going to win."

"She's right," Valley said with a grin. "You is never gonna win."

"Okay, okay," Link sighed. "So… which way?"

Both looked down either end of the tunnel. Then Valley pointed out one direction. "Dat looks like it goes straight up, so we noes cans goes that way."

Link nodded. "Okay, so this way."

They walked down the tunnel, finding the hole that led into the tunnel below. As they passed by, they saw that, at the end of the fall, there was a massive pit of lava. They continued up into the volcano, taking whatever tunnel further up whenever they encountered a fork. This only happened a few times, then they found a door. As before, they had to release lava from the other side before venturing into it. This tunnel wound in a curve, going neither up or down, and had a cap at one end near the door. The lava in this room had not gone as far up. They discovered another door, and Link had to bust the black crust off with the pommel of his sword before they could try opening it.

Unlike before, this door led into a small room. The rock walls sported a few levers protruding from a metal panel. This room also featured a wooden ladder. Valley and Link craned their necks to look up at a metal hatch covering the top.

"Where you thinks dat goes?" Valley asked.

"I'm not sure," Link said as he mounted the ladder. "But I bet, if we're going to find any remains of this Neektam person, it'll be on the other side."

"I likes dat bet," Valley said as she released Link's hand and took a hold of his foot. Link went a few rungs up, then he held out a hand to the hatch. He could not feel any heat from it, so he moved two rungs closer. Still no heat. He climbed close enough to put his hand on the surface. No heat, at least nothing differentiating it from the air around them. He took another step up and pushed against it. It felt heavy, but he managed to put enough push into it to budge it loose from the frame around it. It swung aside, and Link climbed up until his head protruded from the floor.

Link's eyes fell on what he first thought was someone's recreation of the _Grand Sails_' engine room. A conveyor belt from somewhere behind him fed lumps of rock into a top-loading furnace on the opposite side of the room from him. From there, a number of gears and fans squealed as they turned doing… something that Link could not quite make out with all the confusing machinery. Glass tubes lined the wall to his right, some on a table and some protruding from the wall. Lights in the ceiling above appeared to be electric bulbs, and, seeing this, Link wondered if the furnace was part of an electric generator. The wall on his left sported a metal door similar to what they had been finding. It also had a number of crates, all of them made of warping and cracked wood.

Link pulled himself out and looked at the other end of the room as Valley climbed up. The conveyor fed from a hole in the wall. There was another door here, this one a regular door with hinges, along with what appeared to be clothing piled up just beside it. The floor had a rug, but it appeared that the last resident had been unsure which side of the rug was down since the rug was twisted in the middle. More glass tubes protruded from the wall, but these were vertical and empty. A series of levers occupied the wall immediately above the tubes.

"What is dis place?" Valley asked.

"I don't know," Link said, turning back to the furnace. "It looks like a laboratory. I guess." He stepped over to the table of glass tubes and glanced into a beaker. "I've never seen anything like this before."

"You thinks someone still lives here? The air feels more comfortable than down below."

"_Someone_ must still be here," Link said, indicating the conveyor belt. "Even if that thing's automatic, like on an airship, someone would have some reason for leaving it on." Then he pointed to the furnace. "And someone must still be using that, or else this room might've been burned down."

Valley picked up another beaker from the table. "You thinks dis is water? I's thirsty."

She offered Link the beaker, and he sniffed its contents. He recoiled and held the beaker at arm's length. "Whoa, I don't think so," he said. "It smells like raw grog."

"Huh?"

"Raw grog. In short terms, fruit juice and alcohol. But this smells like he forgot the fruit juice."

Valley wandered to the crates across the room and peered into an open one. "Hey," she said, leaning over the side so her legs were off the ground. Link turned as she settled back to the floor. "Look. Rations." She turned the cloth package over. "Old rations."

Link shrugged. "Soog _did_ tell me that Neektam left a long time ago. How old are they?"

"Maybeeeeee… forty years?"

"A long time all right," Irleen spoke up. She popped out from under Link's hat. "With all that lava and this heat, do you think anyone survived to today?"

"I hope so," Link said. "It would be a good lead on finding another Architect."

"Link… in case you didn't notice, we have yet to find _one_."

"What about Leynne?"

"Who, Mister Grouchface?" Valley asked.

"He keeps telling people he's an inventor," Irleen said. "It's not very encouraging."

"He learned everything from his grandfather," Link argued. "It's close enough."

Valley opened her mouth to speak, but something hit the metal door. All three of them froze in alarm. When the door started pulling itself aside, Link, Valley, and Irleen moved to the back of the room. Link put a hand on his sword when he saw an arm reach past the door. Then a shoulder clad in a bright orange sleeve slid through. The door gave another squeal. Then a tall, lanky man wearing an orange body suit under a dirty, yellow waistcoat stumbled in. His hair was long, blond, and horribly unkempt. Although he had faced the direction Link, Valley, and Irleen had ducked in, he did not appear to acknowledge their presence as he stumbled over to the table. He picked up the beaker Link had investigated and, holding his nose, leaned back so that he could dump the contents into his mouth. Valley and Link shared a surprised look.

The man gave a throaty grunt and slammed the beaker back on the table. Then he turned to the intruders and froze with a dumb look on his face.

Then his eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he flopped to the floor. Link and Valley shared another look, and Link started edging closer to the man.

"Is he okay?" Valley asked.

Link leaned forward to get a good look at the man's face. Surprisingly, he wore a satisfied smile. "Uh… I think he's just passed out," Link said, recognizing the kind of smile he had seen on many airmen passed out drunk on the deck of the _Grand Sails_ the following morning. "Whatever that alcohol was, it must have been pretty strong."

"Well, we found someone," Valley said, stepping next to Link. "Now what?"

"I-I don't know. I've never had to… talk to someone who had just passed out."

"Maybe we sho—"

"Gyaaaaah!"

"Yikes!"

"Whoa!"

Both Link and Valley jumped backwards when the man suddenly sat up and hollered. He wobbled for a moment, as if he was about to fall over again. He put a hand on the table and pulled himself up. "Kay," he grunted with a graveled, throaty voice, "Keeze meat… _doesn't_ a drink make."

"Keese _meat_?" Irleen asked.

The man glanced up from the floor, finally taking notice of Link and Valley. "Whoa… visitors. Right?"

"Uh… y-yeah," Link said. "I'm Link, and this is Valley and Irleen."

"_H-ruup!_" he hiccupped. "I'm Sello."

"Sello?" Valley asked.

"Hah-yup."

"Is there… anyone else here?" Link asked.

"Hah… nope. Juzd me."

"_That's_ encouraging," Irleen moaned.

"Is you sure?" Valley asked.

"Yeah-huh," Sello said, nodding vigorously. He had to brace himself on the table to keep from falling over. "Beenz alone fer… uh… wha year z'it?" Valley opened her mouth to answer, but Sello interrupted, "Ya know, I don' zink I know when Fargo died. So I guezz it doesn' madder."

"Sello, do you know a man named Neektam?" Link asked.

Sello perked his head up. "Hey, I know dat name! Da'z ma _dad's_ name!"

"Is he… dead?"

Sello thought for a moment. Then his eyes suddenly welled with tears. "He… _he_…" Sello dropped to his knees and started to bawl at the top of his lungs. "He… he didn' even see when the actuator popped; he was too drunk! An… an' if Frizzy hadn't left dat bottle of toofpaste on the scaffold… _he'd've never fallen into da pressure tube and got shot outta da volcano into dat frozen lake!_" He scooted across the floor on his knees and wrapped his arms around Valley's waist, burying his face in her stomach. Link watched as Valley's attempt at a sympathetic pat fell into awkwardness as she tried not to laugh aloud. He could not quite see what was so funny about it; he had found Sello's words a little horrifying.

"That's just…" Irleen began before her words failed her. "Uh…"

"Luckless?" Valley managed to get out before clapping a hand to her mouth.

"I've heard of accidents that didn't sound _that_ elaborate," Link said. Sello reached over with one hand and found Link's tunic. He pulled Link closer so he could blow his nose on the tunic. Link, attempting to be sympathetic towards the man, gave him an awkward pat on the shoulder. "I'm-I'm sorry for your loss, Sello."

Sello nodded. "Wuz a bad day fer tryin' 'Naked Foreman Day'."

"E-excuse—" Valley quickly retreated to the far side of the room, losing her composure.

"It… happens to the best of us," Irleen said. "I… I guess."

"Oh, iz okay," Sello replied as he stood up. "I needz a drink."

Link watched him pick up the same beaker and said, "You already drank that."

"I did?" Sello examined the beaker. "Oh, yeah." He set it under a tube protruding from the wall. Then he knocked on a tube filled with clear, green liquid. The liquid suddenly slid into the rock and back out to pour into the beaker. Sello picked up the beaker again and told Link, "Boddomz up."

"Sello…" Link began.

"Hey, Link?" Valley asked. Link turned to see Valley staring into the hatch. "I noes thinks dis is good."

"What?" Link asked as he and Sello stepped over to the hatch.

They looked down just in time to see the ladder catch fire from the lava on the floor. Sello, responding quickly, reached past Link and slammed the hatch closed. Then he looked between Link and Valley for a moment. "Uuuuh… how'd you guys geddin?"

"The… door at the base of the volcano," Link answered.

"You take da lef' paf or da right?"

"Uh…" Valley droned, giving Link an uncomfortable look.

"The left, I believe," Link said.

"An' you opened a door, right?" Sello asked.

"Yeah, why?"

Sello gave a sigh. "'Cuz da right paf had a elevator."

Link and Valley groaned and covered their faces. "I told you guys!" Irleen shouted at them.

"You didn't know, either," Link told her in an irritated tone.

"Z'kay," Sello said as he stepped over to the vertical tubes in the wall. "We juz… uh oh."

"What-oh?" Valley asked.

"No lava," Sello said as he knocked on one of the tubes. "You guys open another door?"

"Yes," Link groaned.

"Dere was stairs further down dat tunnel."

Link slapped his forehead. "Is there anything _else_ we should know?"

"Well, all da tunnels you took're flooded wif lava," Sello said. "Soooo… da only way out'z drough da top of da volcano."

"That can't be too bad," Irleen said. "We can just climb back down from there."

"Yyyyyep," Valley said. "It noes looked like a hard climb."

"Kay," Sello said. "But we godda go now, dough."

"Why?" Irleen asked.

"'Cuz da volcano's gonna go boom."

Link and Valley shared horrified looks. "Uh oh," Irleen said.

"Okay, then," Link said, his voice cracking a bit. "Let's, uh… l-let's get out of here."

"Gud idea!" Sello said. Then he realized that the beaker was still in his hands and took a gulp of its contents. He smacked his lips. "Hmm… too zweet." He tossed the beaker back to the table, which shattered both itself and the tube it collided with, and indicated the door. "Le'z go!"


	45. Drumstik, Batshit Contraption

Chapter 45: Drumstik, Batshit Contraption

…

Link, Valley, and Irleen waited in the tunnel adjacent to the room they had met Sello in. While they understood an urgency to get out of a volcano about to explode, Sello had expressed a desire to return to his bedroom to retrieve something. When he emerged, he wore a belt weighed down by a number of tools whose purposes were very unclear to Link. One looked like a glove with metal rivets in the knuckles (which Link noticed while following Sello; its placement gave the illusion of squeezing Sello's rear), one appeared to be a screwdriver with a second shaft, another would have been a hammer if not for its small size and pointed head… Link could not recognize a single tool on Sello's belt, as if Sello spent his time randomly building things. He also had a small barrel made of metal dangling from his left hip. Valley questioned him about the barrel as they walked down the corridor, and Sello told her it was full of Chu Rum. When she pestered him to try a drink, his response was a childish defense of his possession.

The tunnel led to an empty shaft at one end, which Sello cheerfully pointed out as the non-functional elevator (and Sello sounded genuinely cheerful about showing them the elevator; he seemed to have forgotten that they were responsible for its lack of function). He took them through another door and up a flight of stairs. Valley and Irleen noted that they were starting to feel the volcano's heat again, so Irleen hid in Link's hat while Valley held the back of Link's tunic. The stairs, after a few landings with doors on either side, turned into a small tunnel which forced Sello, Link, and Valley to crawl. For this, Valley made sure she put a hand on one of Link's boots whenever she felt the heat getting to her. After a while, though, Valley stopped grabbing Link's boot, indicating the temperature had fallen to a tolerable level again. Sello did not indicate any problems with the temperature at all, and Link had to remind himself that Sello might have been used to living in the volcano after so many years. He had probably even been born in this volcano.

They eventually reached an area where they could stand. Link could feel that the air was perhaps just a little warmer here. He turned to see why.

It was a massive chamber with a large hole in the rock which served as a floor. Two giant wheels with interlocking paddles had been positioned much higher above the hole. Link could see the remains of daylight through the distant top of the chamber, as well as the large pipe which served as the source of the plume above the volcano. At least, he assumed it was. It looked like a large exhaust pipe, like the kind he would see subtly protruding from the stern of any airship, but this one did not appear to be performing its function. Here and there on the wall, metal panels and levers indicated the presence of machinery behind the rock somewhere.

"What is all this?" Link asked Sello.

"Da biggest generator you've ever seen!" Sello declared. He pointed to the large wheels. "Heat turns da wheels, da wheels spin, da spin gives zparky, an' we haz a lightbulb!"

"And that pipe at the top?"

"Dat gets all da bad stuffs oudda da air." Then he tilted his head. "But i'z not workin' now?"

"Would it have anything to do with the fact that we moved all that lava earlier?" Link asked.

Sello frowned. "Huh-yeah, prob'ly."

"How long before dis volcano booms?" Valley asked.

To find his answer, Sello strode to the edge of the hole in the center of the room. "Uh… maybe a bit?" he said with a shrug. "I never been here fer a boom."

"Where's the exit?" Link asked.

"I'z a vent on da oder side," Sello said, indicating a hole across the chamber from them.

"Let's move on," Irleen said, already drifting in that direction. "The sooner we're out of here, the better."

The ground gave a brief shake, causing all three Hylians to wobble. "What was that?" Link asked, looking around for a source.

"Weird," Sello replied as he continued to wobble. "When'z it gonna stop?"

Valley grabbed his shoulder and steadied him. "It did," she told him.

"Oh."

"What, what happened?" Irleen asked.

"The ground shook," Link said.

_Bumm._ As if to prove it, the ground shook again. This time, Link was keen on the accompanying sound. "Oh, boy," he said.

"Dat means da volcano's about to go boom?" Valley asked.

"Let's not fin—" Link started.

"Uh, _Link_!?" Link's head swiveled back towards Irleen. He saw her hovering over the central hole. But she was retreating to one side.

_Bumm. Bummm. Bummmmm. Bummmmmm. Bummmmmmm. Boommmmmmm. Boommmmmmmmmm. BANG!_ A large hand of metal and glass almost twice the size of a Yook suddenly clasped the ground outside of the hole, the sight alarming Link and Valley into taking a step back (while Valley tugged Sello along). Link saw three fingers and a thumb with segments the size of shipping crates. Glass panels surrounded by a metal frame shook off dark ash as it adjusted its grip in the solid rock. Link could see large blocks of metal inside, which he took to be whatever internal mechanisms that allowed the hand to operate. _BANG!_ Another hand flew up through the hole and grabbed one of the wheels above by a paddle. The arm looked the same size as the Seventeen's locomotive, also made of glass and metal framework to protect its interior parts. The wheel strained under a new weight. When the hand got caught in between the wheels, it was the steel structure of the wheels which squealed and gave way, trapping the hand between them.

But the wheels had allowed the mechanical monster to rise from the hole. It had a spherical core. The arms were attached at the farthest ends of the sphere from each other at ball-shaped joints. There was a small cavity in its chest, and Link saw metal mangled by a glowing rock still recessed in the cavity. The "head" was a bulb of glass on top of a metal neck with a pair of pitch-black disks recessed in the mechanics inside. Link did not see any legs opposite the head, somehow making the machine look incomplete.

"Heh-heeeeey!" Sello said as he stepped towards the machine. "I'z Drumstik!"

"Wha?" Irleen asked.

"Drumstick?" Link asked.

"Heh-yeah," Sello said. "He's a lava engine I made." He tilted his head. "I los' 'im years ago. I couldn' dink where I lef' 'im."

"Why… 'Drumstik'?" Irleen asked.

Sello shrugged. "I dunno. I'z kinda drunk when I puddem togedder. Made senze at da time."

"Uh… is it-is it nice?" Link asked, watching as "Drumstik" raised its free arm.

"Well, after he almos' zquashed Monks, Dad had 'im lock—"

_BAM!_ Drumstik's hand dropped onto the space that Sello had been standing in. A last-ditch grab from Link saved him from the heavy hand, which kicked up a thin layer of dust from the rock beneath. Sello stumbled and fell to the ground.

"Back, back!" Link shouted as he helped Sello up again. "Back inside!" Valley and Irleen had already retreated into the tunnel, and Sello and Link followed behind. The surrounding rock shook when Drumstik bashed against the wall. Dust kicked up around them, and they retreated further into the tunnel. "Sello! What _is_ that thing!?"

"He's a lava engine," Sello said, his calm demeanor making the other three wonder if he had just witnessed the intentional attack. "Built to help handle an' divert lava flows when Dad an' his friends put together da generator."

"Is that thing _alive_!?" Irleen asked.

"Heh-yeah," Sello said. "I used ma dad's block to do dat."

"Block?" Valley asked.

_BAM!_

"Yep," Sello said. "I'z shiny, like copper. An' i'z got a block shape." Link frowned; somehow, that description, though vague, sounded familiar.

_Kang! Kang!_ The sound of metal striking metal caught Link's attention, and he climbed back towards the chamber. Keeping low to the ground and not leaving the confines of the tunnel, he watched as Drumstik beat on the wheels holding its other hand.

"How do we get past it?" he asked Sello. "It's going to crush us if we try going out there again."

"Could we sneak around?" Irleen asked.

Link drew his sword and held it out the tunnel, watching Drumstik carefully. Drumstik's black eyes turned in the direction of the tunnel and swung itself so it had the reach to smash its hand at the tunnel's entrance. _BAM!_ Link had already withdrawn the sword and retreated back down the tunnel. "No," he told Irleen, rubbing his eyes with a sleeve. "That thing swung the moment it saw my blade."

"_Now_ what?" Valley asked.

"I say we break him," Irleen said.

_Kang! Kang!_

"How?" Link asked. "The moment someone goes out there, they're going to get crushed."

"Ya can' hur' 'em anyway," Sello said. "Dat glass armor he's got works against hittin' and lava. Ya godda hiddit wif somedin' made to break it. Den ya godda break his body."

Link held up his sword. "I can't break the glass with _this_?"

_Kang! Kang!_

Sello shook his head. "Ya need a smaller weight an' a bedder point." He pulled off the small hammer hanging from his tool belt. "Like dis."

"Well ho—" Link started to ask. Then his eyes focused on the small hammer with its thick handle, small head, and pointed end. His question was going to be how he would get his hands on such an instrument. But to his luck, Sello held it in his hand. He took it without a second thought. "Stay here," he told them. "I'll be right back."

"Kay," Sello said, watching Link climb up the tunnel. "Bye!"

Link stood by the entrance to look out again. _Kang! Kang!_ The machine was still trying to dislodge its hand, the pause in its strikes caused by it swinging awkwardly by its wrist joint. _Kang! Kang!_ He quickly emerged from the tunnel. The machine saw him and immediately swung its fist downwards. Link leapt to one side and fell against the ground. _BAM!_ The fist kicked up dust. Link, in the rush to dodge the fist, had dropped both his sword and the hammer so he could catch himself on the ground. The sword was closer, and Link managed to wrap his hand on it first. Then he heard scraping and looked over his shoulder. Drumstik had opened its hand and swing it at him. Link was getting to his feet, unable to do anything until the hand swept him up. His head struck one of the glass panels, and he had to deal with disorientation as he was picked up off the ground. The fist closed around him, but as Link's head cleared, he saw that the block-like fingers were not capable of squeezing him. Still, he could not move due to being small enough to fit within the cavity made by the machine's fist. He kept his sword tight in his hand and watched through the space at the top of its fist.

Drumstik held Link to its face, one of its black eyes peering into the fist at him. Link took the opportunity and thrust his sword forward. The sword's point struck the glass around Drumstik's head with a dull _tink_. Drumstik pulled its head away in a brief flinch. Link had felt the blow more than it, having his hand stung by such an awkward strike. Sello was right; Link's sword was not enough to break the glass shell. He needed that hammer. And he needed Drumstik to put him down. He backed towards the other end of the fist, but his boot found a hole too small for him to squeeze through.

Then the fist accelerated, and Link started rebounding against the panels as it shook around in the air. Impact against something caused his body to strike one set of joints. Then he felt the arm drop as the hand opened. _BAM!_ The hand slammed onto the ground near the hole, and Link, a little dizzy from the tossing, crawled out of the hand and onto the ground.

"Link, are you okay?"

He looked up to find Irleen hovering in front of his face. "I think so," he told her. "What happened?"

"It grabbed you, so I started flying around its head. I think it made itself dizzy because it hit itself."

Link looked back up at Drumstik. Its head wobbled, its eyes aimed at the walls above it. "Well, let's try not to do that again," he told her. "Did you happen to see Sello's hammer? I dropped it."

"It's over here," Irleen replied as she flew away.

Link scrambled to his feet and ran to her. Then he heard the hand shift against the ground and turned to see Drumstik had recovered. Its hand raised, and Link bolted for the hammer and scooped it into his right hand. He continued running along the wall, and – _BAM!_ – the hand slapped the ground behind him. Link stopped when he realized that he had an opportunity and ran towards Drumstik. Drumstik swung its arm as before, and Link dropped to the ground under its forearm. It quickly stopped the arm after it realized that it had missed Link, and Link got back to his feet again. Drumstik could not get its arm moving back the other direction right away, and Link swung the pointed head of the small hammer into the glass panel.

_Kyash!_ Glass rained onto the ground, broken into large shards with the single strike. Drumstik started to lift its arm out of the way. Link, without thinking about all the glass that he had just broken, dropped his sword and latched onto the exposed frame. The machine spotted him on the arm and gave a large swing which almost caused Link's hand to slip. He clamped down on his teeth, realizing that glass still in the frame had opened his left palm. The forearm rose upright, so Link, with his right hand and the hammer on the frame, swung himself and put a boot into the frame so he could pull himself inside. Fortunately, none of the internal mechanisms were exposed on this side of the arm, allowing Link to put a hand on a piece of metal skeleton. He pulled himself towards the side facing Drumstik's head and smashed out the glass.

Drumstik shook harder, forcing Link to brace himself against the outer frame to avoid being tossed out. Then it slammed its arm against the ground, dislodging Link. Link's back hit the ground hard, and he writhed in pain for a moment. Fortunately, Drumstik was busying itself with a different matter. Instead of bashing a hand against the wheels above, it put its free hand on the wheel behind its head and pulled itself up. This proved to be a little awkward, as Drumstik could only shift its body to the side while it was reorienting the arm of its captured hand. Link looked up to see that it was swinging over the edge of the hole.

In strike range. Link felt around the ground until his right hand found the hammer. After shifting it to his bleeding left hand, he stood up and ducked to where Drumstik was swinging its body. The machine never noticed him as it gave its body a larger swing and finally rotated its arm.

_Kyaaaash!_ The bottom-front quarter of glass shattered and rained into the hole as Drumstik's body swung away. It looked down to confirm that it had been smashed, then it started picking its body up. It managed to put its free hand further up the wheel and pulled itself higher.

Link suddenly had an idea and tucked the hammer into his tunic belt. Then he skipped backwards and to the right to get a better look at Drumstik's head. His hand pulled his boomerang from its holster and popped it open in what had become a familiar draw for him. He sighted for the throw, then he imparted all his arm strength into the throw with the belief that another blow to the head would disorient it again.

_Pank!_ The boomerang skipped off Drumstik's spherical head. Its free hand slipped, and its body dropped. This drop was heavy enough that Drumstik's stuck hand caused the wheels to spin the opposite direction. Drumstik fell, slamming its free arm on the ground. It stopped itself from falling into the hole by planting its captured hand on the other side. Link drew the hammer again, ran to Drumstik's upper arm, and smashed out the glass panel. Drumstik moved at its elbow, and Link quickly backpedaled before the hand could brush him into the hole. It turned its arm and started pushing its elbow into the ground to prop itself up. Link backed up further when he noticed cracks forming in the ground. The ground near the hole broke apart first, and Drumstik's elbow sank into the hole. The move smashed its body into the other side of the hole, and it became wedged. Link watched it struggle a few moments, then he ran to retrieve his sword from the ground.

"Now what?" Irleen asked, dropping from the air above him.

"Now we get out of here," Link said. He found the hole in the wall and waved Sello and Valley out. "Tell them to get to the other side. I'll distract Drumstick."

"Be careful," Irleen told him. Link nodded, sheathed his sword, and ran towards the other side. He ran in front of Drumstik, pulling the hammer and waving it to get Drumstik's attention. He knew that Drumstik would try to protect its undamaged limb from him. As Link approached its other shoulder, Drumstik swept its hand across the ground to prevent Link from reaching it. Fortunately, for being the size of shipping crates, Link found Drumstik's fingertips easy to pull himself atop. Drumstik swept its hand again and bashed it into the wall. Link had his hands on either side of the finger and held on during the ride. He pulled his way up the finger, and Drumstik started waving the hand back and forth. Link could not make any progress like that, only able to hold on by his fingertips.

Then it stopped. Link pushed up for a moment, wondering why Drumstik was not struggling and glanced towards the head. The head had turned completely around, having seen something behind it.

To Link's horror, that something was Valley and Irleen. Valley stood frozen in place, Link's boomerang clutched to her chest and eyes wide as she stared in fright at the machine. Drumstik clenched its hand, causing Link to roll off backwards. He watched the arm rise as it turned at the shoulder. Irleen started shouting at Valley, but she remained in place as Drumstik turned its arm to block off the exit Valley should have been in. But, where she was standing, Drumstik would have to turn if it wanted to smash her.

Then Link realized that Drumstik had just turned its arm around. She _was_ in danger.

Without thinking, Link dashed for Drumstik's body. The upper arm and shoulder was too large for him to climb up like the hand, so he opted to call attention to himself again and smashed out the upper-front quarter of the machine's glass armor. No use; the arm was still moving away from him, and Link had lost sight of Valley. He ran around the shoulder and smashed out a panel from the upper arm. Drumstik still did not respond. So Link climbed into the moving part and up the interior parts to smash out the panel on top. Link quickly lost all form of tactic as he realized that Drumstik still would not respond to him. Using the interior parts, he clambered onto the arm and crossed the shoulder to the metal frame of the body area. The climb was difficult until Link utilized the interior portions of the body to climb up to the neck. Link was just a little taller than the neck, something he realized when he climbed up onto the frame next to it. He also realized that Drumstik's head was encased in a single bulb of glass. Shielding his face with one arm, Link swung the hammer into the glass.

_Kyaaaaaaash-kaka!_ The bulb shattered without trouble, and large shards smashed against both the interior structure and the body as they fell. This caught Drumstik's attention, and its head swiveled around so that its eyes were on Link.

Link did not give his action a second thought. _Kech!_ He smashed the hammer into one of the eyes, revealing it to have been made of glass as well.

"Link, behind you!" Valley's voice called out.

Link looked over his shoulder to see Drumstik swinging for him. He dropped and slid down the side.

_PAM!_ Drumstik's fist bashed into its unprotected head, jarring its good eye out of its socket. Link slid to the ground and dashed for Valley. Then he turned and watched as the machine pummeled the ground around it in a blind panic. Link took Valley's arm and pulled her closer to the wall. It was a good move since the ground started cracking apart around the hole some more.

And lava was pouring up through the hole.

"Hurry!" Link shouted, shoving Valley in the direction of the exit. He ran behind her, watching as Drumstik's body flailed a few more times before popping sounded from its internal structure. He did not wait to see if it would be destroyed, ducking into the hole after Valley to escape the lava quickly flooding the chamber. "Go go go!" he urged Sello and Valley. They crawled up the rock as fast as they could. Link could feel the heat of the lava trying to catch up. His body felt sore, but he knew that if he stopped, the lava would not leave a trace.

In minutes, Sello, Valley, Irleen, and Link clambered out of a vent in the side of the volcano. Link dragged himself to the opposite side of the vent from the other three just in time to avoid having bright lava melt his legs off.

"Link!" Valley shouted.

"I'm okay!" Link said as he crawled sideways to get away from the heat. "What about you?"

"I's okay!" Valley answered.

"Heh-yep!" Sello said.

"Yeah!" Irleen called. She bounded over the lava and in front of Link. "That was insanely awesome, Link! Two for two!"

"Two _what_?" Link asked, tucking the hammer into his tunic belt.

"Big bad things!" Irleen said. "First that thing in the forest, and now, Drumstik!"

Link shook his head. "I think the lava took care of Drumstick."

"Dat isn't what _my_ report's gonna say!" Valley called across the lava.

His response was an exhausted sigh. He turned to look up the side of the volcano. "We should get out of here," he called back. "That lava might spill from the top any minute."

Sello, having taken a long pull from his metal barrel, gave a loud belch and a jolly bellow. "Hah! Road trip!"


	46. Return To Library Town

Chapter 46: Return to Library Town

…

~~No explosion. Sello told us that, since we had displaced all the lava in the mountain that he was using, the volcano would explode. All that happened was lava poured out of the top of the volcano. And I think we saw part of Sello's machine, "Drumstik" (his spelling), fall out the top and roll down to the eastern face. Goddesses help me if I ever see another contraption like Drumstik again. Come to think of it, we just took Sello with us, so I just might. I can't think about it without shuddering.

~~We returned to the Yook mountain maybe an hour ago. Valley, Sello, Irleen, and I spent most of the evening climbing down the volcano and back up here, so it was far enough into evening that twilight was in the sky when we made it back. Kohg treated the burns Valley had on her skin from all the heat. He also treated and wrapped my hands. It hurts to write. I cut my hands bad on the glass from Drumstik's body, and having to climb down the mountain just put more pain and gravel in the wounds. I also have a large burn mark on my suit where a Keese landed on me. We're enjoying a late meal while Irleen fills Leynne, Kohg, and Mohk in on the details of our trip. It's weird hearing what happened to us, but I think that's just Irleen embellishing a little.

~~Thanks to us, though, Sello doesn't have a home. I feel a little bad about it. Sello though—He doesn't seem to mind. I asked if he would like to come back with us to the Forest Realm. He said yes, then he passed out. It makes me wonder if he even understood me. Whatever's in that barrel he has, it seems to be pretty strong.

…

~~Day 17

~~The volcano stopped. I don't quite understand how, but all the smoke and lava just stopped coming out of the top. Leynne says that it looks like all the lava cooled down, but no one really wants to go near it to see. Besides that, it looks like most of the ground around it is covered with lava when it squeezed through the front doors.

~~We're leaving for the train soon. We have to stretch our rations since I lost almost half of what Leynne bought for the journey. And Valley doesn't have any more. And we're taking Sello with us. I want to say that Sello's coming with us, but, really, it feels more like we have to drag him along since we made the volcano flood and destroyed his home. He doesn't want to stay with the Yook (and I get the impression that the Yook don't want him anyway), so we invited him along. Again, since we weren't sure he understood us from last night.

…

~~Day 18

~~I th—Somet—W

~~Sello's out of alcohol.

Link found that he could not come up with anything else to write before stashing the journal and pen back into his pockets and crawling out of the collapsed tent. He, Leynne, and Sello had attempted to share the tent since Valley and Irleen had wanted the group's other tent for themselves, as with during their first night in the mountains. It had seemed like a decent idea since Sello had passed out soon after the tents had been set up. Unfortunately, Link was not aware that Sello would wake up surprised by his surroundings and, subsequently, cause the tent to collapse on top of them.

After throwing the tent off himself, Link saw that empty ration packets littered the ground. For a moment, he thought that everyone had already eaten while he took his time trying to write a single line in his journal. However, watching Leynne put away the muddied contents of his pack told him that something else might have happened. Valley had already packed up and stood near their wrecked tent with Irleen hovering above her head. Sello sat on a rock on the edge of their clearing, frantically shaking his metal barrel. In between the heavy breaths Sello took, Link could hear a combination of sloshing and banging sounding from the barrel, as if he had filled it with water and rocks.

Link's eyes followed the trail of empty rations leading up to Sello. "I'm guessing we won't be having any breakfast this morning," he told Leynne.

With the rain matting Leynne's hair against his head, Leynne's scowl looked a little menacing. "No, we won't."

Valley sighed. "Daddy said dere would be days like dis," she told her hat.

"Your father said that there would be days when a desperate drunk would rip through your companions' supplies looking for alcohol?" Irleen asked, fluttering over to Link.

"Daddy's weird like dat."

Link pointed to Sello. "What's he doing?"

Leynne, dropping a ration packet that he thought had been left alone, glanced up at Sello and said, "If his attitude is any indication, he's attempting to brew his own drink. These ration packs ahn't the best foh that soht of thing, but I'd ratheh him try than lose whateveh mind he might have left." He looked at Link. "You said you found him _in_ the volcano?"

"Yeah…"

"You might have tried putting him back when you weh done."

"He's following us home," Valley chimed.

"It's a drunk, not a cuckoo," Leynne told her.

"He's close enough." Leynne, having finished replacing his pack items, used his free hand to cover his face in annoyance.

"We flooded his home, Leynne," Link said. "We're… you know… kinda responsible."

"I undehstand that," Leynne said as he stood. He shouldered his pack. "But could you have found anyone moh sobeh?"

"He was the only one left," Irleen said.

"From what he told us, it sounds like the rest died in some… gruesome ways," Link added, making an awkward face as he remembered Sello's bawling while telling the story of his father's death. Valley did not share the same sentiment as she remembered and turned away to hide the grin she could not suppress.

Leynne gave a sigh and said, "Come on, Link. Let's get this tent packed away."

Since Link did not have a pack, he agreed to carry the tent in a blanket which Leynne tied up so Link could carry it on his back. Sello, in his endeavor to find a drink, seemed satisfied on his weird concoction of rainwater and travel rations. What was worse about the situation was, despite Leynne having said it was not possible, Sello seemed to have easily gotten drunk again. His stumbling around and tripping in mud left him a little messy by the time the group reached the hills south of the Iyuk Mountains. Valley was almost as messy after reviving her clumsy tendencies to get caught onto the wild growth of the nearby plant life. The rain felt heavier than when they first entered the mountains, and it let them wash off the mud that was constantly building on their clothes and boots. Still, Link would prefer to have a bath once they returned to Library Town.

Once they emerged from the mountains, their walk was guided by the weak trail of smoke on the horizon. They reached a cliff dug into the farthest hill and looked down onto the Seventeen. Luggard spotted them from the cab and blew the train's whistle as Leynne guided them down a slope to one side.

"Hey, Luggard!" Valley shouted over the rain as they approached.

"'Bou' time!" Luggard called back. "Ya's been gone for… wha', four days? I turned the boiler back on like ya said."

"I imagine it's been closeh to five at this point," Leynne said as the group stopped next to the locomotive. "Have you plenty of fuel?"

"Is ya kiddin'?" Luggard laughed. "I go' coal 'nough t' take us t' the _moon_!"

"I think we'll settle for Library Town, Luggard," Link told him.

"Good, I 'ate the moon," Luggard replied as his eyes watched Sello. "Bu' bein' ou' 'ere, I think I'll jus' be glad t' see somethin' other than rain and clouds." He pointed over the side towards the front of the engine. "Wha' is 'e doin'?"

Leynne, Link, and Valley followed his finger's direction. They saw Sello, who had climbed onto the thin running board beside the boiler, licking the side like a gigantic lollipop. Leynne, as Link and Valley walked over to Sello, replied, "He… is appraising the quality of the engine's metal."

"Really?" Luggard asked, watching Link grab the back of Sello's waistcoat to pull him off.

"He's also drunk on rainwateh and rations."

Luggard's look of amazement immediately changed to irritation. "Really, Leynne?"

Leynne threw his hands up. "Valley, Link, and Ihleen picked him up," he said. "I'll not be held responsible foh what he does." With that, Leynne started for the office car.

"Nooooo!" Sello called out as Link and Valley wrestled him away, Irleen escaping the knocking Link was taking by hovering over his head. "Lemme kiss it! Lemme _kizzit_!"

"Sello, you can taste it later," Link said. "We need to get going!"

"One fer luck, two fer marriage!" Sello said as he tried to wrench Link's arms open. "She dezides!"

"What?" Link asked.

"Maybe it'd be easier to tell him that there's alcohol waiting in Library Town," Irleen suggested.

Sello immediately broke loose from Link and Valley and chased down Leynne as he rounded the office car. "Sello likez zpiritz!" he called out.

"Get away from me!" Leynne shouted in response

Luggard started chuckling. "Whe-where'd ya _find_ this guy?"

Link glanced at a grinning Valley before replying, "Inside a volcano."

"No!" Luggard breathed, still smiling.

"Yyyyyep!" Valley said.

"Wha' was 'e doin' _there_?"

"Getting drunk," Irleen said.

"Can' 'e do tha' in a pub?" Luggard asked, pointing at the end of his train.

Link scrunched his mouth in irritation. "I guess we'll find out," he said. "Get ready, Luggard. We're going back to Library Town."

Luggard circled a finger in the air. "Go' it."

…

~~We made it back to the train without anyone killing anyone else. For a while, I thought Leynne was going to strangle someone. Not that it isn't still a possibility. Sello is still drinking from his barrel, and he is very loud about it. He, Leynne, and Valley took the berths at the back of the office car, so I've been lying against the desk off and on. It's not very comfortable, and the train seems to like hitting something hard when I'm about to fall asleep.

…

"Link? Hey, Link." Link stirred when a hand shook on his shoulder. He picked his head up and looked around at the inside of the office car. Then he glanced over his shoulder to find Leynne standing above him. "Ah you all right?"

"Yeah, yeah," Link said, pushing the chair away from the desk. He pressed his thumb and forefinger into his eyes to help rub out the sleepiness he still felt. "Ugh. Where are we?"

"Back in Library Town. We just arrived."

Link glanced back at the berths to find them empty. "Where'd everyone go?"

"Valley said she had to tuhn heh repoht into the Library. Luggahd took Sello somewheh, and that was about all I wanted to know."

"Irleen?"

Leynne put a hand on the end of Link's hat and tore it off his head. "Oh, come on…" Irleen groaned as she appeared to roll over on top of Link's hair. "Just a few more minutes."

Link sighed as he accepted his hat back from Leynne. "Let's go, Irleen," he said. "We still have some daylight to use."

"Oogh," Irleen groaned as she picked herself up and floated above Link's head. "Why did you have to expose the sun?" Link's body felt heavy as he picked himself up. He agreed with Irleen, but he could not stay in the office car all day.

"Come on," Leynne said, inviting them out the door. "We'll find something to eat, and then we'll see if we can find Cale."

Link nodded. "That's right; he should be up and around by now." He started for the door, then he remembered to grab his shield and sling it over his shoulder. "If we've been gone for as long as you say, he might be back at the Library."

"We'll find him afteh we eat."

Link, Leynne, and Irleen left the train and explored some of the shops built into the cliffside in front of the Western Platforms. They found a tavern to eat at on the farthest end of the marketplace. Leynne made a remark at the number of peddlers in the tavern, and Link had to agree with him that there were quite a few. The market outside also seemed to have picked up in foot traffic, something which both of them noticed as they tried to squeeze through the crowd. About halfway towards the central region of town, Irleen remembered something.

"And the world goes boom!" she hollered.

_BOOM!_ In a second after her words found Link's ears, Link hit the ground hard in response to what he perceived as cannon fire. His ears rang from the sound, as if a girl was softly screaming right next to him. When it cleared, he heard words of confusion and looked around. Gemstones lay scattered across the platform while one of the nearby dealers scrambled around his table to pick them up.

"What just happened?" Leynne asked as he and Link slowly stood.

"Gotcha…" Irleen said, giving a satisfied twirl.

Leynne gave her an irate look. "Cah to enlighten us?"

"Sure, after you do me a favor," she said, dropping so she could hover in front of his face. "I need you to buy a gem for me."

Both Leynne and Link stared at her for a moment, although Link only did it out of confusion. "You'h joking, right?"

"Trust me, Leynne," she said. "Go over to that guy—" She motioned in the direction of the dealer still picking up his scattered goods. "—and buy the gem I want."

"Why me?" Leynne asked. He indicated Link with a finger. "Why don't you have _Link_ buy it?"

"Link's poor."

"Hey!" Link whined.

"How much could one gem cost? Just one gem. If you don't like it, you won't have to do it again. It shouldn't be too much for a man who was able to dish out three hundred and fifty rupees for a train ride."

"Why do you suddenly need a gem?" Leynne asked.

Irleen circled his head. "Just trust me and get me the one I want." Then, as if to avoid further argument, she dove under Link's hat.

Which Leynne quickly snatched, causing Link to duck when he thought Leynne would hit him. "Now wait a minute," he said to the top of Link's head. "Wheh does it say that I have to buy you _anything_?"

"Okay, okay, look!" Irleen said, immediately flying up out of Leynne's reach. "When we came down here, I had a bag of gems. But we wound up losing them when the _Island Sonata_ crashed. I thought they might be here, so I—" After cutting herself off to look around, she descended so that she could whisper. "That explosion was one of the gems. As far as I can remember, it's the only one that triggers at a distance."

"So you _did_ cause that explosion!" Link accused in a hushed voice.

"Nice to know you're listening, Link…"

"Why couldn't you just say so?" Leynne asked as he dropped Link's hat back onto Link's head. Link reached up and straightened the hat. "It's much easieh if you would explain fihst."

"Because I was trying to save it as a surprise," Irleen whined. "Now come on! Before it gets buried again!" She dove back under Link's hat. Link and Leynne gave a synchronized sigh and walked back towards the gem dealer.

The man wore a simple shirt of blue silk and thick, cloth pants. His skin looked a little red, particularly on his face and forearms. Healing scabs marred his hands as he reached around for the gemstones on the ground. He had a flat cap covering a bandage encircling his forehead, revealed by the cap being replaced slightly askew. The man's appearance gave Link the impression that he had had a bad week.

After they stepped to the opposite side of the table, where the dealer's wares were not visible, Leynne knocked on the table. The man looked up. Then he dumped the gems in his arms into a basket and stood. "Yeah, uh, yes?" he said. "Yes, can I help you, gentlemen?"

"We need a gem," Leynne told him.

The man's eyebrows rose. "Ah, for a lady friend?" he asked.

Leynne jerked a thumb at Link. "For his gihlfriend." Link gave him an annoyed look.

"And, her favorite color?" the dealer asked. "I have gemstones of all colors."

"Smoky," Irleen whispered to Link. "Dark."

"Sh-she likes them dark," Link spoke up.

The dealer glanced around for a moment. "Smooth or natural?"

"Natural," Irleen said.

"N-natural," Link repeated.

"I'm glad you'h suddenly an expeht on gems," Leynne remarked in an irritated tone.

"Round," Irleen whispered.

"R-round," Link said.

"Uh… y-you, uh… know I can hear that girl's voice… right?" the dealer asked Link.

Link gave a sigh. "We're trying to find a gem that she lost," he said. "We know you have it."

The dealer put on a large smile. "So I see," he said. "How much is this gem worth to you?"

"Do you _have_ it oh _not_?" Leynne asked.

"Round, natural, dark…" the man listed as he reached beneath the table. He produced a rock half the size of his palm. It was almost spherical, but the top boasted another sphere fused to it. Its surface would be smooth if not for the raised bumps all over it. In the fading light, it looked almost black, but Link could see the edge facing the setting sun was semi-transparent. "Is this it?"

"And the world," Irleen said.

Seemingly in response, the stone's edges glowed red. Link took an unconscious step backwards. "Yeah, that must be it," he said.

"So, what are you willing to give me for it?" the dealer asked. "Because I paid quite a bit for this piece. It's hard to drive a bargain with Bulblins when they're wielding."

Leynne indicated the table with a finger. "How much does all of this cost you? The table and youh stock?"

He shrugged. "I suppose it's worth about four or five-hundred thousand rupees."

Leynne nodded. "Because that's how much you'll lose if that gem explodes again."

The man laughed. "Right."

Leynne matched his laugh except for the sincerity. "You think it's a coincidence that we approach you afteh youh stock blows across the ground?"

The man's smile faded. "You… you're _serious_?"

"She's already activated it," Leynne said, indicating the gem. The dealer quickly dropped it on the table. "Do you still want us to pay so deahly foh it?"

He held his hands up. "No, get it out of here! I didn't even have to bargain with the Bulblins; they just _threw_ it at me!"

Leynne reached into his pocket as Link carefully took up the gem. He dropped a purple rupee onto the table. "Thanks."

The dealer stammered as he scooped up the rupee, watching Link and Leynne walk away. When he realized that they were the only two walking away, he leaned forward to look in front of his table where he thought the girl was hiding.

…

Link returned to the Library after Leynne left him to take care of some business. By the time Link had reached the garden in front of the Library, he remembered that he and Leynne had intended to look for Cale. Fortunately, as he stepped through the front door, he found that there was no need to look.

"Hey, Link!" Cale called down the hall. "Oveh heah!"

Link had to weave his way through the chairs that had been left sitting out, occasionally having to push one in; it appeared that no one liked to straighten up at the end of the day. "How are you doing?" Link asked when they met at the middle.

"Much betteh, thank you," Cale said. "How was the Snow Realm?"

Link opened his mouth, but Irleen popped out of his hat and spoke before Link could. "We picked up a drunk."

"Ah—" Cale clapped his mouth shut, his smile fading into a confused expression. "I-I'm sohry?"

"We found a man named Sello," Link said. "He's a descendent of Neektam, an Architect that was living in a volcano north of the mountains."

"So, you weah lucky," Cale concluded.

"He's a drunk," Irleen said, circling above Link's head. "He raided the supplies Leynne brought just to make himself a drink."

Cale gave her an awkward side-glance, tilting his head to do so. "So… half-lucky?"

"He passed out in front of us and doesn't even talk straight. I can tell _through the translator gem_!"

"Well… he-he _did_ make Drumstik," Link pointed out.

"You mean the crazy machine that almost _killed_ us?" Irleen asked, her circles becoming smaller and faster.

"Sooo… no… luck?" Cale asked.

"_Bad_ luck!" Irleen said, jerking to a stop in front of his face. "Very _bad_ luck, Cale!"

"Oh."

"It's not like Sello can be drunk _all_ the time," Link told her.

"Well, he's trying his best," Irleen said. Link just groaned and put a hand over his face.

"I'm glad I found you befoah the day ended," Cale said. "I may have a lead on anotheh Ahchitect."

"Really?" Link asked. "I thought you were having trouble finding Architects. We spent a whole day before we found Ryain."

"Well, I had plenty of time to look around afteh I felt betteh. And since we found Ryain through a pictuah at The Rusted Boileh, I thought I might staht theah."

"Did you find anything there?" Irleen asked.

Cale put on an embarrassed face. "Actually… they threw me out."

"Well, _we_ could've told you that would happen," Irleen said, moving to one side of the hall to look at books on the shelves.

"Pehhaps," Cale said. "But, afteh that, I found a book with a moah detailed recohd of the Royal Engineehs. It was easieh to find afteh I knew which time period to look at."

"It was _that_ easy?" Link asked.

"I looked at the books on the otheh side of the shelf. Anyway. As it tuhns out, Ryain at least kept cohrespondence with a few othehs befoah he went into isolation."

"Was one of those Neektam?"

Cale shook his head. "No, but he _did_ keep contact with anotheh who knew Neektam. It was a Goron blacksmith named Agoro."

"Another Royal Engineer?"

"_Honorary_ Royal Engineeh. His acceptance to the Royal Engineehs was a title-only affaih."

"How come?" Irleen asked.

"As I undehstood, Agoro wasn't interested in being a Royal Engineeh. He designed the exterioh structuah of locomotives so that they would be moah… efficient, I suppose. But that was fohty yeahs ago, so I imagine locomotives have changed in recent times."

"Any idea where he was last?" Link asked. "If we're lucky, he had an apprentice or descendant who carried on his work."

"I thought as much, too," Cale said with a nod. "The Gorons typically live in close-knit societies; very few of them eveh leave home. Agoro was last known to be living in the Gorons' only town in the Fiah Realm."

"The Gorons' _only_ town?" Irleen asked.

"Uh, the Gorons have a numbeh of settlements across the realm, but most of them spend hahdly a week away from the hometown at the base of the Mountain of Fiah."

"The 'Mountain of Fire'…" Irleen said. "Don't you people even try to think up inventive names?"

"Um… a-actually, I think that was the Gorons."

Link sighed, crossed his arms, and leaned a thigh against the table next to him. "So we need to get to the Goron town. Would Madame Seilon be willing to fund another trip?"

"She wanted to wait foh youh retuhn befoah discussing the possibility. But she's already left foh the evening, so we'll have to wait until tomorrow."

Link nodded. "That's fine. It's late anyway."

"Where are we staying the night?" Irleen asked.

"You can stay with me again, if you want," Cale offered. "I still have that extra cot, and my landlohd already knows you might stop by again."

"Okay," Link said as he pushed away from the table. "Are you finished here?"

Cale nodded. "Madame Jessek has been waiting foh me to finish. If you want to go on, I'll be back in a moment."

"All right," Link said, offering a wave as he started walking away. "See you there."

"Don't keep us too long," Irleen added as she followed.

Link stepped outside to find that evening was almost over, the low sun causing most of tenements outside of the Library's garden to cast long shadows across the ground. Some people had already set about lighting the torches around the town's central block. Link took in a deep breath and smiled.

"What's that all about?" Irleen asked as she circled above his head. "What's with the smile?"

"I don't know," Link said. "Somehow, I just have a good feeling."

"Oi, Link!" Link stopped and watched as Luggard jogged toward him. "'Ow's ya doin'?"

"Not bad," Link answered. "We just got some news from Cale."

"'E doin' okay?"

Link nodded. "He just told us about another lead he has on an Architect."

"Well, _tha's_ some good news," Luggard huffed, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"We miss something?" Irleen asked.

But Luggard just shook his head. "Comp'ny idiocy. So, where's we goin' then?"

"We need to get to the Gorons' town at the base of the Mountain of Fire," Link said. "We'll be—"

Luggard interrupted him by hissing through his teeth in mild dismay. "What?" Irleen asked.

"Well, it's 'bou' tha' 'comp'ny idiocy' thin'," he explained. "I jus' go' word from me pals a' the Boiler." He paused and took in a deep breath to steel himself from his need to express a personal opinion.

"The Forest Rail Comp'ny, the Shoreliner Comp'ny, 'n the Aboda Railway Comp'ny all jus' declared tha' _no_ trains is goin' t' the Sand Ream, the Ocean Realm _or_ the Fire Realm. The Spiri' Tracks in the Ocean Realm is too flooded t' le' trains pass, 'n all the other rails go' destroyed 'n washed ou' by tides. Tha' cuts off access t' the _whole_ east."

Link's jaw slowly drooped open into a stunned look.

…

~~I just found out that there may be another Architect among the Gorons. Unfortunately, I also just found out that all tracks going to the Fire Realm are cut off. Luggard says there isn't another

Link stopped and slapped the pen against the desk in frustration. He did not want to write down what Luggard said, that there were no other routes into the Fire Realm and there was no way to configure the Number Seventeen engine to run over flooded tracks. How could good news be taken away from him so quickly? He sighed, set his elbows on the table, and covered his face with his hands.

"Come on, Link," Irleen said, hovering over the cot. "It's not the end of the trip yet."

"If theah's a way around the Ocean Realm, I'm suah we'll find it tomorrow," Cale added before beginning to pull off his robe. He stopped halfway and stared at Irleen. "Um… if-if you don't mind…"

"What?" Irleen asked.

"I'm… I'm—I want to undress."

"So?"

"Could you… tuhn around?"

Irleen groaned and fluttered over to Link. "Link. We'll _find_ a _way_."

Link took his hands away from his face. "I know. I ju—… It's… a little frustrating."

"We had the same problem when we tried going to the Snow Realm."

Link shook his head. "It's not the same. We didn't have the money, but we weren't physically _blocked_ from the realm."

"That's still not going to stop us," she assured him. "Even if we have to walk, we'll get there."

He gave a sigh and leaned back against his chair. "I just… wish it wasn't so difficult."

"Me, too."

He aimed his frown at Irleen for a moment. "I'm sorry, Irleen. I know I promised to get you home, and I'll do everything I can. You're right. If I have to, I'll walk."

"You dove into a pit to save Valley from a pack of Wolfos. You left us behind to defend us from Fire Keese and _Drumstik_. I know you would do everything you can." Link chuckled.

"You mean… I _missed_ that?" Cale asked.

"You'll have to compare notes with Valley," Irleen said with a smile in her voice. "She had the best seats at the show."

"Apparently," Cale said. Then, realizing that he had removed his chemise, he quickly ripped off his bedsheets and jumped under them. "Uh… g-good night."

"I'll put the light out," Link said, standing. He removed his hat (which Irleen settled in) and tunic. He considered finishing the sentence in his journal, but he just closed it and blew out the candle before relaxing in the cot.

…

"Two hundred and fifty-five years, five months, eighteen days."

He drew himself up as he took note of the time given to him by the scaled commander donned by a rich coat of vermillion. He figured the time in his mind, and he could only come to one possible event which had any relevance. The imprisonment of Malladus with the Spirit Tracks at the end of a devastating war on the surface. He knew the story well enough that it had become engrained in his memories as a series of horrific pictures conjured every time he heard it again.

"That was how long it took for us to catch you," the creature continued as he paced before the line of Sorian airmen and Hylians. His face had a vague human look except for the diamond-shaped scales which glistened with every lightning strike. He did not have any visible ears, but the shadows where they should be showed some kind of holes for hearing. The coat had chipped buttons made of large disks of wood and metal pauldrons which appeared to have been battered and scarred by battle. A bronze-handled cutlass hung from his belt by a pair of chains that rattled as he walked. He scowled at Captain Koroul for a moment. "I suppose your ancestors forgot about us once the war was over."

"I am sure they tried," Captain Koroul replied. "But our history is marred by what you did to our homeland. Images of your… _vessel_… our seared into our walls to remind us that you still exist. Creatures locked out of time itself."

The creature gave an amused laugh. "I will admit that that was quite a feat. We had no indication that the Sorians would be such a problem. I suppose our king put too much emphasis on those wretched spirits wandering the surface."

"Your king was quite justified in his concerns," he blurted out.

Both the creature and Captain Koroul looked at him in surprise. "Interesting," the creature said, smirking. "What are you, naked one? Clearly not a Sorian." He backed away a half-step, uncomfortable with being called "naked".

Line stepped in front of him. He told the creature, "We're not the only ones. If you don't let us go, you're going to pay. Our capta—"

"Sir!" someone in the tattered sails above called out. "Ship astern! She's lighted!"

Confused looked passed among the crew of the _Horizon's Eye_. The same looks were shared between him and the other Hylians. "Who could be out here?" one of the Sorian airmen asked.

"No one," another answered. "Only the _Horizon's Eye_ was to leave the Storm."

Line, after exchanging an alarmed look with Albert and Flower, dashed for the bulwark. The creature in command held up a hand to halt his mixed crew of iron skeletons and scrawny lizards. He understood the reason for this; if Line intended to flee, his only option was to jump and hope he landed on the _Horizon's Eye_ somewhere over the side. Instead, Line stopped with his hands on the bulwark, looking towards the rear of the ship.

He joined Line. "What is it, Airman Line?" he asked.

"Oh, no," Line breathed. He glanced back for a moment.

"It's the _Island Sonata_. It's Link."

"Man the aft guns!" the ship's commander declared. "Prepare to blow that ship from the skies!"

"Wha—NO!" Line declared as he spun around. "Leave him alone! He isn't armed! He can't _do_ anything!"

"Put them back in line!" A large hand wrapped around his bicep, but he did not offer any resistance as he was dragged back into line next to Captain Koroul. He watched Line struggle against the lizard attempting to drag him back. "Leave that one. Let him watch."

Line threw a relaxed grip from his forearm. "Just leave him alone! He doesn't know what he's _doing_! He doesn't know about _any_ of this!"

"I think you misunderstand my intentions," the creature told him with a smirk. "We cannot afford to have a witness to our capture of your ship. Not yet. The winds ensure that he comes this way; there is no way for him to return to the Sorian island. It is his fatal error that he approaches."

"He has no way to defend himself!" Line argued, his arms flailing with desperation. "He's all alone on that ship!"

"Whether he dies a hero or a fool makes no difference to us," the creature replied. "He must simply die. Hold fire for my command!"

"Yessir!" a crewman replied.

"He's just a kid," Flower said, his deep tone making his statement sounding more like a threat.

"Death's blade does not discriminate," the creature told him as it stepped over to the mast. "Neither do I."

"What would it take you to halt your attack?" he asked, stepping towards the creature. "Surely there is some way."

The creature eyed him for a moment. Then he looked around at the other Hylians. "I would admire your loyalties to your captain if you did not grovel in his place," he hissed. He signaled at them, and the lizards seized and pulled the Hylians backwards. "If they step towards me again, cut out whatever they use for hearts. The same goes for the Sorians."

"I have a shot, sir!" someone called from the rear of the ship.

"Me, too!"

The creature eyed the Hylians. Then he turned to Line. "If you're to blame anyone, blame your captain for his stupidity.

"FIRE THE FIRST!"

"Firing!"

_POM!_ The sound rattled the deck under his feet. One of his hands fell on Flower's arm to keep balance using the airman's size. His eye quickly moved to Line, who was watching events behind the vessel with horror in his profile. For a moment, only the wind seemed to breathe.

"RELOAD AND FIRE THE SECOND!"

"NO!" Line shouted at the commander, his fist hitting the bulwark.

_POM!_ Again, the deck shook. Line spun to stare out over the bulwark. Again, silence.

"Direct hit!" someone behind them declared.

"No!" Flower shouted, stepping out of line from behind and running to the bulwark. The commander gave the creature who was supposed to be behind Flower a dismissive wave. Flower leaned over Line and watched. Then his fist hit the bulwark, too. "No!"

"Reloaded and aimed, sir!" called the first cannoneer.

"FIRE!"

_POM!_

Line spun around. "You'll kill him!"

"Chief," Flower spoke with a grave tone. "He's already dead."

"You s—" Line cut himself off as he turned back around.

He realized the horror that those two airmen must have been watching. Could it be that the Lieutenant had followed them? Why? Did he somehow know that they were in danger?

"Direct hit!"

A moment of silence, one in which he could feel his own anticipation mingle with the other Hylians.

"It's a kill! He's going down!"

A roar of delight blew across the deck. The sound rattled his whole body as if it would snap his bones apart from sheer force. But in the middle of it, he heard Line scream in such a horrific voice that it felt as if he would lose his mind.

"LIIIIIIIIIIIINK!"

"NOOOO!"

Link woke up screaming and quickly sat upright. Irleen was already in the air, and he could hear Cale stirring behind him. After taking quick stock of himself, he searched around in the darkness for some kind of assurance as to where he was.

"Līnca?" Irleen asked, her tone half-asleep.

He put a hand on his chest, trying to will his heart to not burst from his body. His mind buzzed with vague impressions from the nightmare, trying to sort everything before he could forget it.

"Link, wha's goin' on?" Cale slurred. "Anotheh nightmah?"

A nightmare? That was a given. But this time, Link could remember something. Something which did not make sense, but might have something to do with his other dreams. It had to; it felt as if he might have had it before. The nightmare was leaving him fast, but one thought managed to stick with him long enough for him to grasp.

Had he just _witnessed_ the sinking of the _Island Sonata_?


	47. Where Legends Walk

Chapter 47: Where Legends Walk

…

~~Day 19

~~I'm convinced now that these nightmares have some kind of meaning to them, but I can't quite figure out what. Somehow, I think I've seen through the eyes of another the Island Sonata when it was sunk in the Undying Storm, what the Sorians call the "Storm of Purgatory". I keep thinking it's Captain Koroul, but something just doesn't seem right about it. I just can't understand it at all.

~~Cale suggested going through charts of the railways at the Library. He's suggested that we might be able to find another way to the Gorons' town. I hope he's right. Without access to the Fire Realm, we'll have a hard time finding more Architects.

…

Link had taken advantage of staying at Cale's apartment by using the bath hall again. It felt nice to be clean, especially after the nightmare had caused him to remain awake the rest of the night yet again. Now, he sat at one of the tables in the central room of the Library, his eyes partially focused on the rail map in front of him. It was only a little late in the morning, but Link's lack of sleep was already taking its toll on him. He kept his head propped up on a hand, trying to look like he was examining the map while imagining how comfortable the table was. Luggard sat across from him in an equivalent state of drowsiness. He had explained earlier that he had been kept up by Sello, who had not only insisted on getting drunk but had succeeded in becoming completely incomprehensible through an insane combination of beer and Mel's Boiler Soup. Luggard then had decided to stay with him at a nearby inn, but by the time he had awoken, Sello had disappeared. A quick check on the Seventeen had revealed Sello somehow passed out on top of the locomotive's boiler. Leynne had yet to appear, however Link had managed a passing glance at Valley before joining Cale in the central room.

"Ħō, ħō, Cīla!" Irleen's voice suddenly cried across the room, snapping both Luggard and Link out of their drowsiness.

"What, what!" Cale cried in response, startled by her voice.

"Kūlhònka rìláh," Irleen said in a loud tone. "Àt kūlvoice is so dull that half of youh sounds just don't come off as saying anything cohrectly or even grammatically sound."

"Don' Irleen jus' sound _weird_, talkin' like _Cale_ now?" Luggard whispered to Link.

Link offered him a weak smile. Cale was originally supposed to have a couple days of rest from the Library, agreed upon by Link and Madame Seilon due to his work on finding the Goron Architect. He declined and, instead, indicated an interest in Irleen's native language. His exposure to it (through the concussion he had received during the forest crypt adventure) had left an impression, and he asked if Irleen would be willing to teach it to him. To help him along, Link let Cale borrow the translator gem so he could control hearing Hylian and Sorian when necessary. The result was Irleen, from the perspective of the other Hylians in the room, switching between the two languages mid-sentence as well as speaking Hylian with Cale's Hovela dialect.

"I'm so used to hearing her talk the other way," Link said.

"I thin' I's used t' 'er talkin' in tha' pirate-y accen' o' yours."

"Yeah…" Link answered, not noticing the comment about his accent. He was already drifting back to sleep.

_Fuuhhhhhhhhhh. Eouuuhhhhhhhh._ Link only vaguely acknowledged the wind, not realizing how unnatural it was at first.

_Fuuhhhhhhhhhh. Hihhhhhhhhhhhk._

_Hihhhhhhhhhhk._

—_Link!—_

_Fuuhhhhhhhhh._

Link's eyes immediately snapped open. Though his drowsiness and the unusual wind, he heard the sound of his name loud and clear, and it definitely had his attention. There was something about the female voice. It sounded familiar, and he thought he had heard it recently. But as his eyes wandered around the room, he saw that Irleen was too busy talking to Cale to say anything and there were no other girls in the room.

Luggard glanced up, having barely caught himself nodding off again. After a moment of watching Link angle his neck to peer beyond the bookshelves, he asked, "Somethin' wrong, Link?"

"You didn't hear that?" Link asked.

"'Ear wha'?"

Link stood up. "That wind. Where'd that wind come from?"

"If yar talkin' 'bou' wind, Irleen's jus' there," he said, pointing a thumb over his shoulder. His comment, loud as it was, went without a response as Cale was listening to her talk in Sorian.

"No, it was real wind. Strong wind."

"'Ow? We's in the middle o' a ol' castle."

"I don't know, it just… it was really strong wind. I think."

"Ah you suah, Link?" Irleen, now hovering above Luggard's head, asked.

"It—" Link stopped himself. He did not want to say anything about hearing his own name in the wind. He could not be sure he had even heard it right, drowsy as he was. "I'm sure I did."

"It may have been a draft," Cale said as he approached Luggard. "A numbeh of the adjoining cohridohs have holes in the outeh wall; ones we don't repaih foh storage ah usually neglected. I'm not suah about this room, though. I've neveh noticed."

"Well, be quiet and listen foh a moment," Irleen said.

They fell silent. Someone in the hall outside coughed a few times. A small whistle, just barely audible, pulsed somewhere in the back of the room. It was not the deep, subdued howl that Link had heard, but Link decided to follow it through the shelves. Curiosity caused Irleen, Luggard, and Cale to trail him until he stopped on the other side of the room.

This side of the room had a dais which had been left clear of any sort of object, leaving only a floor carpeted in green. Link glanced up at the wall opposite from him, finally noticing the stained glass window set at the top. The figure appeared to be a girl with blond hair, a tanned face, a blue waistcoat left open to reveal a lavender shirt, and a red scarf. Behind her, Link could not be certain if it was meant to be a sun or the bow of a ship; the window's frame made it difficult to tell, and the glass of that part of the window appeared to be a little murky. Two large, red doors sat on either side of the wall. As Link stepped onto the dais, he could hear the low whistle sound from the door on the left.

He pointed and asked Cale, "Where does that door go?"

"Uh—storage, I believe," Cale said. Link started towards it. "As I said, some of the adjoining cohridohs let aih in."

Link put a hand on the door, feeling its weight with a gentle push. Then he shoved the heavy door out of the way, revealing a corridor of grey stone. Directly across from him was a stairway going down. On his left, a pair of boys organized some of the spare furniture into manageable walkways in a corridor too narrow to be used as a storage space. They paused to look at him, but Link's attention fell back on the stairway. The whistle was still low, but he could tell that was where it came from.

The stairs twisted around before opening into another room. Link glanced around, but the room, with the same stone build as the corridor above, was filled with old, cracked pottery. The room appeared to be lit by a window on the far side from the stairs. There was a wall to the right of the stairs, so Link went further into the room, moving between the pots as carefully as possible.

"Wha's 'ere?" Luggard asked as he and Cale tried to trace Link's route.

"I-I'm not suah," Cale said. "I don't think anyone comes down heah very often. This stuff looks quite old."

"I've seen trees oldeh than these," Irleen said. "Just wheah ah you expecting to go, Link?"

"I don't know," Link answered, adjusting his sword to get through a particularly narrow opening. He saw a pair of doors against one wall and moved towards it. "Cale, where would you say we are?"

"I can't say foh cehtain," Cale answered. "Pehhaps somewheah at the back of the Library."

Link reached the door and pushed open, eliciting an annoyed creak from it. Light blinded him for a moment. When his eyes adjusted, he looked out onto a small field lined by trees until the cliff on the far side. He stepped outside, finding the air to be warmer than usual. The grass grew at least over the toes of his boots, at most to his knees in small patches.

"Well… theah's youh answeh," Irleen said as she came to a hover above his head. "This is… actually, quite astounding. You would neveh expect to find such green behind a castle. I wondeh if anyone else knows about this."

"Give me tha'," Luggard growled at Cale, tearing the translator gem from his hand.

"Wha's goin' on?" Irleen asked, turning around.

"'Ere," Luggard said as Link turned around. Link found the translator gem shoved into his chest and held up his hands to grab it. "I can' take it anymore."

"What?" Irleen snapped.

Luggard pointed at her. "_Tha's_ be'er."

"That huht," Cale said.

"Cale?" Link asked. He pointed to the cliff. "What's that? Where does that go?"

Cale glanced around Link at the cave opening at the base of the cliff. "Oh. I wondeh. Supposedly, theah's a tunnel from heah to the Toweh of Spirits to the nohtheast. Well, it's no wondeh no one could eveh find it. Everyone was always undeh the impression that the tunnel stahted _inside_ the castle."

"Bu' the Tower o' Spirits' been closed for _years_," Luggard said. "Ya don' thin' the tunnel'd still be _open_, do ya?"

Cale shrugged. "The possibility exists. No one's known wheah this tunnel is foh almost a century." He thought for a moment, then he jogged to catch up after Luggard, Link, and Irleen had already started walking. "You know, it might be the pehfect oppohtunity if this goes as fah as the Toweh of Spirits."

"'Ow'd ya figure?" Luggard asked.

"Well, accohding to legend, a pehson on the very top of the toweh is supposed to be able to look out at the entiahty of Hyrule. A vantage point like that _must_ allow foh someone to find a cleah way to the Gorons' home."

Link silently agreed with Cale, but he had something else on his mind. Someone had called to him in the Library, whether the others had heard it or not. He felt it in his heart that he was supposed to go this way. Although he had never had these feelings before, his gut told him that he was doing the right thing. The only question was why.

They climbed up a small hill and crossed to the cave. But Link halted at the entrance, putting up a hand to stop Cale and Luggard. "Wha' is it?" Luggard asked.

"There's light inside," Link replied.

"What, somebody's inside?" Cale asked.

Link shook his head. "I can't tell." He put a hand on his sword. "Let's take a look."

"Las' time I 'eard someone say tha'," Luggard said as all four stepped inside, "we 'ad t' pull a Bullbo off a conductor."

Cale gulped. "Wa-wa-was the conductoh all right?"

"Yeah, bu' 'e never looked a' _bacon_ the same way 'gain. Tha' Bullbo was lookin' for a _connection_."

"Wait, you mean…" Irleen trailed off. Then she let out a disgusted sound. "I wish I had a stomach; I need to puke."

They walked through a short tunnel into a wider cave. Torches lined the walls, looking freshly lit. Water dripped somewhere in the back.

"Tha's jus' weird," Luggard said.

"Looks like a good place to find Keese," Irleen said.

"Who lit the tohches?" Cale asked.

"Maybe ghosts," Irleen suggested.

Luggard burst into a short laugh. Then he stopped and asked, "W-wai', ya thin' so?"

"_Someone_ had to light them," Irleen said. "Unless you think they've been lit ever since this cave was discovered."

"I _prefer_ tha'."

They continued on, locating another tunnel on the other side. Torches had also been lit in this tunnel, which came to a corner at one point. Link, Cale, and Luggard had to take running jumps over small pools of water in the floor. At the end of the turn, they found another branch which led into a room. Some discussion bounced among them as they examined the broken crystal balls and stone tiles that they rested on.

Then they found a stairway leading up. They followed it into another tunnel. Their presence startled a bunch of rats, which scrambled into holes in the walls of the cave. Keeping their eyes open for any that decided to brave an attack, they continued until the end of the tunnel. Link could see light beyond the massive rocks blocking their way and figured that there must be something further on.

"Well, tha's jus' a li'l disappointin'," Luggard said with a sigh.

Cale tried to look around the rocks. "What could be up theah?"

"I can take a look," Irleen said. Without waiting for a reply, she squeezed into one of the openings near the top and disappeared from sight.

Link started examining the rocks near the cave wall. "Do you think we could move any of these out of the way?" he asked, trying to shove a rock just a little shorter than him.

"If I 'ad me pipe, maybe," Luggard said.

"Pehhaps," Cale said, pointing, "but look at this bouldeh. It's much moah massive than the othehs, and it looks to be right in the middle of the doohway."

"Hey, guys!" Irleen called from the other side. "I've got daylight up here."

"Irleen!" Link called. "Can we use this gem of yours to move some of these rocks?"

Irleen emerged from behind the rocks. "I suppose, but I wouldn't recommend being anywhere near it."

Link removed the gem from his pocket and looked around for a place to plant it. He squeezed it between the largest boulder and another big rock. "Irleen, can you trigger it once we're around the corner?"

"Yeah, but I'm coming with you," she replied, following them back into the tunnel.

Link ducked around the corner, hunched down, and placed his hands over his ears. "Wha's ya doin'?" Luggard asked.

Link took his hands from his ears and glanced up at him and Cale. "That gem explodes. We probably don't want to hear it go off. Irleen set it off in the middle of town yesterday, and I couldn't hear anything for a bit."

Cale and Luggard glanced at each other. "Yeah, good enough for me," Luggard said.

Irleen waited until they huddled against the wall and covering their ears. Then, to be safe, she ducked around the corner with them. "And the world goes boom!"

_BOOM!_ Even around the corner, Link could feel the force of the blast permeate the air. He squeezed his eyes shut when dirt fell from the ceiling and pressed hard on the sides of his head to keep his ears protected.

"Wow!" Luggard declared as they slowly stood back up. "Wha' a blas'!"

"Good for knocking books off a shelf," Irleen said. "Rocks… not so much."

"What?" Link asked. Then he looked around the corner. Dust still hung in the air, but Link could see that the rocks had not budged. "Hmm."

"Wha'?" Luggard said, following Link around the corner. "Oh, c'mon!"

"What!" Luggard jumped aside at the sound of Cale's shout. Link turned and saw that Cale was looking between them. "What ah you saying!"

"I think we blew his ears out again," Irleen said. Luggard held a hand up and snapped his fingers in Cale's ear. Cale spun around, looking for the source. "Don't worry; it'll clear up after a bit."

Link stepped up to the rocks and tried to move one. He found that it budged, and he rolled it out of the way. "I think it worked," he called back to them. He found the gem on the ground and picked it up. After brushing it off, he slipped it back into his pocket. Then he found an opening around the large boulder and squeezed through. "I'm out!"

Luggard stepped through next, followed by Cale after Luggard reached back in to pull him through. They followed a set of stairs and emerged from a hill onto a prairie broken by one thing.

Link looked up at a tower standing high enough that it could probably see the whole world. The base of the tower was square with splashes of earthen colors forming ribbon-like patterns all the way until the top. The top looked like a large gear with a locomotive's smokestack planted on the top. But, instead of smoke, the top looked like a drill. Down back at the base, Link saw a large doorway with a spot of light in the center.

"Luggard," he said. He pointed at the doorway. "Look at that."

Luggard cupped his hands against his brow. "Yeah."

"Is that the tower you two mentioned?"

"Oh, yeah. Tower o' Spirits. And it's open." He put his hands down. "_Tha'_ doesn' make sense."

"When was the last time it was open?"

Luggard jerked a thumb at Cale, who was looking at the top of the tower with an awed expression on his face. "'E'd be the one t' know. Me guess is 'bou' a 'undred years."

"It sounds like something strange is going on," Irleen said.

"Yeah," Link said with a nod. "But if Cale's right, it might be a good way to find a path to the Gorons' home."

"Tha's a loooon' way up," Luggard said, leaning backwards. "Gonna go all the way up, is ya?"

"That's the plan," Link said.

"Can' say I wanna give it a try. 'Ow 'bou' this. Cale and I, we go back t' town 'n ge' the Ol' Seventeen. Time we ge' back 'ere, ya could be back down, right?"

Link shrugged. "I _guess_ so."

"Okay. See ya in a few 'ours." With that, he tapped Cale's arm and led him back towards the tunnel.

Link sighed and looked back at the tower. "Ready?"

"Yeah," Irleen answered. "Let's go."

…

Link jogged across the prairie, fueled by his eagerness to find whatever had called to him. When he found Spirit Tracks (indicated by the subtle glow he could just barely make out in the daylight), he followed them into the tower. As he approached, he saw that the doorway was tall enough that a train much higher than the Seventeen would be able to fit inside. He wondered if it had had to accommodate such a train at one point.

Inside, he found three other openings in a large chamber arranged in a cross with a large, single track in the center. The central track did not appear to connect with anything, but Link noticed that there was a large circle cut in the stone floor around the track. Lights hung from the ceiling, and he could not tell if they were oil lanterns or electric lights. Each doorway in the chamber bore a relief on either side, decorated by symbols that probably indicated where each track led (he recognized the Yook symbol in one of the reliefs). This included a stairway which looked to lead up into the tower, and Link definitely recognized those symbols. A wing-shaped half-circle with a single, down-pointed triangle on top.

"For just investigating something which you thought was wind," Irleen said, "you sure seem to be going _far_."

"I just want to make sure I'm not going crazy," Link said as he started for the stairway. "When we were in the Library… you didn't hear that wind at all, did you."

"I… I think I was busy with Cale."

Link nodded. "I know it sounds a little crazy, but I heard the same thing that evening we found the _Horizon's Eye_." Irleen was silent for a moment, prompting Link to stop and look up at her. "Something wrong?"

"Just a thought," she said, "but it's impossible."

"What?"

"I think that… no, forget it. The gem I gave to Captain Koroul shouldn't be causing you to hear things. I know it causes dreams to be shared when you're asleep, but it's never done this kind of thing when someone's _awake_." She gave a groan. "This magic can't be _that_ finicky."

Link looked back to the stairs. "We'll figure it all out later. If we're going to do anything, we need to get up there first."

"Right."

Link took the stairs up to the next floor. He came upon a landing overlooking the tracks below. When he looked up, he saw that the stairs spiraled around the circular interior wall of the tower. Silently groaning about people who liked building stairs in that manner, he started up. He walked past doorways and platforms in the shape of gears with the same design as the relief below. The walls were painted different colors as he continued up: first grey, then green, white (he had to rest here), blue, and purple, where the stairs stopped at the final landing. None of the doors were open, not even showing seems where they were supposed to open.

Interestingly enough, when he reached the last landing, he saw that a blue pool sat in the far corner. He gave an exhausted sigh, his legs beginning to ache from the jog and the walk up the tower. "What is that?" he asked.

"I don't know," Irleen answered as she approached it. Link followed. The pool, now that he stood closer, looked more like a flower. Each pulse produced a wave of petals that faded away at the end. "Do you think it's safe?"

"I don't know," Link said as he stuck a boot out to test it.

Irleen looked at the door. "Well, this is a dead end," she said. "Maybe we should turn back."

But when she turned back to Link, she found that he, along with the pool, had disappeared. "Ùħ… L-Līnca? Līīīīnca… Ħō, hòt rìláhhhhh."

…

Link could not tell how he disappeared. He was not even aware that it had happened until he realized that Irleen had cut off in mid-sentence. When he looked around, he realized that he was standing in a small room on a blue marble floor. The floor was divided by stone tiles which connected a pair of doorways: one leading to the floor below and one leading above. Cautious, Link pulled his shield on and drew his sword.

"Irleen?" he asked, starting toward the downward stairs. "Irleen, are you there?"

_Fuhhhhhhhhhh_. He heard the wind from behind and turned around. Light from above cast a yellow glow on the steps. Link turned in that direction and, with his shield raised to protect himself, walked up the steps.

He emerged into a larger room illuminated by the yellow stained glass that provided the wall on the opposite side from the stairs. A blue, octagonal platform filled the floor between him and the window, and Link ventured onto it. After looking at the designs on the platform, he stepped down on the other side. One of the panels of glass was missing from the large window, giving Link a view of the outside. Still holding his shield up, he stepped out onto another hanging platform. He felt a breeze as he glanced out over the Forest Realm, which he could tell just by looking down towards Library Town. He also looked to the left over what he determined to be the "Ocean Realm" Luggard had mentioned. Here, the wind had an audible howl, but… it still did not sound like the bursts that he had been hearing. To his left was another spiral of stairs. He paused to think about his next action. Should he go on, or should he go back to find Irleen? The latter was not much of an option since he did not know how he had suddenly appeared in the room below. He could not even be certain that he could get back down without taking a leap off the tower. So he decided to go up.

The stairs were wider and held up on the outside by chains anchored to wooden posts overhead. Link realized he had walked a full circle when he reached the top of the stairs, able to look out at the Forest and Ocean Realms again. He turned to the open space behind him. The roof was held up by eight, white pillars. The floor was a combination of yellow and green tiles in a pattern which Link could not quite make out. An altar of dark grey stone sat in the center, its stairs looked over by a pair of closed, golden eyes. After determining that nothing was around to attack him, he sheathed his sword and stepped closer to the altar. The eyes, even closed, unnerved him a bit. A glint from atop the altar caught his attention, and he took the steps up.

A small pedestal sat on top of the triangle of the wings symbol he had seen before. A sword had been shoved into it. The blade looked a little wider than Link's sword, and the metal had been stained so that a zigzag stood out in the light. The guard, which looked like teal stone, stood out like the wings in the symbol under his feet, each box with a triangle pointed towards the handle. A gold triangle was embedded in the middle just under the blade. The pommel was made of the same stone-like material formed into a pair of square spirals with a common stem. Link marveled at the sword, wondering why it had been left here.

"Wow…"

Link glanced up upon hearing the voice. A child stood in front of the altar, just barely tall enough to see the surface of the altar. He had black eyes and long, straight, black hair which had been tied at the top of his head. His clothes were a black jacket with brown sleeves and lining along the bottom and trousers matching the color of his sleeves. But what confused Link the most was the gentle glow his body gave off while he appeared semi-transparent.

He caught himself staring at Link and shook his head. "Oh, sorry. I-I didn't mean to stare."

Link realized that he was staring, too, and blinked himself out of it. "That's… that's okay."

"You just… look so much like someone I used to know." Then he glanced down at his feet. "Well, I _think_ I used to know him. I've at least met him before."

Link lowered his shield. "Who?"

"A young Hylian named Link. Or… is _your_ name Link?"

Link nodded. "Yes, it is."

"Oh," he answered, showing an irritated scowl. "Huh. I guess I'm confused somewhere."

"Do you… _live_ on this tower?"

The boy shook his head. "No one has lived on this tower for over a hundred years. Not since my people left this world."

"Your… people?"

"I am a Lokomo."

Link had to ponder the name for a moment. "Yeah, I remember… I remember Cale mentioning you while we were in the crypt in the Lost Woods. You used to live in Hyrule before Hylians ever set foot on it, right?"

The boy tilted his head. "I _think_ so. It's hard to remember that far back, at least as I am now."

"Do you know anything about the Spirit Tracks?"

The boy nodded. "Before, they were used to hold the demon king Malladus here. But since he was defeated by the last person to hold that sword—" He indicated the sword next to Link. "—the people of this realm just use them as regular train rails. They still defend the surface world from evil, but the lands of the Sorians are in trouble."

"The lands of the S… You know who the Sorians are?"

"Yes. Kind of. I know that, while most of the Spirits of Good fought Malladus here on the land, some of them fought alongside the Sorians against Malladus' general, Cunimincus."

Link nodded. "Irleen… a Sorian friend of mine told me about it. He's sealed inside the Storm of Purgatory." He tilted his head. "I wonder if the Sky Lines are doing the same thing that the Spirit Tracks used to."

"If they are, they are about to fail."

Link's expression turned into one of mild shock. "What?"

The boy walked around the altar. "Although we Lokomo aren't in the physical world anymore, we can still tell when something is wrong in this place. It's only happened recently, but evil is beginning to emerge from the sky. Its influence is spreading even as we speak." He stopped and pointed out at the sky. "And it's coming from there."

Link stepped down from the pedestal and looked in the direction the Lokomo boy pointed. He had to step out from under the roof to look up at the Undying Storm far above. Then he looked back at the boy. "You're saying that Cunimincus is free?"

"Not yet, but it feels as if he is about to be."

"Is there any way to stop it?"

The boy nodded. Then he pointed his finger at Link. "You can."

Link put a finger to his chin. "Me?"

"You're the one I've been waiting for. I can at least be sure about that."

"But…" Link offered a helpless shrug. "I _can't_."

"Why not?"

"Well… b-because I'm _here_." He spread his arms to emphasize. "My airship was shot down weeks ago."

The boy gave a casual nod. "Yeah, that's probably a good reason. You need to get back up there."

Link took in a deep breath and let it out in an exhausted sigh. "I've been trying. I've gone all over the Forest Realm and up to the Snow Realm trying to find people who would build me an airship that I can use to get back to the sky."

The boy smiled. "Well, it sounds like you've got the problem solved, then."

But Link shook his head. "No, I don't. I only have two people. There _may_ be a third one, but there's no way to reach him in the Fire Realm. One of my friends is an engineer down here. He says that there's no way to reach the Gorons' home because most of the realm is covered in ice. We can't go through the Ocean Realm, either, because the tracks through there are flooded."

The boy had been nodding throughout Link's explanation. Then he pointed out towards the Forest Realm. "Far south of here is a gateway which leads into the Sand Realm. From there, it connects to the Fire Realm. I don't know how far you'll get, but it's a start."

Link gave him a dubious look. "How do I use this gateway? And how come no one else knows about it?"

"The gateways were only usable by the hero who restored the Spirit Tracks. As for using them…" He pointed back to the altar, and Link turned to it to have his eyes fall on the sword again. "That sword contains the last Force Gem free to roam in this world. It should grant you access to the gateways that can take you to the Fire Realm. With a long whistle from whatever train you ride, it will open up for you and take you to where you need to go."

Link glanced back at the Lokomo. "Is it… is it _okay_ for me to take it?"

He nodded. "On a couple of conditions. First, that sword contains power that the Spirits of Good used to defeat Malladus and his minions during the war. If you should take it, you are accepting the responsibility of defeating the evil that is Cunimincus. The second is that, when you prevail, you return the sword here for the next hero to find."

"_When_ I prevail," Link repeated with an incredulous look.

The Lokomo smiled again. "History has yet to see a hero fail in his quest. This is also something I am sure of." He stepped past Link and stood next to the stairs in front of the altar. "So how about it? Would you like to become the Hero of Journeys?"

"The… the 'Hero of Journeys'?"

"You've come a long way, Link. And you still have a long way to go. Across the surface _and_ back in the sky."

Link could feel his heart pounding against his breastbone. It sounded like more responsibility than he was prepared for, never mind _trained_ for. He knew nothing more than simply being an airman; being an airship captain was still barely over his head. Despite his reluctance, his feet moved him back to the altar while the Lokomo child watched him. Step… step… step… step… step…

Step.

Step.

Step. He stood in front of the sword. The single triangle in the middle, the Force Gem, felt as if it was staring at him. Did he dare pull it? Did he dare commit himself to the role of a "hero" when all he wanted to do was go home?

Did he dare disappoint Irleen by not doing all he could to make sure _she_ found home?

That last thought helped him make up his mind. He did not know what would happen once he got up there, whether he might have to face Cunimincus or not. But Irleen had been right about him. He would do everything in his power to get her home. It was a lot to take in. But then he realized that it was not a choice. It had never been a choice.

He would do it.

He wrapped his left hand around the grip, feeling leather that had aged well with the sword. Then he realized that he could not put a lot of strength in his arm like that, so he reversed his grip so that his hand was on the sword as if to pull it from a sheath. No turning back. He did not even want to think about it. His grip tightened, and he yanked the sword as hard as he could. "HAH!"

The sword released from the pedestal, and a bright light blinded Link as the sword arced over his head. When it cleared, he found that he was still holding the sword. Its blade shone in the setting sun. Enthralled by the gift, Link swung it in an X shape to get a feel for it. The balance felt different from the sword he had received in Whittleton; he could not seem to put the same amount of force in the blade, but he felt that it was easier to swing this way. He gave a thrust, spun with a heavy strike at chest-level, and then twirled it in a circle at his hip. On the second up-swing, he brought his arm up so that the blade contacted the scabbard at the throat with a _tink_. He slid the blade back to fit it into the throat and thrust it into the scabbard so that it gave a loud click.

Then he thought for a moment and, dropping his shield, pulled the belt of the scabbard over his head. The scabbard he found was made of the same stone substance as the sword's guard. Gold bands formed a double-helix down its length. Both the throat and the chape were also gold. The shoulder belt was fresh leather bolted to the scabbard with bare steel.

Link looked down to find the Lokomo still smiling at him. He replaced the sword and picked up his shield. He fit the shield on his back over the scabbard, but the sound of it hitting the scabbard as he stepped away from the pedestal told him that it was a little loose.

The Lokomo nodded his approval and held a hand out towards the stairs. A pool, similar to the one that had brought Link there, appeared at the top of the steps. "This portal will take you back to your companion," he said. "I'm sorry that I had to separate you two. It was not intentional."

"That's… okay," Link said as he stepped down from the altar. "I…" He scratched the back of his head. "I don't know what might happen, but… I'll do my best to return your sword."

He nodded. "I know you will."

"Will I see you when I come back?"

At this, the Lokomo shrugged. "I don't know."

Link nodded and started for the portal. But just before he stepped into it, he stopped and turned. "You know… since we've been talking… I never heard your name."

He tilted his head to one side. "My name?"

"I… I assume you have one, right?"

"Oh, right. I'm sorry. Up there, no one ever seems to refer to each other by name. It's been such a long time… It doesn't come easy. I think…

"At one point, I think my name was Byrne."

"Byrne," Link repeated. Then he held up a hand. "I'll be back." He stepped forward into the portal, not seeing that, when he turned his back, "Byrne" had already disappeared.


	48. Railway to Heart Attacks

Chapter 48: Railway to Heart Attacks

…

Link was careful as he took the stairs down. His encounter with Byrne had left him excited, although his reason seemed to change as he descended. At first, he was glad to have a way to the Fire Realm. Then he was excited to have a new sword. As he continued, his mind revitalized itself with the idea that he was much closer to returning home.

"Oi, Link!" Link stopped and looked around. Then he saw Luggard, Cale, and Irleen climbing the stairs about two floors below, Luggard waving to him from the other side of the tower. Link hustled down the stairs and met them at the next landing. "Ya ge' t' the top?"

"Yeah," Link answered.

"How?" Irleen asked. "You just disappeared with that magic pool on the floor!"

"I…" Link trailed off with a shrug. "I really don't know. It just… kinda happened."

"We met Ihleen at the bottom," Cale said, leaning against the wall to rest. "We weah concehned that something had happened to you." He groaned. "My legs huht. This toweh's incredibly high."

"I see ya found somethin'," Luggard said, stretching out an arm to tap the Lokomo Sword on Link's back.

"More than I expected," Link said. "Luggard, there's supposed to be a gateway on the tracks to the south of Whittleton. Have you heard of it?"

"Big ring in the middle o' the tracks?" Luggard asked, drawing a circle with his hands.

Link shrugged. "Yeah, that might be it."

"Ain' far from Whi'leton, las' I saw. Why?"

Link glanced up for a moment, wondering if he should mention his discussion with Byrne. "I'll explain later," he decided. He poked a thumb at the Lokomo Sword. "This sword has a Force Gem on it. We can use it and the Seventeen to take that gateway straight to the Sand Realm."

Luggard tilted his head. "Really?"

Link nodded. "As long as I have this sword, we can travel through the gateway. I don't know how far we might get, but it'd be better than hoping the rails in the Ocean Realm open up."

"It'd be be'er than waitin', tha's true," Luggard said, nodding his agreement. "Bu' where is we gonna come ou'?"

"I don't know. I just know it'll be somewhere in the Sand Realm."

"The Sand Realm isn't very lahge," Cale said. "Noh have theah been many subsidiary rails built."

Luggard gave him a frown. "'Ow do _ya_ know?"

Cale blinked at him for a moment. "Luggahd, I've been reading comprehensive histories of railway travel and engineehs foh almost two weeks."

"He's pretty good at remembering things," Link said, one finger indicating Cale. "He found out where Leynne lived using old leaves we found at the bottom of the crypt."

Luggard's glance shifted between Link and Cale for a moment. "I'd be lyin' if I said I understood tha'."

"You had to be there," Irleen said. "So what's next?"

"Well, it's ge'in' too late t' ge' tha' way," Luggard said. "Bes' t' wai' 'til mornin'."

"Really?" Link asked. "What time is it?"

"Almos' nigh'."

Link gave a sigh and shrug. "Okay. Morning, then."

Cale pushed away from the wall with an exhausted sigh. "Isn't theah an easieh way down?" he moaned. Luggard, just about to start down the stairs, stopped and indicated the bottom of the tower. "Right. If only I had wings."

"Ask a stupid question," Luggard said with a grin. He then cleared his throat. "I could ea'. 'Ow 'bou' ya, Irleen?"

"You're an idiot," Irleen said as she led the way down the stairs.

"Wha'?" Luggard asked, shrugging his humored confusion as he followed. "I forgo'."

"You're still an idiot! And stop smiling!" Link and Cale shared a grin before starting down the stairs after them.

_Thumm. Thumm._ Link slowed his pace until he stopped a few steps away from the landing. It took him a moment to recognize the sound. It had been weeks ago, but he recognized the distant sound of thunder from his journey through the Undying Storm. Not thinking it impossible, he looked back up the center of the tower as if to find the source. Then he reminded himself that it had been distant. A storm must have been approaching. Link decided that he would look around when they stepped outside.

But when they stepped outside, Link found his attention taken by something completely different.

And unexpected.

And… just plain absurd.

Because they had only returned to the Forest Realm yesterday, Luggard had not had the time to remove the spare roof from the cab. Someone had nailed a wooden trough on top of it, a small one like those used for watering animals. It had been broken and put back together with metal plates so that the two ends formed an uneven V shape. A large box with a fan mounted into a hole in the front had been strapped to the smokestack by a collection of leather belts. A bundle of what Link first thought was rope ran from the back of the fan box into the cab and out to the front of the locomotive. The second end went into a lantern hanging from the broken headlight at the front of locomotive. A large patch of paint had been removed from the Seventeen's black boiler, leaving a large section covered in bare, scratched metal. As Link stepped closer, he saw that some of the paint had been pasted to the inside of the lantern, probably to block the direction of light when in use. A large cooking pot had been fixed to a protrusion behind the smokestack, held in place by wires anchored to the front of the cab and the handrail near the front of the boiler.

Link stared at the Seventeen for a moment, trying to decide whether the appearance was confusing or funny. "Wha-what happened to the train?" he asked, still unsure of his reaction.

Luggard immediately wheeled around. "Oh, good," he said, putting on a kind of smile that had Link worried. "So ya _did_ notice."

"Wha-wha-wah," Link stammered, taking a step back.

Luggard pointed a finger at the train. "_Tha'_ is wha' 'appens when someone leaves tha' _Sello_ idio' on 'is own."

"S-Sello?" Link asked. "What'd he do?"

Luggard's arm jerked from one part of the train to the next as he explained. "'E pu' ou' me 'eadligh' 'n stuck _tha'_ on me train! Me _steam turbine_ is missin'! I go' no idea why I go' a _fan_ on me stack! 'E did _somethin'_ with me steam regulator! Now I go' a _po'_ glued to me steam dome! And 'e pu' a 'ole in me roof jus' so 'e could pu' on a coal 'opper! I can' ge' rid o' tha' _roof_ now!"

Link scratched his head. "Where'd he _get_ all that stuff?"

Luggard grabbed the front of Link's tunic and shook him hard. "I can' le' me boss see _this_! 'E's gonna _kill_ me!"

"Whoa, whoa." Link latched onto Luggard's arms to stop him. "Just take it easy. I'm sure Sello had his reasons. Where is he?"

"I don' _know_!" Luggard pulled Link closer to his face. "Bu' if I see 'im 'gain, I'm gonna kill _'im_."

"Okay, okay," Link told him, hands up in surrender. "Look, when we get the chance, we'll pay for the repairs. I promise."

Luggard indicated the locomotive with a hand. "Ya know 'ow much me train _ra'les_ now? It sounds like there's a _Bullbo_ loose in the boiler!"

"We'll do what we can," Link assured him, putting on a weak smile.

"How bad can it be?" Irleen asked.

It turned out to be really bad as Luggard backed the train to a junction a while later. Link hoped that the rattling could be fixed before they left tomorrow morning.

…

Before parting at the platform, Luggard agreed to meet Cale and Link early in the morning so that he could be paid before they left for the Sand Realm. Madame Seilon would be at the Library early; according to Cale, the other administrators relied on her to make their coffee for them so they can start the day a little less cranky. Link asked Luggard to keep his eyes open for Leynne or Sello just in case they felt the need to join them, although Luggard mentioned expressing his opinion of Sello with a railroad spike, a length of chain, and a shovel. Link, Cale, and Irleen declined hearing any further details; Link, in a serious tone, only asked that Sello still had one usable hand and be able to run if necessary. From there, Cale, Irleen, and Link returned to Cale's apartment for the night.

~~I'm not sure if I can explain what happened this evening. It would take too long, and I can't be completely certain it happened; it's so far out there.

~~First, the tower. I met a Lokomo named Byrne, and he told me that something bad was happening in the sky. He knew about the demon in the Undying Storm. I can't help feeling worried, especially since I seem to be the one who's supposed to stop it. He gave me this new sword, which he claims was used to stop a demon king that used to live in the Spirit Tracks. I don't know if I'll have to use it. It's a little overwhelming, especially being told that I have to defeat Cunimincus just because I have the sword. Really, all I want to do is return home.

~~Next, the Seventeen. I can't be sure what happened, but it looks like Sello made some modifications to the locomotive. I don't know where he found the junk he hammered to the locomotive, but I'm fairly certain that Sello doesn't have any money. If he pulls this kind of thing without money, I shudder to think what he might do with a few rupees in his pocket. I told Luggard that I'd pay for repairs to the train, but that just reminds me that I don't even have any money.

~~We'll be going to the gateway south of Whittleton tomorrow morning. I really hope this all works out.

…

Link slept soundly that night, and the next morning found him wide awake and ready. He, Cale, and Irleen met Luggard and Madame Seilon at the Library as planned, and Madame Seilon revealed that, because of Valley's contribution to the Library, she was allowed to pay Link and Luggard more as long as Cale went with them again. This prompted a confused look from Luggard, and he questioned Link and Irleen about the Iyuk Mountains for a bit. Many people took notice of the sword Link brought in, and he explained his encounter with Byrne at the top of the tower. Madame Seilon replied that she might send a couple of senior researchers to the tower to see if it was still open.

Afterwards, they came across Leynne walking to the Western Platforms, carrying a bundle of rolled paper under one arm. He explained to them that he had found an apartment that he could use as a drafting studio while he had been wandering about yesterday. His intention was to start putting together some sort of plan for the mechanics for the vessel Link would need to get back into the sky, but it would be a side-job to his regular inventing until either he or they could find him some more help. He also explained that he would be taking a trip to the shipyard in Hovela to learn more about sailing ships and that he would need some input from Link at a later time. Link, Cale, and Irleen went with him while Luggard went to request the supplies they would need. Leynne explained that he rented two separate apartments because it would be easier for him to sleep without accidentally rolling over on a sharp piece of metal. After Link explained what they were leaving the town for, Leynne gave Link his duoscope, saying that he would be putting together another one to sell.

Because they still had time to kill before Luggard would have the Seventeen ready, Link, Cale, and Irleen decided to look around the shops and tables on the Western Platforms. Link found a pair of fingerless gloves which he felt would help protect his hands. He and Cale also decided to take a few first-aid items along, pooling their money from the Library to buy wrapping, anti-septic, and wound dressing. Link also looked around at shields, but he found that even the cheapest metal shields were just out of his price range (he only had 96 rupees left), and many of the wooden shields appeared to be in worse shape than the one he had taken from the crypt. He asked one man, who had made a number of similar shields, inspect the one he had found. The man responded that it was high quality wood, but it was likely to eventually fail if it took too many hard strikes because of its age. They made a point of looking at gemstones as well, but Irleen did not recognize any of the other gems she had made.

Link, Cale, and Irleen eventually wandered to platform nine, the only platform available the previous night due to many trains having shut down early. Luggard stood on the platform, watching as another engineer wearing a blue uniform appraised the inside of the smokestack. "What's going on?" Cale asked.

"Tha' idiot's been near me engine 'gain," Luggard replied, crossing his arms. "I opened up the firebox t' see if the grate needed cleanin', 'n I noticed the box smelled like alcohol."

"Alcohol?" Irleen asked.

Luggard indicated the other engineer. "'E's a yard engineer. I asked 'im t' inspect the boiler jus' in case."

"Suahly Misteh Sello wouldn't have done anything to hahm the _engine_," Cale suggested.

"I ain' exactly known people t' be _creative_ while they's _drunk_."

"Looks a'righ', Luggar'," the other engineer called. "Ya migh' wa'a check tha' po' on ya's steam dome, though."

"Tha's _it_?" Luggard asked, his arms wide to indicate his confusion. "Nothin' else?"

The other engineer shrugged. "S'pose ya shoul' bring it t' a yar'. Tha's the bes' I can do ou' 'ere."

"C'mon, Will," Luggard moaned as the other engineer started across the locomotive. "There's go'a be more ya can do."

"Tha's everythin'," Will replied. He gave the trough on top of the cab a pat as he walked by. "Nice 'opper."

"It's no' a _'opper_!" Luggard shouted at him. "It's a 'orse trough stolen by a _drunk_! And the _cowlin'_! Jus' where in town do ya find a _boiler cowlin'_!?"

Will pointed down the platforms. "Looks like the Fourteen's missin' it."

"The Fo—GAAAGH!" Luggard hollered and kicked a small rock at the boiler.

Will jumped down to the platform, but a pained look flashed across his face as he stood there, trying to straighten out his legs. "Ge'in too ol' for this," he groaned, shoving his hips forward. The movement drew out a sickening crack which Link could hear. "Wha' ya gonna do 'bou' tha' drunk on ya's car?"

"Wha'?"

"Tall blond pass'ger on top o' ya's car," Will said, pointing at the top of the office car.

Luggard, appearing drained from his outburst, glanced up at the sky. "Leave 'im there. Any luck, I'll run 'im down on me way ou'."

Will shrugged. "Sui' yaself."

Link waited until Will jumped down from the platform before talking. "Problems?" he asked.

"Nothin' a rusty pipe ain' gonna solve," Luggard told him. "Bu' tha's all differen'. Wha's the plan?"

"Preferably, once we emehge into the Sand Realm," Cale said, "we try going nohth. With luck, one of the tunnels into the Fiah Realm will still be open."

"The thing is," Link continued, "once we get into the Sand Realm, we won't really know where we're going. We might have to stop and get our bearings before continuing on. How well do you know the Sand Realm."

"'Ardly a' all," Luggard said. "I spent mos' o' me job 'roun' 'ere or maybe a once or twice up t' the Snow Realm."

"So ouh best plan is to just head nohth," Cale said. "If not a route to the Fiah Realm, we might at least find ouhselves at the Sand Sanctuary." He shrugged an arm to indicate the book he held. "This has the best maps of the Sand Realm, so if we must, we can get ouh bearings from it."

"I'll tell ya now," Luggard said. "I don' really like this idea. There's gonna be beasts ou' there tha'll wanna taste us. And I don' thin' I been quite righ' since the Los' Woods."

"Which one of us _is_?" Irleen asked.

Luggard shrugged. "Jus' sayin'." Then he made a circle with one finger. "All aboard."

…

The ride south took less time than Link remembered having to ride to Library Town. But then he remembered that Luggard was using a more direct route instead of stopping in Fishington. The plains showed them clouds on the western horizon, leading Cale to wonder aloud if there would be rain when they would return. Luggard expressed displeasure at the idea since, when Sello added the trough and cowling to the roof (which fed a controlled amount of coal directly into the firebox), he had placed some of their fuel on top of the locomotive. Then he added that, if it came to it, he would bash the hopper aside and use Sello to shovel coal into the firebox. Irleen decided to remain in the space between the instrument panel and the roof of the cab, mostly to just relax.

Link, by the time the afternoon was almost halfway through, spotted a circular object on the tracks in front of them. "I think I see it!" he called to Luggard over the noise of the engine.

Luggard peered around the other side. "Great!" he hollered back. "Now wha'?"

Link placed the duoscope on the bench at his knees and pulled the sword from his back. He looked at the Force Gem in the guard and said, "Blow the whistle and keep it up as long as possible!"

Luggard sounded the whistle, its deep wail dragging on for much longer than Link had ever heard before. Almost immediately, the Force Gem flashed to life, forcing Link to hold the sword away from him. He watched the track ahead.

A spiral of yellow energy sparked to life in the center of the circle. It grew to fill the circle, and Link had a feeling deep in his stomach that the gateway was working. He replaced the sword and spun around. "Here w—GAH!"

"WAH!" Sello, who had gone unnoticed the whole time, cried out loud and stumbled backwards into the meager coal pile.

Luggard's hand slipped from the whistle control as he spun around. "Wha' are ya _doin'_?!" he shouted at Sello. "And wha' did you—"

"Luggahd, the gate!" Cale, previously leaning on the wall, called out after pulling his head back in from the window. "It's closing!"

"Damn…" Luggard huffed as he nearly fell reaching for the whistle's cord. The whistle wailed again. Link looked out the window to see that the gateway was opening again and approaching fast. "Link!"

"Everybody hang on!" Link shouted, dropping onto the bench. A sudden jerk in the train's motion sent Cale to the floor hard while Luggard maintained his grip on the cord. A bright flash filled the cab. _PAN-KHHH!_ The roof suddenly tore from the cab, sending shards of broken glass spilling onto the floor. A girlish scream filled the air.

Then Link felt something stinging the back of his neck and immediately stood up to duck into the middle of the exposed cab. A veil of dust blocked all sight outside the cab. Link looked back, as Sello crawled into the shelter of the cab's overhang, to see that half of the office car had been enveloped in dust. The engine's chugging dropped in volume as Luggard slowed the train, allowing howling winds to be heard instead. Cale and Sello crowded closer to the front of the cab.

"Aw, great!" Luggard shouted. "We's in a sandstorm!"

"Bad?" Link asked, holding an arm up to block out the sand as he went to retrieve the duoscope that had fallen to the floor.

"Bad," Luggard replied. "Very. We can' see _anythin'_ now."

"Compass?" Link asked.

Luggard glanced at the compass in the instrument panel. "Goin' wes' now. So north a' the firs' junction."

"If possible," Cale added, propping the book open on his knees. "Infohm me when you see any useful landmahks."

"I'll ge' t' _ya_ la'er," Luggard snapped, pointing a finger at Sello.

"Ye-okey-dokey, Zmokey!" Sello answered with a stupid grin on his face.

Link put the duoscope to his eyes to look at their surroundings. He found that the duoscope was just barely any more effective than his own eyes; to the south, he could see blue spots in between bursts of wind and sand. "Cale," he said. "I can't be certain, but I think we might be near a source of water."

"Then it could be that we'ah at the southehn edge of the realm," Cale answered. "That's a little fuhtheh than we could hope foh."

"Wai', 'ow far?" Luggard asked.

Cale offered him a helpless glance. "It might take us the rest of the day to reach the Fiah Realm."

Luggard huffed. "Good news, all righ'."

"At least we didn't crash," Link said.

"Yes, but we should have counted on the sandstohm," Cale said.

"Common?"

"Persisten'," Luggard answered. "For years now."

"No one knows what causes them," Cale said. "The Gelto suggest that theah is a creatuah that causes the stohms just because it exists."

"The Gelto also sugges' tastin' yar friend's blood b'fore marryin'," Luggard said. "Don' mean I go'a believe 'em."

"I perver zpirits," Sello said, pulling a bottle out of his vest.

"I be' ya would," Luggard grumbled.

Sello held up the bottle in a toast. "Happy birfday!"

"Oh, shu' up! Link, can you see 'ead?"

"What?" Link asked.

"In fron'," Luggard said. "Wha's in fron'?"

Link glanced to one side. Then he tugged his cap tighter over his forehead and leaned over the side with the duoscope pressed hard to his face. "I ca—" Link quickly retreated back into the cab and spat sand out of his mouth. "I can't see a lot, but it looks like we might be approaching something."

"A junction?"

"Might've been."

"Did ya see the indica'or? Wha' color it was?"

Link dared another look in front. "Red," he answered after pulling back in. "It looks red."

Luggard nodded. "Junction 'ead o' us turns north. Tha' makes it easy; we don' go'a stop." He looked at the instrument panel, then he moved the throttle. "Don' know why, bu' we's movin' faster than usual."

"A slope?" Cale suggested.

"No, it don' feel like one," Luggard said. "Bu' 'ang on t' somethin'; no tellin' when it gets 'ere."

The turn came after what felt like half an hour, but that may have been their minds fooling them while they were waiting for it to come in the silence. Link had moved to the other side so that he could talk to Luggard easier while watching the tracks ahead. He checked on Irleen a few minutes later, making sure that the loss of the rooftop had not harmed her. Cale turned towards the instrument panel so he could watch the compass.

Sello wandered around the cab, staying in the safe zone created by the cab's shape. At one point, he ventured towards the left side of the train and looked up.

"Whooa," he breathed, barely audible above the wind and the engine. "Lookit chu! I's like-I's like… like you can zee da _world_!" Then he tilted his head to one side. "Like da island of the Keezez. Bu' maybe dey juz exist in ma head… Oh, well. Heh, you can zee 'em anyway!"

"'O the _'ell_ could ya be talkin' t', Sello," Luggard said, his eyes fixed on the instrument panel while Link looked ahead for him.

"Heh," Sello chuckled. "Ma new bezt friend!"

"Ya's drunk. Shu' up."

Sello turned back around. "Don' lizzen to _him_. He's juz jealous. Ya know." He put the bottom of his bottle against his left ear. "Tight shor—whoa! I can hear ma dad's zpirit talkin' ta me! He says… 'let go o' da honker an' let one rip fer future generations'. Willlllll do!"

"Why is ya still _talkin'_?" Luggard said with an exasperated tone.

"Juz talkin' to ma buddy!" Sello said, pointing. "I'm gonna call him…" He paused, putting on a difficult face. "… ma buddy!"

"What could you poss—" Cale suddenly cut off in mid-sentence as he glanced in Sello's direction.

"Don' le' 'im ge' t' ya, Cale," Luggard said. However, Cale responded by tugging on Luggard's trouser leg. "Wha?"

Link, unable to hear the conversation due to the wind blowing past his head, pulled into the cab when he felt a hand probe around his back. "What is—" he started to ask before noticing that Luggard and Cale were looking at something. He glanced to Sello.

Then he looked up at the large wall of leathery hide blocking their left side. It looked to be twice the height of the Seventeen and bore large rocks towards its front.

And in the middle of those rocks was a single, scowling, yellow eye, its slit pupil indicating that it was looking down on them.

"Luggard, remember how you said the train was moving fast?" Link asked through his shocked state.

"Ugh," Luggard replied.

"Now might be a good time to be moving faster."

"Ugba."

Silence.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" All three boys hollered in pure fright at the same time. Luggard slammed the throttle hard. Then he shoved Cale aside to open the firebox. Link immediately saw his intention and, after dropping the duoscope where he stood, ran to the back of the cab to get the coal shovel. However, Luggard's rush prompted him to grab Cale's book and throw it into the firebox first. Cale did not have the heart to complain, already rolled into a ball and cowering in a corner in the front of the cab. Link, due to the coal that had been placed in the hopper they had lost, had to sling coal from the back of the tender. Luggard scooped these coals from the floor with his hands and shoved them into the firebox as fast as possible. Sello watched the spectacle with a clueless frown on his face. He moved to take a drink from the empty bottle in his hands, noticed that it was empty, and, reaching for a small flask in a waistcoat pocket, threw the bottle over his shoulder.

The bottle shattered against the creature's hide.

"GWAAAAAAAANH!" the creature roared.

_Shu-POOOOMF!_ Link and Luggard looked up to see that the creature, large as it had been, had disappeared. Link then had to duck his head against the sand biting his face.

Luggard found the duoscope on the floor next to him and picked it up. Seeing one of the large lenses had been broken, he put the intact lens to one eye and looked for the creature. "Sh—I think 'e's still ou' there!" he called above the sound of the engine.

_Shu-poomf!_ "Nope, 'e's _definitely_ still ou' there!"

Link moved into the protection of the cab's forward area and looked out. Even in the thick sandstorm, he could see a dark blade cutting through the storm alongside them. "Tha-wha—… What _is_ that thing?" he asked Luggard.

"I don' intend t' find ou'," Luggard said, lowering the duoscope.

The cab suddenly lurched, dropping Luggard and Link onto their stomachs and Sello sprawling against the bench. The whole locomotive felt like it tilted for a moment before a sharp screech signaled that they had settled back onto the tracks. "What was that!?" Irleen's voice could barely be heard over the noise in the air.

Luggard crawled to the instrument panel to look at the compass. "We jus' turned _east_!" he shouted. "Wha's _east_!?"

"D-deseht!" Cale screamed in an impossibly high voice.

"Doowid again!" Sello called out in delight.

Link slowly stood up, keeping low when he felt wind brushing his hat. "I think we lost it," he said, his eyes scanning the rear of the train. He turned to the front. "We need to get out of here."

"Can' agree more!" Luggard said, checking the instruments.

_Shu-GHAAAASHWUUUUUUMMMMM_! The locomotive shook hard, leveling Sello to the floor with an audible thud. Link and Luggard managed to stay on their feet and gave each other looks of utter terror. They turned around as Cale slowly raised his head.

They found that the office car was missing, its pieces quickly fading away into the storm.

Again, "AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" broke the air from all three boys. Luggard started pressing hard on the throttle control as if the added effort would get them moving faster. Link picked up the dropped duoscope and pressed the only functioning lens against his eye as he stuck his head out over the side.

"Luggard!" he shouted, pulling his head in. He had to spit out sand before saying more. "I think there's a gateway ahead! Pull your whistle!"

"Gladly!" Luggard said, tugging down on the control cord hard. The cord snapped, and Luggard grabbed the longer of the two pieces to keep the whistle blowing.

Link spun towards the rear and put the duoscope to his eye. Again, he could make out a dark blade moving through the sand. "It's gonna be close! Everyone hang on!" Sello remained unmoving at Cale's side while Cale had squeezed into the corner as best as he could, one arm braced against the instrument panel. Luggard watched the distance for a moment before closing his eyes. Link saw the creature's jagged nose rise from the sand. When he saw it disappear along with the blade, he took the duoscope away slowly. Then he squeezed his eyes shut.

The locomotive shuddered, causing Luggard to fall from the broken cord. Link opened his eyes again to find and latch onto the cab's side. When he looked up, he saw the Seventeen speeding away from a gateway.

"Luggard, slow down! Slow down!" he cried out.

Luggard slammed the throttle to the opposite position and yanked hard on the brakes. Link fell against the instrument panel, almost striking Luggard in the head with the duoscope. "Easy, easy!" Luggard shouted above the noise. When he found the locomotive sufficiently slowed, he released the brakes. "Did… did we _make_ it?" he asked, eyes on the gateway behind them.

"Yeah," Link said with a sigh, a hand on his chest to help calm his heart. He looked up at the tranquil sky above, around at the still sea of sand basking in the early evening light. "I think we're safe."

"Beedle-dee-_bop_-beep-beep," Sello said in a dazed tone.

Luggard leaned on the brake lever. "Ya know," he said to Link. "We's go'a go through 'im when we go back."

Link nodded. "At least we know which ways to go now."

"Bye-bye, ma buddy," Sello said to the sky.


	49. Miner Difficulty

Chapter 49: Miner Difficulty

…

_Kang! Kang! Kang!_ "Ge' off me train, ya rock-'eaded bastard!"

Luggard stood on top of the water tank at the end of the locomotive's tender, swinging his coal shovel. The flat end made contact with a Malgyorg that had decided to latch onto the wrecked coupler and gnaw on it. Under normal circumstances, this would not have bothered him, but after the Seventeen had arrived elsewhere in the Sand Realm, Luggard had become noticeably short-fused. For the past hour as the locomotive attempted to travel on a reduced ration of coal, smaller Malgyorgs had started jumping from the surrounding desert and bashing against the locomotive. Of course, the locomotive was in no danger due to its weight and iron hulk. However, Luggard had had enough. He swore at the Malgyorgs using such a thick vernacular that neither Link nor Cale could be certain that he was using comprehensible language anymore. When Cale had noticed a peculiar sound from the rear of the locomotive, Luggard shoved Link into the engineer's position and began a counterattack against the Malgyorg chewing on the coupler.

Irleen, watching Luggard's shards of sanity slowly floating away, gave a sigh. "You know he's gonna blame _us_ for this," she told Link.

Link gave a helpless smile and shrugged. "Yeah, but he _did_ guess that we'd be going to the Fire Realm at one point."

"I thought he was just joking."

"Red light!" Sello shouted before taking a swig from his flask.

"Shut up, Sello," Irleen snapped.

Cale, sitting on the bench at the front of the cab, glanced over his shoulder at the setting sun. "Ah theah any ideas foh this evening?" he asked. "Oh pehhaps dinneh?"

"That's right," Link said with a glum tone. "All our rations were on the office car."

"Well, at least they were eaten instead of wasted," Irleen joked. She looked between Cale and Link, expectant of at least a smile. Their looks only served to show her the poor nature of her joke. "Right. Sorry, guys. Bad joke."

"I would appreciate the irony if it hadn't the dreadful remindeh that we currently have nothing to eat," Cale told her with an apologetic look.

"I'll just… keep quiet for a bit," she said, drifting to her hiding spot on top of the instrument panel.

"Do you remember if there was a settlement near here?" Link asked Cale.

"It would help if I knew wheah we weah. My best guess says we've found the eastehn expanse, but I doubt if theah was a settlement neahby."

_Kang! Kang! Kang!_ "I said ge' off!" Luggard's last strike came from one side, dislodging the Malgyorg from the coupler. It fell onto the tracks and flopped about until it managed to dig itself into the nearby sand. Then it disappeared as fast as possible. "If I see ya 'gain, I's gonna tie ya t' the tracks 'n jus' run yar miserable ass over!"

"Did you get it off?" Link asked as Luggard stepped down into the cab.

"Yeah, bu' 'e made a mess o' me coupler," Luggard said, throwing the shovel on their dwindling coal pile. "Know where we's a' ye'?"

"Well, the good news is we're heading north," Link said, double-checking the compass.

"Yeah, okay. Wha's the _bad_ news?"

"We don't know what might be up theah?" Cale suggested.

"Can' be worse'n wha' we seen a'ready," Luggard said.

"Heh-right," Sello spoke up. "Like a tumbleweed."

"Shu' up."

"The fact that the Fiah Realm is covehed in ice may still be a problem," Cale said. "It would mean that, as we approach, the weatheh is moah likely to become very cold. Without shelteh, we could easily freeze to death."

"Ain' ya jus' a ray o' ligh'," Luggard told him, crossing his arms and drawing up into a towering stance.

Cale shrugged himself into his shirt. "I-I don't mean to sound so."

"Take it easy, Luggard," Link said as he stepped away from the instrument panel, one hand held up. "It's not like the track we're on leads to nowhere. I'm sure we'll find something if we keep following it. For now, we just need to keep calm."

Luggard gave a sigh and let his shoulders sag. "I know. Jus' no' very fond o' no' knowin' where I's goin'."

"I-if…" Cale began, but he trailed off.

"What is it, Cale?" Link asked.

After eying Luggard, Cale said, "I-I was just thinking… if we escaped the sandstohm and that… that creatuah by using the previous gateway, it may be possible that we've ended up fah east. Othehwise, we would still be in the stohm, and that thing might still be chasing us."

"Good poin'," Luggard said with an impressed nod.

Link looked around the cab until he spotted the duoscope in the corner behind him. He stepped to it and picked it up. "Oh, no," he groaned after examining it.

"Wha?" Luggard asked.

Link held the duoscope up to show him. "Its other lens broke. Probably after we arrived here."

"No' like we go'a look far," Luggard said. Link had to agree with him. Although the tracks behind them had disappeared in the distance, they could see cliffs surrounding them on three sides. The one they were heading toward bore a hole some distance away. The waning light made it difficult to see any other formations around them, but it all appeared to be bare cliffs. "Nothin' in sigh'."

"I know," Link said. "And it's a little…"

"Weihd," Cale finished.

"Weird," Link agreed. "I know this is all desert, but… I've never known land to be unused like this."

"No' like ya can use useless land," Luggard said as he stepped up to the instrument panel.

"I guess I'm just not use to _seeing_ useless land," Link said. "Up in the sky, we use all the land we can."

"Of couhse," Cale realized with a subtle nod. "Being up in the sky, land must be at a premium."

"Not so much, I think," Link said. "Up there, the Royal Family designates land for different uses. Some farms, ranches, docks, private land… I… can't be sure how they decide it all, but no one buys the land or the right to use it. It's just… given to them, I guess. Even the Skyriders Company had its land given to them. Land that could be important to the kingdom shouldn't be fought over or repurposed by someone else's will."

Cale rubbed his chin. "Wow. I suppose I'd neveh considehed it that well."

Luggard grumbled and kicked the metal panel near the firebox. "Stupid machine…"

"What's wrong?" Link asked.

"I ain' gettin' a response from me 'eadligh'," Luggard said. He turned his head to glare at Sello. "Prob'ly go' t' do with someone bustin' ou' the ligh'."

Sello gave him a confused look. "Who did _dat_?"

"Wha—_ya_ did, ya stupid drunk!" Luggard shouted, turning to Sello as if to throw a punch. "Ya took me steam turbine 'n broke out the ligh'!"

"Nuh-uh."

"Yeah-uh!"

"Nuh-un."

"Yeah-uh!"

"Nuh-un."

"Ya-gada—AGH!" Luggard spun around and delivered a harder kick to the instrument panel.

"Hey!" Irleen shouted. "I'm still up here!"

Sello stepped forward to look at the panel. "Ya forgodda turn it on."

"_Excuse_ me?" Luggard said. "Ya see this switch?" Luggard started toggling a switch on the panel. "See 'ow it don' do anythin'?"

Sello gave him a dopey grin. "Huh-yeah. Das cuz it dunnit work anymore."

Luggard glared at Sello for a moment. Then he held out a hand to Link. "Gimme one o' yar swords. I's gonna kill 'im now."

Link held up his hands, a nervous look on his face. "Now just try to take it easy, Luggard…"

Sello leaned forward, placing his ear to the panel. His empty left hand hovered over the surface, as if looking for the problem area. Then he made a fist and struck the panel. "Hey!" Irleen shouted. "Gah!" A light above the instrument panel flickered on, prompting Irleen to fly out of her hiding space.

Luggard looked up. "Wha's tha'?" he asked.

"The bane of my _eyesight_," Irleen whined, circling above Link's head.

"I pud a light in," Sello told him with a grin. "And if dis one's on, so's the front."

"Really?" Luggard stepped to the side of the cab and glanced out. After seeing a light illuminating the tracks just ahead of the locomotive, he glanced back in. "When'd ya do tha'?"

Sello shrugged. "I dunno. I was drunk."

Luggard's face was one of confusion at the confession. "Bu'… ain' ya drunk _now_?"

"Hah-yep!" Sello held his flask up. "An' geddin drunker!"

"So…" Link said, "all those things you did to the locomotive… they were _improvements_?"

Sello belched. Then he put a thumb to his chest. "I know ma engines." Then he frowned and scratched his head. "At leas'… I _think_ I do."

"Even the po' on me steam dome?" Luggard asked.

"Uh… actually… I forgot whud I did with the original lid. So I found dat."

Link looked back to Luggard. He noticed the utter shock on his face and asked, "Are… are you… gonna be okay?"

"I don' know whether I should 'ug 'im or shove 'is 'ead in the firebox," Luggard replied. "I ju—" Luggard suddenly cut off when darkness engulfed them from nowhere. By the light from above the instrument panel, they could see that they had entered a tunnel. "Wow. Tha' came on fas'."

"That's a little creepy," Irleen commented. "With everything we've encountered, we should keep our eyes open."

"Agreed," Cale said. "No one has used this cave recently, assuming no one hasn't known about it to begin with."

"_Someone_ had to if it was on the map," Link said. "But yeah. I agree."

…

Much to their surprise, though, nothing inside the tunnel bothered them. They encountered a colony of Keese about halfway through, but they had been frightened by the noise of the Seventeen echoing off the tunnel walls and chose to fly away from the locomotive instead of bothering its passengers. A few other creatures seemed to scurry in response to the train, but nothing any one of the riders could see in the dark. When the locomotive reached a straight line of track, Luggard had to fill the firebox.

Scraping sounded from the back of the Seventeen's tender. When Luggard strode back into the light cast into the cab from the instrument panel, he held two fragments of coal in his hand. "Well," he said before tossing the fragments into the firebox. "Tha's the las' o' our fuel." He used the head of his shovel to close the firebox.

"We've been in this tunnel foh almost an houh, I believe," Cale said. "We must be reaching an exit soon."

"We go'a 'ope," Luggard said, giving the instrument panel a solemn look. "Then we go'a 'ope tha' there's a se'lemen' nearby, like ya said b'fore."

"Sounds like all we have to do is wait," Link said, crossing the cab behind Luggard. He glanced at the bench to see Sello had fallen asleep on it and decided to sit near his feet in the empty space between him and Cale.  
>"This feels so wrong," Irleen said. "It's like when Link and I tried to follow the <em>Horizon's Eye<em>. Remember that?" Link nodded, his eyes on the floor before him. "I couldn't _stand_ that. It made me antsy. It was like… like we were just _waiting_ for something bad to happen."

Luggard turned away from the instrument panel to lean a shoulder against it and cross his arms. "And tha's when ya go' sho' down?" he asked.

Irleen, hovering nearby, bobbed up and down as if to nod. "That was scary, but I think the ride through the Sky Line was even scarier. I don't know about you, Link, but I was worried something bad would happen."

Link nodded again. "Yeah. Me, too. I just… didn't think it would happen to us." He shook his head. "But we can't think about that right now." He looked around at his friends and sighed. "We'll be fine."

"Sure we will," Luggard said with a grin. "We been through worse'n _this_. 'Sides, we'd look stupid if we died b'cause we ran ou'a fuel."

Cale leaned backward. "I see some light ahead."

Link turned in his seat so his knees were on the bench. He leaned further out of the cab. His heart beat in his ears from the excitement. "Luggard, it's an exit!"

"Easy," Luggard said as he turned to use the controls. "Don' le' yar 'ead explode."

The train emerged into dark blue on one side of the train and almost black on the other with a few stars visible. The surrounding terrain had been rendered black by the lack of light. But Link's eyes immediately found a few lights near the tunnel exit as well as soft wisps of black smoke floating high into the air.

"Luggard, we found a settlement," Link told him. "It's right ahead of us, on our left."

"We go'a switch?" Luggard asked as he slowed the train.

Link looked out again. "No, it looks like the track curves."

Cale shivered and wrapped his arms around himself. "Has it… gotten coldeh?"

"Li'l," Luggard said, lightly applying the brakes. "I go'a come in slow. When I stop, tha's it. I go'a le' the steam ou', 'n we can' go anywhere else 'til we ge' more coal."

"Cale," Link said as the Seventeen started into its turn. "If we're on the east side of the realm, what can we expect to find?"

Cale licked his lips for a moment. "Mining communities, I believe. Only one, maybe two, can be reached by train. All othehs must be reached by foot oh caht; the land neahby is too icy foh rails to be constructed."

Link turned to Luggard. "Sounds promising enough. We might have enough to afford fuel back to the Forest Realm."

"Maybe," Luggard said with a nod. He tugged on the brakes again and looked over the side of the cab. Link waited for a moment before standing and crossing the cab. Luggard pulled the locomotive to the side of a platform Link could barely see if not for the single lamp sitting in the middle of it. Luggard grunted as the locomotive squealed, and Link turned to see him fighting with the brake lever. The locomotive stopped with a powerful jerk, and Luggard locked the brakes in place. Then he reached for a lever on the instrument panel and gave it a powerful tug. The boiler hissed as steam poured from the front, sending up a cloud. "Tha's it," he told them, cracking a lever on the instrument panel. He watched as the light in the firebox died out. "We's stuck 'ere."

Link nodded and opened the cab door. "Then we'd better do what we can."

"What about Sello?" Cale asked as he rose.

Luggard gave the drunk a dismissive wave. "Le' 'im sleep; it'll keep 'im ou'a trouble." He watched as the light in the cab faded out. "We'd be'er find a place t' sleep."

"I don't think a mining settlement will have a tavehn," Cale said as Luggard stepped out.

"Ain' i' the truth." Link whirled toward the single lamp in surprise. "Easy, boe. Ain' nuffin' t' 'urt cha ou' 'ere." Link's eyes fell on a large, overweight man wearing a long coat made of wool. His head was covered in thick, curly, black hair, exposing only a small forehead, eyes, and a bulbous nose. One furry hand held up a lantern to better look at the Seventeen's riders. "Weird hour t' be visi'in', ain' it?"

"Sorry for the intrusion," Link said.

"Beh!" the man said. "No' a prob'em. Ya guys bringin' in supplies? We need 'em."

"You'h the leadeh of this settlement?" Cale asked, arms wrapped so tight around his body that Link took pity on him and closed the door behind him. Irleen was the last off the locomotive, ducking into Link's cap immediately.

"Ah'm the owner o' the mines 'ere," he said. "Name's Roland. Welcome t' the Dark Ore Station."

Luggard pointed a thumb at his chest. "Luggard." Then he indicated the locomotive. "And me beau'y, the Seventeen."

"The Seventeen?" Roland asked. He held out the lantern to look around. "No' much o' a train."

Luggard gave an embarrassed grin. "We 'ad an office car, bu' it go' ea'en." He turned to indicate Link and Cale. "Me pals, Link 'n Cale."

Roland frowned at them. "A mercenary 'n a… wha', an apprentice?"

"Actually, an airship cap'n 'n a bookworm." Roland cocked an eyebrow at the response.

"I-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-if y-y-you d-d-d-d-don't m-m-m-m-mind, s-s-s-s-saah," Cale tried to speak. "It's-it's… r-r-r-r-ratheh c-c-c-cold."

"Yeah, c'mon down," Roland said, swinging an arm to indicate to follow him. "Luggard, righ'?"

"Yeah."

"Go'a admi', we's ge'in' a li'l worried there. Las' train we saw wen' four days 'go. Somefin' 'appen?"

"Tide wa'ers in the Ocean Realm wen' up," Luggard explained as they descended into a deep pit. There was a large, open area lined all the way around by lit and unlit windows. Unfortunately, those were the only details Link could make out; there were not any street lamps or torches like in Library Town, and Roland's lamp did not cast enough light to see the surrounding homes. If they _were_ homes.

Roland turned at the bottom of the stairs. In his lantern light, Link saw that, like Diggerton, there was a station underneath the train platform. Roland strode to the far end of the platform. "Train no' makin' i' through?" he asked.

"The Shoreliner Comp'ny los' two o' their trains," Luggard said. "Three more been missin' for almos' a week."

"Number Twen'y-four was the las' one 'ere," Roland said. He stopped at a door just past the platform and started fishing through a pocket. "Make i' back?"

Luggard shook his head. "Them, the Number Three, 'n the Number Fifteen are missin'."

Roland paused with a ring of keys in his hand. "All them stopped 'ere," he mumbled, frowning at the keys. Then he picked one out and put it into the door lock. "Damn…"

He opened the door and stepped into the middle of the room. Link heard a click, and then an electric lightbulb cast more light in the room. Link determined this to be an office. To the door's right was a desk with a series of papers stuck to a board mounted to a flat, rock wall. Two metal-framed chairs sat in front of the desk, one with holes worn in the leather upholstery until the cotton stuffing was hanging out the side. An iron stove sat in the far corner from the door. Roland went to this, placed the lantern on top, and set to work loading coal into the front. Luggard and Cale moved into the office, allowing Link to see metal cabinets against the wall on the other side of the door. One of the drawers had been left open, and Link saw that it was filled with documents.

Roland grumbled to himself as he tried to light the stove. Then he stepped over to the desk and sat in the chair behind it. "So. If yarn' 'ere t' supply us," he said.

"We were 'opin' t' find a way t' the Goron town," Luggard said, taking the worn chair.

Roland gave a grunt. "Ya 'n everyone else. Gorons been cu' off fer a _month_. Go' a couple been 'ere since then. Tracks goin' tha' way's been iced over; we go' no way t' open 'em up."

Cale, having moved close to the oven to get warm, turned around. "I read that engineehs yeahs ago would salt the tracks to remove ice," he said. "It was pahticulahly helpful in the Snow Realm befoah the weatheh changed."

Roland shook his head. "Los' access t' our source o' sal' weeks 'go. Ice fin'ly caved in tha' shaf'. No' tha' a train could ge' up there too well; slope's pre'y steep."

"Wai', the _ice_ did it?" Luggard asked.

Roland nodded. "One o' the reasons this realm's good fer minin' is cuz the air's s'pose t' be dry. 'Asn' been tha' story fer _years_. Moisture builds, freezes, 'n starts spreadin' ice. I' gets in a tunnel or a shaf', moves rock 'round, 'n causes the structures t' weaken 'n fall. Hea' from our engines stops the air freezin', bu' we can' run 'em all the time. We eventually go'a close these mines down, or they's gonna fall on top o' us." He shrugged. "Sorry, boys. Looks like ya came fer nuffin'."

Luggard gave a small chuckle. "You's righ'," he said. "It does _sound_ a li'l 'opeless."

"More'n tha'," Roland said. "We go' a'mos' a 'undred fellas ou' 'ere, freezin' their popular parts off. We can keep warm well 'nough long as we go' the coal mines. Bu' they been waitin' t' go 'ome fer a while. We don' ge' trains in, Ah go' a revol' on ma 'ands. No' t' mention some o' our engines is beginnin' t' break down. We can' ge' replacemen' parts wifou' the trains."

"You don't have smitheries heah?" Cale asked.

"Up north," Roland answered. "Bu' they can' solve all our prob'ems. 'Alf o' our engines was made in Diggerton. Broken parts is 'ard t' make when all ya go' is tha' broken par'. We ge' by, bu' no' well 'nough."

Luggard glanced over at Link. Both of them, having developed an idea at the same time, grinned at each other. "Ya thinkin' wha' I's thinkin'?" he asked.

"That this realm _seriously_ needs a new name?" Irleen responded from under Link's hat.

"B'sides tha'," Luggard said.

"If we can get Sello to work," Link said. "Where are the salt mines?"

"Se'lemen' 'bou' an hour's walk north, ten minutes ou' from there," Roland answered, pointing a thumb over his shoulder.

"We ge' Sello juiced up 'nough, 'e might mel' the ice in those mines 'imself," Luggard said. "Bu' I like the 'repairin' the engines' idea be'er. We's gonna need couple thin's, though."

"Like wha?" Roland asked, fingers steepled together to show his interest.

"Tools," Luggard said.

"Maybe access to a kitchen," Irleen added.

"Pehhaps a quick explanation of how a cehtain engine operates," Cale suggested.

"Some open workspace," Link said.

"And, mos' importan' o' all," Luggard said. "Alcohol."

Roland raised an eyebrow. "Ya wanna ge' a _drunk_ t' fix ma machines?"

"Wai' 'til mornin'," Luggard told him with a grin. "Ya'll see wha' we mean."

"Where's this 'Sello' fella?"

"Asleep on the train," Cale replied.

Link put on a concerned look. "We probably shouldn't leave him out all night."

"Yeah," Irleen chuckled. "There's no telling what happens when you leave a Sello out like that."

Roland pointed a hand at Luggard. "Ya said ya boys wanna ge' t' the Gorons. 'Ow come?"

"We believe that an engineering specialist may be living among the Gorons," Cale said. "We weah hoping to ask this specialist's assistance in building an aihship."

Roland frowned as he thought. Then he looked at Link. "Tha' where ya come in, cap'n?" he asked.

"Yeah, kinda," Link replied. "Irleen?" Irleen emerged from his hat and hovered above his head. "We're trying to get back to the sky kingdom."

"'Ome," Roland reasoned with a nod. "Sounds like a complicated plan."

"It hasn't been very easy so far," Link agreed.

Roland gave a sigh. "Tell ya boys wha'. If ya can ge' some o' ma machines fixed so we can dig, Ah'll 'ave me boys sal' down the slope so ya can ge' t' the Gorons' town."

"We go' a prob'm, though," Luggard said. "We ran ou'a coal ge'in' 'ere."

Roland stroked his beard for a moment. "We go' some friends in the Gorons' town," he told them. "They run some stores there. If ya boys ge' t' the town, brin' us back some o' those supplies, we'll call i' even. 'Ow's tha' sound?"

"What about retuhning to the Forest Realm?" Cale asked. "You'll only give us enough fuel to reach the Goron town, right?"

"I's makin' a leap o' faith there," Roland said with a half-grin. "Brin' us those supplies, 'n we'll talk more."

"Whacha thin', Link?" Luggard asked.

Link nodded. "Sounds fair enough."

Roland stood. "Ah'll ge' ya boys some bunks. Go ge' yer drunk 'n mee' me back 'ere."

…

He watched as the Sorian weaved through the sails in the sky above. He had seen pictures of airships before, a few years ago. The sails of this ship, their design… he still found it strange. He had expected the large, billowing sails of a grand galleon. These were not even perpendicular to the ship, nor were they as numerous as expected. The ship had a slight list and rocked a bit, but he found that he could keep his footing well enough. He had wandered toward the bow. The airman that had been up here had amazingly kind, even offering to let him take lookout while he attended to something else. The air was cool, caressing his left cheek.

He looked around at the foremost structure. The amount of ropes attached to the large spar before him… he could not remember what it was called. But seeing all of those ropes made him wonder if the masts were actually more fragile than they looked. He held up a hand to feel the wind pressing into the small sails in front. But he could not feel anything on his hand except the wind from behind the ship. After looking at the structure around the base of the spar, he wrapped a hand around one of the ropes and stepped onto the net on top of the spar. His heartbeat picked up as his eyes found the sky beneath him. Looking over a balcony was one thing; here, he realized, he could fall quite easily. His other hand quickly wrapped around one of the lines attached to the closest sail as he let the first rope go.

There. He could feel the change in the wind as it reflected off the sail. It gave him the impression of being caught in a whirlwind. He was sure to keep his feet on something solid. One on the spar beneath him, the other on a knot in the net. He stared out at the sky, caught up in the sensation of floating caused by the feel of the wind around him. His voice felt like it began resonating on its own. Then his lips parted, his voice a series of soft breaths that recited a lullaby that his father sang to him when he was little.

"You have a beautiful voice, Princess."

He let his voice trail off before turning to the boy who had addressed him.

Then the response he had plotted disappeared from his mind. Standing with an awed look, the captain's eyes were locked on his face. He knew exactly what the captain was thinking.

Because it was him.

Link was looking at himself.

He blinked. When his eyes opened, they fell on a dark ceiling illuminated red by a nearby coal pit. He slowly sat up, allowing the thick blankets to fall off his body. His mind buzzed with new information, and it was taking some time for him to figure out what it all meant through the exhausted feeling left by a confusing lack of sleep. When he reached a final conclusion, he sat stunned in the bunk for what must have been hours.

He could see Princess Zelda's dreams.


	50. Bad Crunchy! Bad Crunchy!

Chapter 50: Bad Crunchy! Bad Crunchy!

…

~~Day 21

~~I'm convinced now that the nightmares I've been having actually belong to Princess Zelda. I don't know what changed or why, but I seem to have become more conscious of the contents of these nightmares. Then again, what I saw last night could hardly be called a nightmare. It felt like a nice dream, and I can't help wondering if she got to see it, too. If the past nightmares are any indication, she's been suffering ever since that day I lost the Island Sonata. At least I know she's still alive.

~~It's still early in the morning. I managed to catch a bit more sleep since I woke up from that dream, but it hardly feels like enough. Fortunately, it wasn't as disturbing as before, although I can't seem to remember any of the previous dreams other than the one where I thought I had seen the Island Sonata being blown out of the sky. I remember that Irleen said people using a gem like the one she gave Captain Koroul causes people to share dreams. I think that, sometime after the Island Sonata was destroyed, the gem passed into Princess Zelda's hands. I've been wondering if she saw any of my dreams. I hope that my dreams can comfort her a bit. I wish I knew where she and Line were, whether they took the Horizon's Eye out of the storm or not. It seems likely that at least Line got away. This only serves as proof that I have to get back to the sky kingdom as soon as possible. I have to know what's going on.

~~We're at a mining settlement in the Fire Realm, and they need u—well, they mainly need Sello to look at some of their machines. We have a deal with the owner of the mines: if Sello can fix his machines, he'll mine some salt and have some of his men spread it on the tracks so we can reach the Gorons' town. He also said that he'll give us some more fuel so we can retrieve some supplies from the Gorons.

~~I'm waiting for Irleen to wake up so I can ask her before we head out for the morning.

…

"It's completely impossible!"

"Okay, okay!" Link shouted back at Irleen. "You don't have to scream at me." His plan to ask Irleen earlier that morning had failed when rapping at the door to the barracks they borrowed had woken everyone up. From there, they had met a large, well-built man named Bolen who had taken them to an early breakfast of liquid cereal which could loosely be termed "food" based on taste. Then Bolen had led them out of the station and onto a large plain of ice.

And ice was all they could see. Bolen led the pack with Luggard and Cale directly behind him, wrapped in blankets they took from their bunks. Cale also wore what Link could best describe as an oversized black sock over his head which he had apparently found in his bunk last night. Eyeholes had already been cut out of it, but Link still was not sure if Cale should be wearing that over his head. Sello, from what Link could tell, was too busy drinking from his flask to notice the cold, although it looked like he was wearing a sock around his neck and walking with an awkward (well, more awkward than usual) gait. Link, for the most part, was not as bothered by the cold. With his trousers and tunic in addition to his bodysuit, Link's body was well protected. Only his arms felt uncomfortable, having nothing thicker than the bodysuit for warmth and feeling the black spots on his right sleeve doing better at conducting the cold. Link had his hat tugged down over his ears, and the tight feeling around his head kept Irleen from retreating under it. Not that it seemed to bother her as she floated around his head.

Link shrugged and said, "It was just an idea I had."

"Link, you don't understand one _thing_ about magic!" she told him. "That's not how that gem was supposed to work. It takes semi-conscious knowledge, sorts it out, and provides the holder with the knowledge they need."

Link held his hands up. "And I understand that. But it does weird things. Didn't you once say that it causes people to share dreams?"

"Did I?" Irleen circled his head as she thought. "Oh, yeah, it does. But _only_ dreams. And not _nearly_ as often as you think."

"Well… how often?"

"Rarely. As in never three times a year. Maybe not even _twice_. It's too much to assume that you can spontaneously start sharing dreams with someone. How do you know it's even _her_? What would she be doing with the gem I gave to _Captain Koroul_?"

Link sighed. "I-I don't know…"

Irleen landed on his shoulder. "Look. I know you're probably worried about her and your crew. But you've gotta think… Are you sure these nightmares aren't just you wanting to believe that they're all right?"

Link did not reply right away. Irleen had a valid point. What if he really was just having dreams? What if it was just wishful thinking after all, something which was affecting his dreams? It made sense; most of the time he had had a nightmare, it seemed like it had always been after his thoughts had drifted back to the _Island Sonata_ and his crew. Knowing that the _Smiling Gunner_ was in the Undying Storm merely fueled whatever his unconscious mind's twisted sense of fantasy could provide for him.

In the end, Link simply reasoned that he could not possibly be seeing Princess Zelda's dreams. He bowed his head against the cold. "Maybe," he muttered to Irleen.

"I'm sorry, Link," she replied. "I know you want to believe… but…"

Link just shook his head. "No, it's okay. I… You're right, I probably just… just wonder if they're all right or not."

She let out an exasperated sigh as she jumped up from his shoulder. "Okay, you're getting depressed, and you're gonna get _me_ depressed."

He gave her a relaxed smile. "Sorry."

"That's better."

"Be'er be 'live back there!" someone ahead shouted. Link looked up to see Bolen waving at them. "We's a'mos' there!"

"Okay!" Link called back, giving a return wave. "Come on, Irleen." He started jogging, and Irleen flew ahead of him.

The next settlement they reached, much like Dark Ore Station, had been dug out and built into a large pit. From the edge of the pit, the group saw that it was oblong with its wider reaches almost perfectly stretching east and west. Men, most of them large and burly like the multitude of airmen Link had known over the years, walked about a large plaza in the center of the town which Link first thought had been laid out with railroad tracks. Then Link saw one man pushing a mine cart across them, and it made sense to him why the tracks appeared smaller and simpler than railroad tracks. The buildings around the edge of the pit looked to be made of stone or brick, only a couple buildings in the immediate vicinity having any sort of wooden structure. This reminded Link of the plight of Whittleton, how all the trees had been dying off because of the haze that once blocked off the sky. It made him wonder if Whittleton had improved since he had left.

"Kay, boys," Bolen said, one hand itching at his thick beard as he waited at the base of the steps. "No' lunch ye', so whacha wa'a do?"

"Beer time!" Sello hollered, swaying on the steps with a big grin framed by rosy-red cheeks.

"Yeah, we know wha' _ya_ wanna do, Sello," Luggard replied. He glanced up at Link. "Wha' 'bou' it?"

"Well, if it's not really time to eat yet," Link reasoned aloud, "maybe we should have Sello look at the broken machines. He can at least get an assessment and determine if they can be repaired."

"Heh," Sello said, leaning on Cale's shoulder. "Dat zoundz like fun, too."

"A-a-a-ah these machines… s-s-st-st-s-stoahd in a w-wahm place?" Cale asked.

Bolen sniffed and pointed. "Storage yar' on the eas' side. Ah'll take ya there."

As they walked, Link noticed that none of the buildings nearby sported any kind of signage. The same was true for the buildings further down, but Link _did_ notice that there were holes in the ground outside many of these buildings which might have held signs at one point. He was not sure what to make of this, but he felt it lent to the idea that things in the Fire Realm had become drastic since the trains from the Forest Realm were cut off. Few of the men appeared to overtly notice the newcomers; Link tried to dismiss the unfriendly air as a sign of toil. Every one of them seemed to be carrying something: coal in a mine cart, scraps of metal, tools, tool chests… one man exiting a metal-plated building even looked to have been carrying sticks with a rope in the middle.

"Oi, Larrin!" Luggard shouted at one point. He turned, almost bumping into Sello, and waved one hand in the air. "Oi! Oi, it's me, Luggard!"

Link stopped and turned to look at who he was shouting to, but no one had responded. He asked, "What is it, Luggard?"

Luggard slowly lowered his hand, a stunned look on his face. "Me brother. A' leas'… I _though'_ 'e was. Migh' be me mistake."

Link shrugged. "If it was, maybe he was just busy."

"_Everyone_ around here looks busy," Irleen said.

"More ya work, less ya thin' 'bou' the cold," Bolen said as he stepped up behind Luggard. "Social hour's a' lunch; le's go."

Bolen continued on, and Luggard brought up the rear as he cast his eyes backwards for a long moment. After a minute, Bolen led them to a row of buildings at the far end of the pit. These ones were made entirely of metal with large doors on the front. The mine cart tracks led into the large doors, but none of the men at the settlement seemed to be delivering anything to them. In fact, this side of the settlement appeared to be empty. Bolen walked to the closest building and opened a normal-sized door on the near side.

When Link stepped inside, he thought he was in some kind of dock. The floor sported a number of tool chests and parts, and there was a catwalk above them. In the middle of the room was what Link first mistook to be the rear half of a locomotive. But its coal tender was much shorter, and the boiler was box-shaped instead of cylindrical. There was a massive disk on the front end, roughly twice the height of the body. Link stepped towards the front of the machine to see a number of large, gear-shape protrusions on the front end of the disk.

Luggard let out a long whistle. "Wha's this?"

"Our answer t' the rock 'roun' 'ere," Bolen said. "Diggerton Special Two-Nineteen. Call 'er 'Crunchy'."

"I think I'll call her 'Bowel Mover'," Irleen said as she explored the disk. "What do you _use_ this thing for?"

"Drillin' tunnels," Bolen said as Link, Luggard, and Cale climbed into the cab. "The cu'er 'ead does mos'a the work. While i' spins, those big gears ya boys see crush the rock in fron'a i'. I's go' more drill bi's on the edges'a the 'ead so the small stuffs can ge' ou'a the way."

"Whoa…" Sello said as he approached the boiler. "Heh heh. She's like… a _goddezz_."

"Easy with the blasphemin', Sello," Luggard told him from the cab.

"Why, what'd he say?" Link asked.

Luggard showed him a grin. "Called 'er a 'goddess'."

"Is this the only one you have?" Cale asked.

"Only serviceable one," Bolen said. "Go' three others, but they's in pieces. We's tryin'a use 'em t' fix this one, bu' they's older 'n smaller."

"What's wrong with it?" Link asked.

"Mainly's the cu'er 'ead. She won' spin, 'n we 'ad 'er 'par' fer a'mos' a week. Can' fin' the prob'm."

"Ge' all tha', Sello?" Luggard asked, leaning out the cab again. He put on an annoyed look when he saw that Sello was licking the outside of the boiler, grunting as he did so. Luggard sighed and said, "Righ', we stay 'ere, I's gonna puke."

"You're a sick man, Sello," Irleen said as she hovered over the boiler.

"Bu' nuthin' in a hat," Sello replied as he rubbed a cheek against the boiler.

"'Ow does this thin' drive?" Luggard asked.

"When i' don' 'ave a track, i' drives with this gear a' the back," Bolen explained, pointing to the back of the coal tender. "Digs in the groun', moves i' 'roun'."

"Ah theah any supplies Sello can use?" Cale asked.

"I think the question is, 'is there anythin' tha' Sello _don'_ use'," Luggard said. "Where's yar kitchen?"

"Other side'a the se'lemen'," Bolen replied. "Why?"

"Jus' in case," Luggard said as he stepped off Crunchy. "Sello. C'mere."

"Yup!" Sello replied, taking two large steps toward Luggard.

Luggard had to lean back so Sello did not smash their foreheads together. He gave a disgusted sound at the smell of Sello's breath and pinched his nose shut. "You 'ow wha' t' do?" he asked.

"Huh-yeah," Sello said with a nod which Luggard leaned further from before their heads met. Then Sello shook his head, a stupid grin still on his face. "Heh-nope."

"We 'eed ya t' fix Cru'chy," Luggard explained.

"Figz wha?"

"Cru'ch—" Luggard took his hand off his nose. "Crunchy! Agh." He pinched his nose again.

"Oh, yeah," Sello said, nodding again.

"'Ow lon' will ya need?" Bolen asked.

Sello sniffed and looked over Crunchy. "Two."

"Two?" Luggard asked. "Two wha?"

"Two." Link, Cale, and Bolen stepped off Crunchy just in time to see Sello pull the two-headed screwdriver from his tool belt. Cale and Irleen jumped out of the way when they saw Sello step in their direction and leap over the wall surrounding Crunchy's cab. _Thump!_ "Dohf!" Sello failed to land on his feet and slammed flat onto the metal floor.

"Am… I the only one who thinks this might be a bad idea?" Irleen asked.

…

Luggard, Cale, Irleen, and Link spent some time afterwards speculating what Sello had meant when he had told them "two". They concluded that two seconds would not be enough time to get Crunchy running. Bolen took them to see the remains of two other machines. One had its boiler torn apart and scattered all over the floor, and the only part of the other machine that was still intact was the cab. They checked back after about three minutes to find Sello missing and a large pot, which Bolen identified as one of the porcelain crucibles from the scrap shop two buildings away, sitting next to Crunchy's cab. They decided that they would check back in two hours.

Bolen took them to the mess hall on the north side of the settlement, near the center. As they settled down for lunch with the mine workers, they met Luggard's brother Larrin and their father. Larrin explained that he could not speak to Luggard earlier because he was taking tools to the mine for his boss. They agreed with Bolen that working helped distract from the cold. The mess hall only had a mild amount of heating from the wood furnaces arranged around the building, but Link thought it felt comfortable. After lunch (which seemed to be mostly dried foods which Link suspected came from emergency rations), Bolen showed them around the different buildings to help kill some time while Sello worked. The two-hour mark passed as Bolen showed them the smelting facility, which received material from another mine further north. It was another half-hour before someone realized that they had lost track of time. It was still early in the afternoon when they started back to the shop where they had left Sello.

They did not even make it to the door.

Luggard was in the middle of an engineer's joke which Link and Cale were sure would end dirty. They were only about twenty paces away from the shop when a large growl filled the air, causing them, Irleen, and Bolen to stop in their tracks and listen.

"What the hell's that noise?" Irleen asked.

Bolen shrugged at her. "Ah don' know, ah never 'eard tha' 'fore."

_KIIIIiIIiiIIiiIII!_ The oscillating screech that followed forced all four Hylians to cover their ears while Irleen squeezed under Link's hat. "The 'ell!" Luggard shouted in a mixed tone of frustration and confusion.

"Tha' sounds like the cu'er 'ead," Bolen said over the sound. "Ain' been oiled since i' broke down."

"So he's got it working?" Link asked.

_KUH! KrrrIIIIIIIGH!_ All four looked up. The metal slats comprising the larger door of the shop twisted and ripped loose from the frame. Metal teeth chewed on them before the torn pieces dropped to the ground or, in the case of at least one slat, went flying down the road. The three workers who had been standing in front of the shop when the noise started scrambled out of the way as Crunchy's massive cutter head slowly dragged itself over the door's remains.

Bolen clapped his hands as Crunchy continued to roll out. "'Ot damn!" he declared. "The drunk did i'!" Crunchy rocked left and right as it mounted the rails in front of the shop.

And Sello appeared behind the cutter head, both of his hands held up in triumph. "WOOHOO!" he hollered. "Look wha' da chomp-chomp can do!"

Link and his group, along with some of the nearby miners, felt their stomachs fall through when Crunchy turned toward them. "Oh, no," Cale muttered.

"_Please_ say there's controls up there," Luggard told Bolen.

A plume of black smoke suddenly spat through the openings in the cutter head, causing them to take a half-step back.

"Ya go'a be _shi'in'_ me!" Bolen said as he took further steps back.

_Chug._

Luggard paled through the soot all over his face. "I don' like tha' sound."

"Does that thing have a _train engine_!?" Link shouted at Bolen, eyes glued to Crunchy as its wheels squealed against the tracks.

"A _small_ one!" Bolen replied.

_Chug. Chug. CHUG!_

"RUN!"

"Whoa, LOOK OUT!"

"AAAAAHHHHH!"

_CHUG! CHUG! CHUG CHUG CHUG CHUG CHUCHUCHUCHU—!_ People scattered to the sides of the plaza as Crunchy started its advance, carts and tools and ores left forgotten in the mad contraption's path. Not that Crunchy seemed to mind as it started its rampage. Carts were torn in half and rendered partway into splinters. Tools caused it to jump along the tracks; Sello was thrown off with the first awkward rock over a pickax. Ores became ammunition as the cutting teeth flung them aside with enough force to embed the rocks into the metal and stone walls of the nearby buildings.

And trapped in front of it was Link. While Cale, Luggard, and Bolen had the right idea to dive to the sides, Link turned and bolted straight down Crunchy's path. He had enough of a start that Crunchy was barely catching up to him at top speed. Link dodged around the discarded items in front of him, acutely aware that if he stopped, he had a very good chance of being caught in Crunchy's teeth. The mass of miners that crisscrossed the plaza in the center of town parted only seconds before Link barreled through. People shouted at him to get out of the way, but Link could not think straight enough to dive off to one side. His eyes were locked firmly ahead, unaware of the swerving Crunchy did as it followed the tracks.

He tripped.

A rail running parallel to his path stuck up high enough that its head caught the toe of Link's advancing foot. His foot stopped, and he tumbled forward and smacked into the bare ground. His head was fortunate enough to fall short of the steel rail in front of him. His senses knocked sideways, Link could not make heads or tails of his situation for a brief moment. This moment was far too long for him to realize that Crunchy was about to chew him to shreds.

If Crunchy had been directly behind him. Instead, the insane machine swerved along the track, dodging to Link's left far enough that Link's rising head was only a hand's span away from being scalped. Link reacted by ducking his head again and covering with his arms, although Crunchy had already sped off long before Link's covering could to any good. He quickly looked up again as Crunchy swerved to the middle of the plaza again, spewing black smoke out the back.

"Link!" Link was hauled to his feet by his arms. He saw that a pair of miners had pulled him from the ground just before moving to assist others. "Link!" He turned to see Luggard, Bolen, and Cale running up to him.

"Ya good?" Bolen asked while Luggard and Cale doubled over. Link nodded, suddenly aware of his heavy breathing as if he had not done it the whole time Crunchy was following.

"Whoa, geez," Irleen groaned as she left Link's hat to fly confused circles in front of him.

"Where's… where's…" Luggard huffed for a moment. "Where's it goin'?"

"Ore sortin' 'n the mine entrance," Bolen said.

_SLAM!_ Link spun around in time to see Crunchy disappear into the tunnel on the far end of the settlement after smashing aside a metal rail cart. He turned back to Bolen and asked in an alarmed tone, "Is there anyone in the tunnel!?"

"I 'ope no'," Bolen said as he dodged around Link. Link and Luggard chased after him, Cale and Irleen slowly falling behind as the power to follow failed them. Around them, shouts for a doctor or medic rose through the air to mingle with the swear words spouted by the settlement's population. But as Link's eyes wandered around, he saw that everyone was still alive and moving, often confirmed by the cursing if nothing else. Some rushed to get their fellows inside, others stood by to place pressure on an open cut on the leg or arm. No one appeared to have any life-threatening injuries, and Link could only be thankful for that.

The three of them stopped short of the mine's opening, aware of the black smoke billowing from the top of a tunnel four times Link's height. Bolen stepped to one side and picked up a lantern. "Wai' a momen', boys," he told them as he used a match to light it. Link could still hear the cutter head squealing somewhere in the dark tunnel along with a low rumble which had to be Crunchy destroying whatever equipment had been left in its way. Bolen uttered an irate string of curses under his breath before telling them, "Ge' those hats o'er there 'n slide the masks on."

Luggard retrieved three metal helmets from a nearby crate that had escaped the rampage and handed one to Link. Link remembered seeing these during the small tour Bolen had been giving and fit it over his regular hat. After ensuring the chinstrap was tight, he reached under the wide brim and tugged down the fabric mask until he could fit it under his chin. He secured it to the snaps in his chinstrap and tugged more on it until the eyeholes were positioned right. Then he folded down the glass face shield. The shield was difficult to look through due to the number of scratches and amount of dirt the glass had absorbed.

Bolen, after getting the lantern lit, set it on the ground and put on the helmet Luggard offered him. Then, after a muffled, "Le's go", he led them into the tunnel.

The smoothness of the walls left Link surprised. It reminded him of the tunnels inside Sello's volcano, although the walls of those tunnels had been quite jagged. The smoke from Crunchy obscured the upper half of the tunnel, but none of the three were tall enough to really notice it.

They only walked for a couple of minutes before Bolen stopped. Link and Luggard stopped as well and watched him look around the area. "What is it?" Link asked.

"'Ere's where the tunnel collapsed," Bolen told them. "Looks like Crunchy cleared i' a'righ'."

"Tha's _good_, righ'?" Luggard asked.

"Yeah," Bolen said with a nod, "bu' we wa'a _stop_ tha' thin' 'fore i' causes another collapse."

They proceeded further down, following the smoke above when it came to deciding which branch of the mine Crunchy had taken. Their walking picked up pace after all three of them had the energy, and they were jogging up to the contraption when they reached it. Crunchy had stopped at the end of a tunnel, squealing and kicking up dirt like a cornered animal. For a moment, they stood around looking over the complex additions Sello had made with junk he had found around the settlement.

Similar to the Seventeen's water trough hopper, Sello had rigged a metal slide to an overhanging piece of someone's tin roof and attached a mine cart missing its bottom half so that Crunchy had a coal hopper feeding into the firebox. The coal tender was missing, replaced instead by a large, upright crucible with a network of pipes feeding around Crunchy's control panel and in to the boiler. Sello had not sealed the crucible all the way, allowing water to slosh out the sides and shimmer in Bolen's lantern light. The smokestack on top of the boiler had been replaced by a thick, angled pipe which forced smoke to billow toward the back. Link remembered that a type of fairing had been fitted over the back side of the driving gear. Not only was that missing with the rest of the tender, the teeth of the driving gear had been lengthened by what Link could only describe as small bundles of railroad spikes glued to the end of each tooth. The gear itself turned very slow, likely because Crunchy had stopped at a wall that it was attempting to devour. From what the three of them could tell, most of the levers had been replaced by various pipes and two metal ladles.

"Uh… _'ow_ do we stop it?" Luggard asked.

"With _luck_," Bolen said as the three of them turned in response to footsteps quickly approaching.

Two more miners stopped before them. One was a burly man bearing a second lantern who, just for the sake of caution, kept his head low. The second was a smaller, slender man with a length of rope in one hand. Link could not see either of their faces due to their helmets. "Boss said ya coul' use some 'elp down 'ere," the slender man said.

"Yeah, ya could say tha'," Luggard replied.

"We go'a pull the thro'le control," Bolen said, indicating Crunchy. "Bu' we don' wa'a be _near_ i' if tha' drivin' gear slips." He looked at Link. "Where'd the cover go?"

"Knowin' Sello," Luggard answered for him, "prob'ly somewhere inside the boiler."

"Which one's the thro'le?" the slender man asked, unraveling his rope until he held only the end in his hand.

"Oh…" Bolen droned, followed by a curse lost to the racket Crunchy put up. He used his free hand to wipe off his face mask. After looking hard, he pointed. "Tha' ladle in the mi'le, on the righ'. If ya jus' tug i' down 'nough, we can ge' to i' eas'ly."

"A'righ', stand back," the slender man said. Luggard and Link stepped away as he took a stance next to Bolen. Link looked down at the rope and realized that it was a whip made out of a blue Rope. The burly man held out a hand to force them further back.

The slender man swung the whip, launching the Rope's head at the control panel in an arc. For a moment, Link thought that the head would not make it. Then the head whipped forward, and the mouth exposed a set of long fangs which closed around the head of the ladle. The slender man, keeping the whip taut with a hand wrapped at the base of the Rope's connection to the whip's handle, pulled on the whip until the ladle's handle pointed toward them. The noise Crunchy made dulled a bit. Bolen quickly stepped forward. The slender man relaxed the whip by releasing the Rope's tail, and the head released the ladle just in time for Bolen to press it the rest of the way down. Bolen then yanked another control, and Link saw the light around the firebox die down. Another lever, and Crunchy's cutter head stopped spinning.

Quiet settled in the tunnel, and the slender man started coiling his whip.

…

~~So, as it turns out, Sello not only got Crunchy (the miner's tunnel-cutting machine) operational, he made improvements to help Crunchy dig through the earth around here. According to Bolen, our guide, Crunchy dug further into a tunnel which they were having a hard time with due to using only hand tools and having to deal with some kind of iron ore which would be easier to dig out with a bigger tunnel. They decided to leave Crunchy in the tunnel for the time being while they try to remove the stuff their boss, Roland, ordered for us. It's barely into the evening right now. Everyone's already had dinner, and they're trying to make sure they have the salt and coal we'll need to make it to the Gorons' town. Bolen also informed us that they'll be melting and purifying some of the ice they've harvested from the plain so that we can put more water into the Seventeen's tank. I guess it didn't occur to me that the engine needs a source of water, too.

~~Other than a quick look at what Sello's insanity uncovered, we're supposed to be returning to the Dark Ore Station before nightfall. They apparently have a pest problem between the station and the settlement at night.

…

_Clink_. Link gave the rock a curious look before he tugged his sword away from it. The sword released with a bit of resistance, and Link examined the blade for a moment.

"Magnetite," Bolen told him, allowing the light of a nearby lantern to reflect off the smooth, black, angular surface of the rock he held.

"Magnetite?" Cale asked, looking at the wall Bolen had broken the rock from. "Can it be used?"

"Oh, yeah," Bolen said, tossing the rock into a wheelbarrow as another miner pushed it past Link and Cale. "We can shape i' fer magnets. Bu' mos'ly, we smel' i' fer the iron conten'."

"How much is there?" Link asked, sheathing the sword at his hip.

Bolen patted the wall. "Looks t' be a good load. Prob'ly save half'a i' fer us, send the res' ou'."

"How long will it be until you have the supplies we need?" Irleen, hovering above Link, asked.

"Prob'ly can' ge' i' ou' 'til late t'morrow mornin'," Bolen said. He gave her a grin. "Tha' eager t' ge' away from us, miss?"

"That eager to get away from anything Sello can _modify_."

"Well, with him and Luggard back at the station," Link said, "it's not very likely he'll be modifying anything else tonight."

"We just have to hope that he finds some liquoh befoah the night's through," Cale added. "Othehwise, he might get bohed and staht modifying the Seventeen again."

"'Again'?" Bolen asked.

"He modified the locomotive we use before we came out here," Link explained. "And it's a good thing, too, otherwise that giant Malgyorg might've eaten us."

"Aaaah, so ya _did_ mee' Smiley," Bolen said.

"Sm-Smiley?" Cale asked.

Bolen gave his head a side-nod. "Tha's wha' we call 'im 'roun' 'ere. Smiles and shows ya 'is big teeth 'fore 'e eats ya. Smiley."

"Not to criticize your whimsical naming convention," Irleen said, "but that's really kind of grim."

"Ya ge' like tha' 'roun' 'ere, 'specially if ya've been 'ere lon' as we 'ave." He stretched his arms. "Well, tha's all ah've go' t' show ya. Rea'y t' 'ead back?"

"Well, we've seen the salt, the coal, and the magnets," Irleen said. "I've had enough."

"We'll want to be rested befoah the trip to the Gorons' home," Cale agreed.

"Yeah, that sounds good," Link said.

Bolen pointed up the tunnel. "Le's ge' movin' then."

They followed Bolen toward the exit. But as they passed one of the mine's branches, Cale stopped in front of it. Link and Irleen stopped when they realized Cale was not with them, and Bolen came to a halt when he could not hear them following.

"Something wrong?" Link asked.

Cale indicated the other tunnel. "What's down heah?"

"Tha?" Bolen asked.

"Yeah, I don't think you showed us this one."

"I thin' tha's jus' a dead end. Nothin' 'appenin' down there."

"Ah you cehtain?" Cale asked.

"Yeah. Why?"

"You don't feel that then?"

"Feel what?" Irleen asked.

Cale held up a hand. "This tunnel. The rest of the mines feel only slightly wahmeh than the outside, but this one… it feels as if theah's a heateh oh something in heah."

"Le's see," Bolen said as he, Link, and Irleen moved over to him. He and Link held up their hands. "Yeah, ah see wha' ya mean."

"Me, too," Link said. "You said this tunnel's just a dead end?"

"Shoul' be," Bolen said. "Ah know in cer'in places, the ground feels warm, bu'… ah never fel' _this_ 'fore."

"Do you mind if we have a quick look?" Cale asked. "I'm just the faintest bit curious."

Bolen shrugged. "S'pose i's a'righ'. Jus' be careful."

As they started into the tunnel, Irleen said, "You know, this feels strangely like that volcano in the Snow Realm."

"I was just thinking the same thing," Link said. "But this feels a little more… distant."

"Yeah," she said, "it does."

"Could all of the ruckus Crunchy made have opened up something in this area?" Cale asked.

"S'pose i' could," Bolen said as he stopped to examine the rock with his lantern. "Looks like jus' a layer of sedimentary."

"Sedimentary?" Cale asked as he and Link continued forward.

"The magnetite ah showed ya back there is igneous rock. Tha' was spa' up by the Moun'ain'a Fire when i' was active. Bu' sedimentary rock prob'ly go' washed down 'ere from the moun'ain's outside by wind or rain. Somethin' like tha'. I's where we find thin's like sal' 'n coal."

"Feel that?" Cale asked Link. "It's wahmeh heah."

"Careful, ya two," Bolen told them. "This stuffs' sof' rock, so i' can come loose pre—"

_Shoof!_

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

Bolen could only watch as both Cale and Link suddenly fell from sight.


	51. Molava, Subterranean Peril

Chapter 51: Molava, Subterranean Peril

…

"Oh, my head…"

"Cale?"

"Link? What happened?"

"We fell. Again."

"Oh… s-sohry."

"Līīīīīīnca! Cīīīīīīīīla! Kàptòhaaaaaaan?"

"Wha' the _'ell's_ ya speakin'?"

Link felt shuffling near his left leg. "Cale? Is-is that _you_ moving?"

"Oh, is that you?"

"My leg."

"Right, I'll move oveh… I'll move oveh heah."

"Ya boys a'righ'?" Bolen called down to them.

Link glanced around, unable to tell which direction was which in the dark. He finally saw a small point of light above him. "Yeah, we're fine," he replied. Then, in a regular tone, he asked the darkness, "Right?"

"I think so," Cale groaned. "That was quite a fall."

Link gave the light above a thoughtful look. "Aaaah… maybe a three out of ten. I've been hurt worse from a fall."

"Really?"

"I once fell off a yardarm. My support rope swung me into the mast, and it dislocated my shoulder. I was out on sick leave for four weeks." He frowned. "I still owe Line for that."

"He helped you during the fouh weeks?"

"Nah, he was the reason I fell."

Silence answered for a moment. "Oh," Cale uttered.

"Where ya boys a'?" Bolen called down. "Ah can' see ya from 'ere."

"It looks like we're pretty far," Link replied. "It's dark, too."

"I can't even see my hand in front of my face," Cale commented.

Link heard voices echoing down to them for a moment, but none of them were clear. "Kay, boys," Bolen called down. "We's go'a send down a lan'ern. Tell us if ya can reach i'."

"Okay," Link replied.

"What is this material?" Cale asked.

"What material?" Link said as he watched the light above get larger in small steps.

"This material we landed on. It's almost like bundles of some kind of fibeh."

"What, like cloth?"

"No, not cloth. It's fah too lahge and loose. Thick, and maybe a little sticky. Like a web."

Link glanced in the direction he thought he heard Cale's voice from. "_Please_ don't tell me there are Skulltulas down here. I had my fill in the Lost Woods."

"I don't think they'h Skulltula webs. They ahn't sticky enough to restrain me. And I would suppose that the fact that they ah undehground as opposed to a forest suppohts the idea."

"'Ow's i'?" Bolen called down.

"You're not even close!" Link said. "Wow. How did we survive _this_ fall?"

Cale stamped his foot. "These bundles feel quite soft," he said. "We might have landed on a lahge nest of them."

There was a moment of silence as Link watched the light above them flicker. Then someone shouted, "Sh—LOOK OUT!"

"Watch it, watch it!" Link said, turning around and shoving into Cale. Both of them stumbled and crashed to the ground. _Thup._ Link sat up to find that a lantern had fallen to the bottom of the shaft where he had been standing, the Rope whip coiled on the ground next to it.

"Ya boys okay?" someone from above called down.

Link stepped back into the shaft and picked up the lantern. "Yeah," he replied as he pulled the Rope's head off the lantern's handle.

"Ya's down there a way," Bolen said. "We're lookin' fer rope righ' now."

"Okay," Link said. "We'll wait here."

"Link." Link glanced over his shoulder to find Cale looking into the tunnel they had fallen into. So he turned around.

As the lantern revealed the tunnel, Link fell into awe. While it was not as massive as the tunnels dug by Crunchy, it was still quite large to have been dug by hand. The rough walls sported thick, grey strands upon almost every surface: floor, walls, and ceiling. At first, Link thought that the lantern was getting brighter. Then he saw that the strands themselves had begun to glow as if in response to the lantern. He watched as the strands slowly spiraled in two different directions, revealing a tunnel stretching almost into infinity. From where they stood, there only appeared to be one branch off the tunnel to the left and away from the manmade tunnels above.

Link shook his head. "This is just…"

"Amazing?" Cale suggested.

"Wild."

"Wild. Wild would have been my second choice."

Link turned and looked back up the shaft. "Hey, Bolen?"

"Yeah," Bolen answered.

"Are there any more tunnels around here? More mines or anything?"

There was a moment of silence, and Link imagined that Bolen was exchanging comments with his fellows. Then Bolen said, "No, no' this close t' us. Why?"

"There's a massive tunnel down here covered in glowing… webs." Link turned toward the tunnel again and exchanged shrugs with Cale.

"Did ya jus' say 'webs'?"

"Yeah."

"Tha's wha' Ah though'."

"Rope?"

"We's lookin'. If we's lucky, we ain' _burned_ i' all."

"Did he seriously just say that?" Cale asked.

"Yeeeeeah," Link droned a moment. "I don't think he was joking. Can you call Irleen down here?"

"What foh?"

"Just to see how deep we are. I want to see how long it takes her to come down."

"But can't you just call up to heh?"

Link shook his head. "She can't understand me; we're too far apart. I was hoping you could call her down."

Cale frowned as he took a moment to think. "I believe she _did_ teach me the wohd 'come'. Pehhaps now would be a good time to try." Link stepped out of the way so Cale could stand in the shaft. He cupped his hands around his mouth and called up, "Ihleen! Cut! Cut!"

"Nūc!?"

"What'd she say?" Link asked.

"I don't know; I've neveh heahd that wohd befoah," Cale replied. Then he called up again, "Cut! Ihleen, cut!"

Link leaned in and watched a green light descend through the shaft. He glanced back out into the tunnel to remember how far the ceiling appeared. From what he could tell, there was a fair amount of earth between the mine and the tunnel. It must have been sheer dumb luck that he and Cale had stepped on the shaft. He would have to remember not to walk so close to Cale the next time they were exploring. Maybe Valley would not be as magnetic to falling.

"Do you have _any_ idea what you were saying?" Irleen asked when she came into range.

"I… I-I assumed it was 'come'," Cale said.

"That's wasn't even _close_."

"Oh… wha-what was I saying?"

"Fart."

Link gave Cale an awkward look. Cale scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "I, uh… apparently need to wohk on my pronunciation."

"Fortunately, I could tell what you were trying to say," Irleen pointed out. "Did you want something?"

"I just wanted to see how far down we were," Link explained.

"Yeah, it seemed pretty far."

"That's what I was thinking," Link said with a nod. Then he pointed over his shoulder. "What do you think?"

"Wha… oh," she replied. "Uh… yikes? What _is_ all that?"

"Don't know. Wanna take a look?"

"Sure."

"Ah," Cale spoke up. "A-ah you suah it's… safe?"

"I'm just curious," Link said, handing him the lantern. "We won't go far. If we're not back by the time they get a rope down, call us." He made to turn, then he reached down and picked up the whip. "Be right back."

"O-okay."

Link turned toward the left side of the tunnel, where he had seen the branch. After Irleen had confirmed they were out of range for Cale to hear, she asked, "What's going on, Link?"

"Didn't you notice how warm it is down here?" he asked as he coiled the whip.

"Yeah? So?"

"So. Everyone on the surface is _freezing_. Even in the mine, we were cold. How come this tunnel is so _warm_?"

"Well, I suppose we _could_ be underneath a volcano," Irleen said as they turned the corner. "That's what the Mountain of Fire is supposed to be, right?"

Link frowned as he glanced at the ground, noticing that they were travelling down a small slope. "Maybe. But if the Mountain of Fire is supposed to be a volcano, wouldn't this tunnel be flooded with lava?"

"Do you _really_ want to point out that we should be walking through lava right now?"

"I was just thinking tha—"

"Link. Freeze."

Irleen's voice had a jarring tone of urgency, so Link stopped mid-step with eyes still focused on the ceiling above. He found Irleen hovering near his head, then he looked forward. He was just a few steps away from walking into a massive chamber still bringing itself into illumination. There was movement on the far side of the chamber, revealed by another source of light at the bottom of a large pit. A long, wide, tube stretched into a large, spherical mass on the opposite side of the pit from them. Link then noticed the low rumble in the air, seemingly timed with the muscles pulsing on the fleshy tube. As the light from the strands illuminated the far side of the chamber, they showed that the spherical mass was made of some type of red clay. Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of this creature, other than the fleshy tube it bore, was the lack of visible eyes inside a face chiseled into a permanent scowl.

Link slid to the side of the tunnel as if to blend in with the wall. "What is _that_?" he whispered at her.

"I-I don't know!" she replied. "How would _I_ know?"

"We—I don't know! You didn't seem so helpless in the _crypt_!"

"Sssssh!" Both of them glanced over, but the creature did not stir. "With any luck, this thing's deaf."

"Look at that tube it's using," Link said, standing on his toes to look into the pit. "Doesn't it look about the same size as that shaft we fell through?"

"Hmm. Might be. You think it might've dug that shaft looking for food?"

"Depends on what it eats. Think you can take a look?"

"Yeah, hang on." Irleen fluttered to the top of the chamber and slowly moved along the ceiling, flinching a couple of times when the creature gave a cough. Link thought she had frozen completely at the edge of the pit, but then she returned the same way. "Lava."

"Huh?"

"It's drinking lava. It looks like the end of that tube is made of rock. There's an open pool of lava at the bottom of that pit."

Link put on a pained look. "We can't even tolerate being _near_ that stuff."

"Yeah, I know. I wonder if _that's_ why the Fire Realm froze over."

Link shrugged. "Who knows?"

"What do you want to do now?"

"We should probably get back to the shaft. I don't think we wanna let it know we're down here."

_Kaugh!_ Both looked back at the creature. Its feeding tube was shriveling and withdrawing into its mouth. The rock formation Irleen had mentioned fit into the opening in its head, and a pair of flaps on either side of its face closed over top of it. Its head rose. _Kaugh! Kaugh!_ The sound echoed through the chamber.

Then its face turned in Link's direction.

"Uh oh," Link uttered.

_Kaaaaaaaaaaugh!_ The creature lurched to one side on about a hundred pairs of short, scrawny legs. As it started around the pit, Link saw that it was much larger than it let on. Five segments of equal size to its head followed it out of a tunnel behind it, trailed by a fleshy stub the size of a human head. When it reached the corner of the pit, it turned and charged in Link's direction.

"Oh, crap, RUN!" Irleen screamed, already sailing back down the tunnel. Link turned and chased. "How'd it know we were here!?"

"Who _cares_!?" Link shouted. Dust fell from the ceiling, forcing Link to cover his brow as he ran. He glanced back just in time to see the creature break off some of the tunnel as it turned to get in. Link tried to pick up speed, but his legs were already aching from the race with Crunchy and the fall. He turned the corner at the end of the tunnel and dashed straight for Cale.

"Link, what's going on?" Cale asked. "I-I heahd—"

"Did they get a rope down yet?" Link asked him, stopping next to him.

"They told me they just found one," Cale said as he watched Link undo the sword belt around his waist. "Wh-wh-why?"

Link thrust the sword into Cale's hands. "We've got a problem."

"A _big_ problem," Irleen said.

There was a crash behind them as Cale made to fasten the belt around his own waist. They turned in the direction that Link had come running from. The creature had cut another corner trying to chase down Link, but this time, it paused at the tunnel. Cale pulled the belt tight, eliciting a squeak from his lips.

"_That_ problem," Link said, pointing a finger. He watched Cale's face pale. Then he saw a rope drop next to him. "Cale, ta—"

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"

Link did not attempt to look back at the creature; he figured it would be coming. He grabbed the rope, wrapped it around Cale's waist, and quickly tied a bowline into it. "Take him up! Take him up!" Link shouted, tugging on the rope.

_Kaugh!_ Link jumped out into the middle of the tunnel and dashed in the opposite direction from the creature. _Kaaaaaaaaugh!_

"What's the plan?" Irleen asked as she followed.

"Run!" Link answered. He glanced over his shoulder and received a flashback of Crunchy's cutter head as the creature chased him. He looked forward just in time to see that there was another tunnel on his right and turned into it.

_Kaugh! Kaugh!_ Link ran to the other end and found himself back in the creature's feeding chamber. His eyes shot back and forth across the chamber until he decided on a nearby tunnel on his left. _Kaugh! Kaugh!_ After daring a glance back, he ducked to one side and followed the wall to the other tunnel with as little noise as possible. The other tunnel curved back towards where he had come and had a slight, downward slope. Link ducked inside and pressed his back against the wall as he moved down. _Kaugh! Kaugh!_ He could hear a slow rumble and moved further down until only a sliver of the chamber remained in sight.

He caught his breath and pulled back when he saw the creature's face peer inside. He could hear a low, rasping sound nearby and carefully backed further away. _KAUGH!_ The sound almost knocked him on his back, and his ears rang for a moment. One hand wandered towards the sword on his hip until he remembered that he had just given it to Cale.

Just when he thought he would be fighting it face-to-face, the ground rumbled again as the creature pulled back. Link dared a few steps forward on his toes. _Kaugh!_ He froze for a moment, and then took a few more steps. When he saw the end of the tunnel, the creature was slowly moving past the tunnel.

Irleen carefully rounded Link and approached his head. "Now what?" she asked. "Sneak back to the mine?"

Link considered it. The creature was on the prowl, and Link would have to hope that it did not turn back as he was making his way back up to the shaft. He had no idea if the creature could see or if it navigated by something else. He assumed some other form of navigation if the tunnels were usually dark. So he looked down at the whip in his hand. The Rope's eyes had been replaced by a pair of olive gemstones. Link supposed that the gemstones were nicer to look at; he could understand being disturbed by a pair of dead eyes looking at him every time he took the whip into his hands. A distraction.

A… distraction?

Why not? He had done it before.

Link took the whip by the handle and let it drop to the floor. Then he looked up at Irleen.

"Ooooh, I don't like that look," she told him. "Is it safe to say you'll actually _try_ sneaking past this one?" Link, with a grin on his face, shook his head. "I hate it when you get like this."

He pressed his lips together to avoid laughing. Then he stepped to the middle of the tunnel, shaking his arm to get a feel for the whip's weight. He hoped that he understood how the whip worked from that single demonstration; he might not survive if he messed up. The creature's final segment was passing the mouth of the tunnel, so he slid up to the mouth with his arm poised to swing. He was not sure of the distance the whip would travel. He had never used a whip before. When he saw the fleshy stump at the creature's rear, he did not take his time aiming. He just swung.

The whip sank its fangs into the stump. Imitating the movements of the miner who had used it before, Link spun his shoulders and grabbed the Rope's tail. He could feel the whip's soft exterior tighten under his fingers.

_KAAAAAAUGH!_ The creature picked up speed.

And Link was yanked off his feet.

The sudden power the creature put into its movement pulled Link off balance. If not for his shield, Link would have bashed his head as he flipped over. He tucked his chin to his chest and held on as the creature dragged him back into the main chamber. He could feel every bump along the ground, bouncing as the creature rampaged around the pit. At one point, the creature must have turned a corner, because Link bashed into a wall. His hands lost grip on the whip, and he lay on the ground for a moment so the world would stop spinning around him.

"Link!" Link was pulling himself off the ground when Irleen flew up to him. His head still reeled, probably even more so because he had gotten up faster than intended. She bounced around in front of his face for a moment. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I guess," Link said before giving his head a shake. His vision managed to clear, although his head hurt as it should after bashing into a wall. His eyes wandered the pit. "Where'd it go?"

"It disappeared down one of the tunnels," Irleen said. She motioned to the tunnel in front of Link on the far wall.

Link squinted. For a moment, he wondered if the strike to the head was still playing with his sight. Then he realized that the whole cave was going dim. "We're running out of light."

"Are you done antagonizing it yet?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'd say I'm done." He quickly stepped forward and picked up the whip.

_Kaaaaaaaaaaugh!_

"Good," she told him. "Because I don't think _he_ is."

"Right." Link started running while he tried to stuff the whip's coils into his belt. Then he pulled his shield off and just about had his arm fit through the straps.

"Watch out!" Irleen's warning prompted Link to stop in his tracks. His peripheral vision caught movement, and he held his shield up around the edges just in time for something heavy to bash into it. The force of impact drove him into the wall behind him. His shield was ripped from his hands, and he looked up to see the creature's mouth retreating across the pit.

_Kaugh! Kaugh!_ Link watched in amazement. Through the dimming light, he saw that the creature had effectively jammed its mouth shut using his shield as a lid.

"Are you gonna want that—" Irleen began.

"Nope, I'm good," Link quickly replied before running toward the exit.

"Link, watch it!" He slipped trying to stop and fell on his bottom. It was not particularly graceful, but the creature's mouth bashed into the cave wall next to him just an arm's length from his face. Link flipped around and scrambled the opposite direction. "Link!" This time, Link slid, steadying himself by planting a hand onto the ground, just in time to avoid the mouth trying to crush him against the wall. "Sword! _Sword_!" He already had his hand on the grip after remembering the weapon strapped to his back and drew it fast enough to lay a shallow strike on the fleshy part of the creature's feeding tube.

"_Kyaaagh!_" the creature shrieked after retracting its mouth. It bucked and started slamming its head against the tunnel walls while Link retreated into the nearest tunnel to him.

"Okay…" Irleen said as Link pressed himself against the wall. "Now what?"

Link steadied his breath and sighed. "I don't know. But I don't think it's going to let me go easy."

"Think you can lose it in one of these tunnels?" she asked, indicating the back of the tunnel with a shake.

He glanced down the tunnel as he considered it. "If I go any further, I might get lost," he decided. "Besides, it's getting too dark, and I don't have a light."

"Well, the longer you stay here, the more likely that thing's gonna come get you. So what _now_?"

Link's free hand dropped against his thigh after a shrug. The hit reminded him of Irleen's explosive gem still in that pocket, and he pulled it out. He looked at it, then up at Irleen. "How far away can you trigger this?"

"Uh… just as long as it hears the magic words," Irleen replied. "It doesn't even have to be _me_ as long as it's Sorian."

Link pointed at her. "You'll do."

"Naturally," she groaned.

When Link jumped back into the chamber, the creature was banging its jaw against the ground. Link thought it might be trying to dislodge the shield from its mouth. He gave it a moment, then he struck his sword against the wall. "Over here!"

He jumped aside when the creature launched its mouth at him. He had jumped right, so he used a quick upswing to slash into the feeding tube. He was not sure how deep he cut due to the creature retracting immediately. _Kyah! Kyah!_

Link hit the wall with his sword again. "C'mon! What're you waiting for?" he taunted.

This second time, he had to take a guess at when he needed to jump aside. To his fortune, the wounds he had already inflicted slowed the creature's attack. Again, he leapt to the right. Warm liquid sprayed him, and he tripped against the feeding tube. With the bomb gem pressed to his palm, he slid his hand across the creature's flesh until he pressed it into the wound. The creature hollered with pain again as it retracted, the rock-like mouthpiece clipping Link and almost sending him sprawling into the pit.

He rolled away from the pit and clamped his hands over his ears. "IRLEEN, NOW!"

"And the world goes _boom_!"

_BOOM!_ The explosion shook the chamber. Link could feel its force permeate his body and pressed his eyes shut as if to protect them.

"_Nn-GYAAAAAH!_" The creature's scream was horrid, and Link opened his eyes to look around. The chamber had been lit again, probably from the bomb gem. Across the pit, the creature writhed and whipped around, spraying bright red blood across its side of the chamber floor. It dashed out of its hiding space and scrambled about the chamber for a moment. Then a few of its legs slipped on the edge of the pit. It slammed into the floor, and then it slid off the edge. Link took a step forward to watch the creature splash in a distant pool of lava. It squirmed for a moment, then it simply faded from sight.

"Yes," Link hissed under his breath, giving his free arm a small pump.

"All right!" Irleen declared, circling him. "Skipper three, monsters a big. Fat. ZEROOOOO!"

Link glanced down at himself. The creature's blood had already begun to soak into his tunic, staining it an ugly brown across the left shoulder down to his hip with spots all across his stomach. He saw that the Lokomo Sword was also covered in blood almost to the hilt and whipped it in an X to fling it off. After a quick glance, he replaced the sword.

"And the world," Irleen said. "Hey, Link, we still have it!" She flew to the side of the cave near the exit tunnels and hovered over a red rock on the floor.

Link shook his head as he jogged over to retrieve the bomb gem.


	52. Goooooooron

Chapter 52: Goooooooron

…

~Day 22

~I hurt.

…

"And 'ere 'e comes, our 'ero!"

Link had decided to sleep in. He regretted it. His shoulders were sore from the battle with the subterranean creature. His head pounded through the physical effort it took for him just to walk to a late breakfast (which had been decidedly more disgusting) then show up at the train platform. In fact, he carried his hat in one hand because he could not fit it onto his head without making the pressure behind his skull worse. It felt like he had lead weights nailed to his boots (which he had had happen before), his feet barely able to make the steps up.

Luggard, leaning in the cab's doorway, allowed his grin to grow. "If I 'ad the talen', I think I'd give ya a ballad righ' 'ere 'n now," he joked. "Bu', uh… me brothers tell me I's tone-deaf."

"Please stop," Link groaned, rubbing a hand on his forehead. "I don't feel very good."

"Cut him some slack, Luggard," Irleen, who had been hovering in Link's wake the whole time, said as she shot forward and spun around in the air between Link and the train. "Neither one of us could get any sleep."

Luggard crossed his arms. "No' me faul' 'e was lookin' for some after-dinner carnage." Link just shook his head.

"It's not our fault we keep running into these things," Irleen said. "It just happens! First the bug, then Drumstik, and now a… crazy… worm-thing. And you know what? Link works his _ass_ off making sure people survive. I don't see _you_ exhibiting that kind of talent."

"Irleen," Link moaned.

"Yeah?"

"Your voice is making my headache worse."

Irleen gave a defeated sigh. "Sorry."

"It's not your fault; your voice is just so high because you're so small. I… sorry, Irleen."

"How about if I just keep my voice low?"

"It would help."

"Ya good 'nough t' travel?" Luggard asked as Link stepped closer to the cab.

Link gave his head a gentle shake. "I'd rather sleep a little more," he said. "On Castle Island, up in the sky… the police play these small drums in the evening when they're changing shifts… or something like that; I've never been very clear about it. But my head feels like one of those drums."

"You got battered around pretty bad," Irleen pointed out.

"Ya wanna stay 'ere 'n sleep it off?" Luggard asked. "Cale 'n me can take care o' everythin'."

Again, Link shook his head. "We still have work to do. I'll-I'll get over it. Maybe some fresh air will help."

"Ah, well, can' say ya's gonna find much ou' 'ere."

"Where's Cale?" Irleen asked.

"He found ou' las' nigh' the se'lemen's go' a small library," Luggard said. "'E wen' lookin' for a new map."

"Maybe one you _won't_ throw into the engine?" Irleen suggested.

"I ain' gonna make promises." Luggard leaned back to look at the Seventeen's instrument panel. "We go' a few minutes 'til we's up. Gauges was frozen this mornin'. I's lettin' the new fuel warm up the engine."

"What about our route?" Link asked, turning so that his sore back was resting against the cool steel of the cab's exterior.

"Par' o' the reason Cale wen' for a map. I don' know these rails well, r'member?"

"Well," Link said, pointing at the large mountain to the west, "we know that the town should be to the south or southwest of the Mountain of Fire."

"I swear, I'm gonna make them rename that mountain," Irleen said.

"Only one track in that direction," Link continued. "We might find it as long as we head due west from here."

"Prob'm's tha' the track turns south a ways up," Luggard said. "'Ow far south is we s'pose t' go?"

"As fah as possible." Link, Irleen, and Luggard's attention turned up as Cale reached the top of the platform. "I have a route foh us."

"Le's 'ear it," Luggard said.

"If I undehstood this map right," Cale said, holding up a rolled sheet of paper, "the tracks around the Mountain of Fiah ah laid out in a layehed pattehn, concentric rings with the Fiah Temple at its centeh and only a handful of junctions along ouh way."

"Righ'," Luggard said with a nod. "So 'ow much trouble is we lookin' a'?"

"Very little, actually. Theah's an outeh bypass around the mountain that runs through the town. It's… a simple ride straight down the track, really."

"I like simple," Luggard said. "I can do simple."

Link shoved his hands into his trouser pockets. "How much longer?" he asked, leaning his head back to indicate he was talking to Luggard.

"Aaah…" Luggard droned before glancing back at the instrument panel. He looked over his gauges and tapped one which had not appeared to move since he started the firebox. He returned to the side and said, "Few more minutes. Gauges still warmin' up. I knew this would 'appen."

"Do we still have a train?" Irleen asked.

"Don' worry," Luggard told her. "Seventeen's go' plen'y o' life lef' in 'er. She'll ge' us there."

"I would cehtainly hope so," Cale said. "I can't say I'm fond of the thought of being stuck heah."

"I don't think _any_ of these people are," Link said.

Cale gave a silent stammer before speaking. "Not-not that I implied—"

"It's okay, Cale," Link told him. "Just… go with it. Full and by."

Luggard started chuckling. "'Full and by'?"

"It's a sailing term," Link replied. He illustrated with hands as he explained, "You guys know that wind pushes a ship, right? It's possible to sail upwind in an airship. You can turn a ship _toward_ the wind, and the wind blowing over the outside of a sail will actually begin _pulling_ the ship into the wind, what we call sailing 'by'. It's not really efficient, and most captains will order the sails lowered and the engines on. But when you're not in a rush, it's an easy way of sailing into the wind with the sails still at full, saving fuel. It's a little lazy, but that's what we call 'full and by'."

Cale's face turned small circles as he tried understanding where the explanation was going. "So I should…"

"Just take it easy," Link finished. "Go with the flow."

Luggard snapped his fingers. "I can follow _tha'_ one."

Link frowned. "Yeah, I suppose it's easier saying it that way."

Cale's gaze shifted between Link and Luggard for a moment. "Full and by."

Link nodded. "Full and by."

"Is that how a _skipper_ should live?" Irleen asked.

At that, Link shrugged. "Unless he wants to drive his crew insane."

"Oi, boys!" Cale turned around, and all four watched Roland step onto the train platform. He doubled over for a moment. "S'worried I's go'a miss ya boys."

"Jus' 'bou'," Luggard said. He jerked a thumb at the boiler. "Still warmin' up."

"Oh, good," Roland said. "Firs', jus' wanted t' wish ya boys luck."

"We can use it," Irleen said.

"Secon'." He lofted something at Link, which he would have dropped had he been a half-second slower. "Gif' from Alber'."

For a moment, Link felt a pang of guilt drop from his heart and through his stomach. He stared at Roland for a moment. Then he remembered that the man from yesterday, the one who owned the whip, had also been named Albert. He glanced down at the coiled whip in his hands. "R-really?" he asked.

"Asked me t' give i' t' ya. 'E's go' 'nother."

Link examined the leather piece holding the whip's coils. Then he fit the open loop around his tunic belt and snapped it together so that the whip rested on his right hip where his sword used to be. "Tell him I said thanks."

Roland nodded. "Ya saw ma boys go 'ead?"

"Yeah," Luggard said.

"They'll 'ave the track salted time ya boys ge' there. Good luck."

"Don' need luck. We go' _Link_."

"Ahp," Irleen began, her tone indicating that she was about to argue. Then she bobbed up and down and admitted, "Yeah, he's got a point."

"Of course he does," Link sighed as he turned to climb into the cab.

…

Link and Cale huddled behind the instrument panel for most of the ride. Link occasionally rose and shoveled coal for Luggard, who had to keep watch as he drove the train. Luggard was hardly enjoying it, having to peer around the instrument panel at the tracks by sticking his face into the chilly wind caused by the locomotive's movement. Irleen was huddled in the cavity above the instrument panel, keeping mostly to herself. Sello lay passed out under the bench. Link was unsure if he had fallen asleep there or Luggard had just shoved him there to keep him out of trouble. Either way, Sello did not appear to mind.

The trip up the slope alongside the Mountain of Fire made Link worry. The locomotive's wheels slipped a number of times, and Link was surprised that they did not slide back down the slope and off the rails. Fortunately, Roland's men were still there and spread more salt on the tracks to help the wheels' grip. After listening to Luggard shout at the miners and a few minutes of high-pitched squealing, the Seventeen mounted the slope and disappeared around the side of the Mountain of Fire.

"Oi, Link," Luggard said a moment after the slope disappeared from sight. "I need 'nother shovelin'."

"Okay," Link said as he stood. The shovel was already in his hands, and he started carrying piles of coal to the open firebox. "How much longer do you think, Cale?"

Cale shrugged. "A half-houh, pehhaps? It's hahd to tell from heah."

Luggard nodded and looked out at the mountain. The earth to the locomotive's right looked like a steep slope, but it only rose just above the height of the locomotive. "Somehow, it feels like this ain' much o' a volcano," he commented.

"It's a 'shield' volcano, I believe," Cale explained. "Befoah it became dohment, it would have spilled out enough lava to cause the area around the opening to flatten." Luggard pointed at the slope to their right. "Relatively speaking, of couhse."

"So, if it wanted t' blow, we'd be in trouble."

"Ah… w-well, I can't say foh _cehtain_…"

"We probably won't have to find out," Link said.

"Tha'll do, Link," Luggard said as he shut the firebox. Link nodded and moved back in front of the instrument panel for cover. Luggard sniffed. "Cold's botherin' me nose. We should'a grabbed a couple o' blankets b'fore we lef'."

"We would have still had those blankets we used yestehday if we hadn't lost them afteh Crunchy tuhned against us," Cale said.

"I still say we should tie 'im up."

Cale gave Luggard a confused look. "Crunchy?"

Luggard pointed at Sello. "No, _tha'_!"

Cale took a moment to catch on. "Oh, Sello? What's wrong with him?"

Luggard glared at Cale. "A grown man's sleepin' under me bench 'n ya ask wha's _wrong_ with 'im?"

"He's fallen asleep on top of the office car before," Link replied. "So it's not _entirely_ strange."

"It… actually sounds a little _sane_ foh him," Cale added. "Do you suppose he's sobeh?"

"No," Link answered, "probably not."

Luggard glanced around the side. "Cale, wha's I s'pose t' be lookin' for?" he asked.

"I believe that eitheh side of the Gorons' town is suhrounded by cliffs," Cale said, pulling himself up. "It will be on the otheh side of a tunnel."

"DAA—!" Sello suddenly shouted. The other three glanced over to see that he had awoken, tried to sit up, and struck his head on the underside of the bench with a metallic thump, which had cut his scream short. He dropped back to the floor and appeared to go back to sleep.

Link turned back to find Cale and Luggard staring at him. He could tell that they wanted to ask him why they were transporting a psychotic drunk. He had to admit to himself that he was not entirely sure what kind of purpose taking Sello along would have been, although they had been lucky that he had been at hand to fix Crunchy. Of course, so far he had been a handful, especially when he needed a drink. With a sigh, Link planted a palm over one eye and looked down at the floor. And he groaned, "Are we there yet?"

Fortunately, they just about were.

The tunnel Cale had mentioned appeared a few minutes later. Cale mentioned that the platform spanned the narrow gap in between the cliffs. Just as the locomotive was exiting. Luggard suddenly applied the brakes, and both Cale and Link slammed their heads into the instrument panel. The train squealed along the tracks until jerking to a stop part-way into the opposite tunnel. Luggard spent a few minutes securing the train while telling Cale off for not warning him. Then they disembarked.

From the platform, the Goron town looked to be just the opposite of the rest of the Fire Realm. Whereas all the ice had given the outlying lands an eerie, grey color, the rock around the town was warm and red. The town had been shaped into levels, the highest at the north side and the lowest to the south past the tracks. Massive boulders dotted the landscape, each one sporting a hole in the side. More holes decorated the cliffside. The air felt comfortably warm; Link could only recall this kind of warmth when he was inside the tunnels under the mines.

Lumps moved across the ground. Or, at first Link _thought_ they were lumps. They were vaguely humanoid with large, round bodies. Link would not have noticed them if not for their gold skin. None of them appeared to wear any kind of clothing, although a few wore wide, bucket-shaped hats. Rocks decorated their backs, reminding Link of the Malgyorgs they had had to fight to make it to the realm. The air was filled with boisterous, deep voices, the friendly sort that Link only ever heard around a port. He found that he liked this place, probably one of the few places he liked purely on sight.

"I-I hope you didn't strain anything stopping," Cale said as he stepped onto the platform behind Link.

"If I did, it's cuz ya don't _tell_ me stuffs," Luggard snapped.

Link turned and raised a hand to calm him. "At least we found the town," he told both Cale and Luggard. Then he leaned to one side and called into the locomotive, "You coming along, Irleen?"

"Yeah," she said after popping out from above the instrument panel. "Do you think anyone's expecting us?"

"I can't see why," Link replied. "All the trains to the Fire Realm were supposed to be cut off."

"Well, 'ere comes a welcomin' committee," Luggard said with a nod.

Link turned around to find five of the large humanoids approaching from the opposite end of the platform. The leader bore square-shaped, white tattoos across his large body, all arranged in a diamond which indicated his wide jaw. Link was surprised by how prominent their lips were, especially compared to their dot-like eyes. The leader had a flat-top haircut from the small circle of grey hair on top of his head, while his followers sported baldness. He was not sure what to make of them; their stride was a business-like strut airship officers walked around with if they were occupied, but Link found it difficult to read the expressions on their smooth, round faces. They stopped near the end of the locomotive, just out of reach from Link.

"You boys are two days late," the leader said in an easy, deep tone. His brow formed a worried look as he asked, "Is everything all right?"

Cale glanced at Luggard. "T-two days _late_?" Luggard's response was a confused shrug.

"We were worried that the pass had closed," the leader continued. "I just had some of my brothers check that it was clear early this morning." When he watched Cale, Link, and Luggard glance around at each other, he asked, "You _are_ here to take us to the mines, right?"

Link took in a breath to address him. "We… should probably talk."

…

The news Luggard conveyed to the miners' leader, Dorogo, was met with solemn understanding. After taking them to an office inside the eastern cliff, Dorogo sent his men to find the town's single Hylian resident. Now, he stood at the backside of the office in silence, admiring the rock formation in the wall. When he finally turned back to his visitors, it felt as if it had been hours.

"I am… I am glad that someone told us this," he said. "Some of my brothers and… myself… were concerned that the Hylians had abandoned the mines due to the cold."

"T' tell the truth, they prob'ly would've if they could," Luggard told him, wiggling on the stone chair set against the wall. Dorogo nodded. "Don' ya 'ave any engines?"

"Cars. We can construct any type of car. But…" To illustrate the point to follow, he held up one hand and flexed his large fingers. "Engines that Hylians make are too complex and fragile for our hands. That is why we have always relied on the train companies for transportation in exchange for materials."

"Doesn't really seem to be paying off," Irleen, hovering over Link's head, spoke up.

Link, leaning against the wall near the doorway, looked up at her. "Come on, Irleen, that's not fair."

Dorogo gave a shrug. "We always knew that the companies might stop trains. I can only be glad that it was not because of us."

"Me, too," Luggard said. "I mean… it _sucks_ we can' ge' 'ere by the usual rails, bu' it's no' like it's anyone's faul'."

"Is anything being done to bring the trains back here?"

"Can' say there's much t' be done. 'Til the tides go back, the trains won' be comin' ou' 'ere."

"What about the Hylian miners? Is there anything that can be done for them?"

Luggard let out a sigh and leaned against the wall. "Don' see much."

"Couldn't we take them back to the Forest Realm with us?" Cale asked from the rock stool in the middle of the room.

Luggard chuckled. Then he shook his head to help remove his grin. "Cale, we don' go' much train lef'. We could take _maybe_ a few with us."

"Would you like to use one or two of our cars?" Dorogo asked.

"You'd lend us a car?" Irleen asked.

"I can give you one if you need it. Otherwise, they just carry dust and dirt in storage."

"Wha' can ya spare?" Luggard asked.

"I believe that you will need a passenger car."

"'Ow 'bou' a freigh' car? Somethin' t' carry the supplies in?"

"What size do you need?"

Luggard thought for a moment. "Regular one, maybe? Don' know 'ow much we'll be carryin'."

The office's occupants heard quick footsteps outside. Link stepped away from the wall and turned with everyone else as a Hylian man with tanned skin stopped in the doorway. He was shirtless, his smooth chest and stomach covered in white swirls similar to Goron tattoos. He wore russet-colored trousers which had been torn off at the knees and sandals made of straw. "Gogodo said ya's lookin' fer me," he told Dorogo. "Whacha need, brodda?"

"Da broddas down in da mines need help," Dorogo said, the change in his accent surprising his visitors. "Da trains ain't movin' no more, so dey need stuff from here. Can ya spare, brodda?"

"Doooooooooh," the Hylian droned, his lips pursed into a trumpet shape. He scratched at his scraggly beard for a moment. Then he sucked in air and nodded. "Go."

Dorogo smiled and nodded. "Goron."

The Hylian pointed a hand to one side. "Goron."

Dorogo nodded again. "Goron." The Hylian nodded and disappeared from the doorway.

Confused glances floated around the room. "What… I… huh?" Irleen spoke up in an accurate vocalization of what her companions were thinking.

"He will start gathering supplies," Dorogo told them. "He should have them ready to leave in about an hour. In the meantime, we will have your locomotive turned around and hooked up with the cars you will need."

Luggard exchanged a satisfied look with Link. "Thanks!" he said.

"Link, Cale," Irleen spoke up. "Architect. You know, while we're here?"

Link held up a hand and nodded. "We were wondering if you knew anything about one of the old Architects."

Dorogo frowned. "Archi… architect?"

"A Goron by the name Agoro," Cale explained. "He was a blacksmith some fohty yeahs ago."

Dorogo held up a finger. "Yes, I believe I knew him a long time ago. My father used to work for him. But… I am afraid that he has died since then. He died almost ten years ago."

"Yeah, that's the story everywhere," Irleen said.

Link hissed at her. Then he asked, "Did he happen to have any children? Someone to carry on his work?"

"Yes, he had a son," Dorogo said with a nod. "Lidago. But… Lidago pursued another line of work. He makes pottery. And…"

"And wha?" Luggard asked.

"Well… he is… not very smart."

The room felt stuffy for a moment, all three Hylians squirming uncomfortably. "Wha-what do you mean?" Cale asked. "Has he been injuahed in some manneh?"

"No. He has been this way since he was born."

"He's slow?" Luggard asked.

Dorogo nodded. "I believe that is how you Hylians describe his illness. It took him longer to master Goron, and he does not speak Hylian very well."

"Oh, deah," Cale uttered.

"Well, tha's one down," Luggard said. Irleen let out a hum of agreement as she dropped to eye-height with Link.

But Link said, "Would you mind if we meet him anyway? He might be able to help us anyway."

Dorogo gave him an uncomfortable look. But he nodded and said, "I have to direct my brothers first. Then I will take you to Lidago."

…

Dorogo led Link, Irleen, and Cale through a tunnel which took them under the tracks to the south side of town. Link found himself surprised yet again by the Gorons. Unlike even some of the friendliest towns he knew in the sky, every Goron that they walked by raised a hand and greeted them with a lively call of "Goron". Both Link and Cale could only wave in response while Dorogo repeated the call. This continued until they reached a large, hollowed-out rock along the outer periphery of the town.

A lone Goron sat outside looking over a clay pot almost the size of his head. His body tattoos were a bunch of lines forming chevrons in four different directions and appeared to extend all the way around his body. He looked up at the sound of Dorogo's footsteps and stood, one hand in the air in greeting. "Goron!" he hollered at them.

Dorogo also raised his hand, although his tone and gesture did not seem as energetic as with the other Gorons. "Goron."

The other Goron tilted his head. "Goron?"

"Goron," Dorogo said with the same tone, standing aside to indicate Cale, Link, and Irleen.

The other Goron stood and, with a striking amount of enthusiasm, picked up a smaller, red pot. "You like pot?" he asked them. "You buy pot from me?"

"Um…" Link said.

Dorogo held up a hand to the other Goron and gave his head a solemn shake. "Goron."

"Goron?"

"A-ah you… uh, Lidago?" Cale asked.

The other Goron nodded. "Lidago, yes. I Lidago! You buy pot?"

"Goron," Dorogo said, stepping closer to Lidago. "Goron?"

Lidago pursed his lips. "Goron." He turned his back on the Hylians with Dorogo as Dorogo started to say something in too low a voice for them to hear.

"Okay, am I the _only_ one annoyed by the fact that they say nothing but 'Goron' when they talk to each other?" Irleen said.

"I believe that it is paht of how the Goron language wohks," Cale said in a low tone so as not to disturb the Gorons' conversation. "From what I undehstand, entiah dialogues can be expressed between Gorons by repeating the same wohd with many different intonations."

"You mean that's all they say?" Link asked. "And that's all they ever _have_ to say?"

Cale put on a difficult face. "Well… yes a-and no. Uh… from what I have read, the Gorons _do_ speak with a language fah different from Hylian, but they express complex ideas through things like gestuah and that same wohd. I believe the appropriate tehm is 'context'. Theah is a lot of meaning in that one wohd depending on the situation _and_ how it is spoken."

"That's complete _madness_!" Irleen said.

"Maybe," Link said, "but it works for them." He looked back at Cale. "Do they ever use their own language in front of Hylians?"

"Of couhse," Cale said. "But it's so much easieh foh them to express themselves with the wohd 'Goron' that it doesn't really matteh."

"Well," Irleen said, "if he decided to help, how are we suppose to _talk_ to him? Dorogo said that he barely understands Hylian."

"If it comes to it," Link said, "we can always give him the translator gem so _you_ can talk to him."

Irleen's tone turned sarcastic. "Right. Because whatever I have to say to him can be reduced to a single word."

Link pulled the gem from his pocket. "We might have to rely on it right now," he said, watching as Dorogo and Lidago turned around.

"Lidago would like to know why you need his help," Dorogo said.

But Lidago held out the pot still in his hands. "You buy pot?"

"You're on, Irleen," Link said as he stepped forward. "Just tell him what we want him to do."

"This'll be rich," she moaned.

"W-wait a moment!" Cale spoke up. "Make suah he doesn't eat it."

Link glanced over his shoulder. "Huh?"

"Gorons eat rocks and gemstones," Cale explained. "He might not undehstand if you give him something he believes to be a snack."

"Oh."

Dorogo looked down at the smaller Goron and said with one hand smacking against his lips, "Goron. Goron."

Lidago nodded. "Goron."

"He understands," Dorogo said.

"Seriously?" Irleen groaned.

Link handed Lidago the gem. Then he looked up and said, "Irleen?"

Irleen gave a long sigh. Then she said while indicating the sky with a series of jumping moves, "Goooooooron?" Link snorted and quickly turned away. Irleen glanced down at him and asked, "Goron?" When Cale started giggling, she spun and shouted, "_Go_ron!?"

"Goron?" Dorogo asked Irleen.

"Goron," Irleen replied, indicating the gem with a jerk.

"Dooooooooh," both Gorons droned as they looked at the gem in fascination.

"Goron," Irleen said flatly. Both boys snorted again, and she spun to them. "_Goron_!"

"Goron," Lidago told Dorogo in an assertive voice.

"Goron?" Dorogo asked.

Lidago nodded. "Goron."

Dorogo gave him an approving nod. "He says that he will go with you," he told the boys. "He wants to help."

"Does he understand what we want him to do?" Link asked.

"You need help to build something, correct? To go to the sky? Lidago is good at making things."

"You like pot?" Lidago asked, offering the pot again.

"But… isn't he a potteh?" Cale asked.

"He can also make things with metal and wood," Dorogo explained. "But he prefers making pots to his father's life as a blacksmith."

Link pointed a finger as he stepped forward. "Can I have the gem?" Lidago looked down at the translator gem resting between his fingers as if he just remembered that it was there. He handed it to Link. "Do you need time to get ready?"

Lidago set down the pot and glanced back at the one he had been inspecting. "Have crack. I get crack pipe."

As Lidago disappeared into his home, Dorogo told them, "You two can go on ahead. I will tell him to meet you at the train platform."

"Okay," Link said as he turned away. "Thanks, Dorogo."

"Ya're welcome, brodda," Dorogo said with a wave.

"Just what were you two laughing at?" Irleen asked when they were out of earshot of Dorogo.

Link chuckled at the memory. "You know how you said that whatever you have to say can be reduced to a single word?"

"Yeah?" She realized Link's meaning when both boys stared at her with wide grins on their faces. "Oh, no. I didn't."

"You did," Link said, unable to hold back the amusement in his voice.

"That initial statement was especially egregious," Cale added.

"But… I-I thought I gave him precise directions!" she told them. "You two have _got_ to be kidding!"

"The funny part is we really don't have to," Link said. "Every word we heard came out 'Goron', even when you were shouting at us."

"Well, now I'm just embarrassed," Irleen said. She hovered over to Link and ducked into his hat.


	53. Inan 'ak Gilto

Chapter 53: 'Inan 'ak Gilto

…

~~Well, all things considered, it looks like we got done what we needed to do. It feels like it's been almos—Well, apparently, it _has_ been nearly a month since something went as planned. Right now, I'm watching Gorons load up bundles of food and supplies onto the Seventeen. Which actually looks like a train again. We have a passenger car for miners who want or need to leave the Fire Realm, and we also have a freight car for the supplies. The Gorons gave us a fresh load of coal and refilled our water, too.

~~I have to say I'm fascinated with them. They have a tremendous work ethic, and nothing ever seems to slow them down. Luggard was telling me a few minutes ago how they shoved the Seventeen onto a revolving section of rail to turn it around and then carried the new cars onto the track. And their work chant is actually quite catchy, even if it only uses the word "Goron".

…

It was a bit of a shock when the Seventeen emerged from the tunnel back onto the side of the Mountain of Fire. Probably even more so for Link and Luggard since they decided to ride the locomotive on the way back to the Dark Ore Station while Cale, Irleen (conducting language lessons again), and Ligado rode in the passenger car. Sello was still asleep under the bench, although a bottle rolling about the cab floor indicated that he had not been passed out the entire time. Luggard ran the train slower this time, wanting to make sure that the tracks did not ice over on the slope ahead.

"So wha's the plan?" Luggard asked above the locomotive's noise.

"What do you mean?" Link replied.

"The miners. We can' fi' 'em _all_ in one car."

Link glanced back at the car as if to confirm. It was bare, black metal with a single door facing the locomotive. "I don't know. I think it'll have to be Roland's call. We can at least take anyone sick or injured; staying out in this cold place probably won't do them much good." He glanced back again. "I wonder why he didn't ask us to pick up some cars while we were up here. The Gorons _clearly_ didn't mind."

Luggard shrugged before peering around the side. "Tha's wha' I been wonderin', too," he said when he pulled back in. He paused for a moment. "If we 'ad a decen' train, 'e might've been worried 'is men migh' deser'. Bein' withou' supplies 'n all."

Link's mouth drew a grim frown. "Yeah, maybe. And now that we've got one, they just might try it."

"_Again_, wha's the plan?"

The response was a sigh as Link tried to think. It was not as if they could disguise the train. And leaving the train and walking the rest of the way seemed to just beg for trouble whether they could brave the cold or not. So Link replied, "Well, maybe they won't try anything as long as we deliver the supplies."

"If we go'a, we can ditch the cars."

Link sucked in a breath through his teeth. "I'd prefer to avoid it. How good does that look for us?"

Luggard glanced at him. "Be'er a bastard than _dead_."

Link did not like the sentiment and glared at him. "It won't come to it."

Luggard sighed. "Look, I ain' go' nothin' agains' wha' we's doin'. Bu' if we ge' crowded, I's takin' off."

"Then we'll stay the night. We talk to Roland, have dinner at the station, then leave tomorrow morning. Roland will talk to his men, maybe keep them reasonable. We're _not_ going to do anything impulsive. So long as Roland knows that we're just bringing back supplies, he'll have a head start on his men if they decide to run for it."

Luggard stared at him for a moment. "Ya's tha' sure Roland'll 'ave our backs?"

"If anyone was desperate enough to run, they would have stowed away on the Seventeen the moment Roland gave his orders. The Goron town would've been a better location to run to; remember, we've still got that giant Malgyorg to go through."

Luggard huffed out a laugh. "By tha' argumen', no one'll wanna go with us _t'morrow_."

"We'll see."

…

The Seventeen pulled into the station almost an hour later. The sun was still in the sky, barely into the afternoon. Roland and a few of his men already stood on the platform, having been alerted to the train by the pull of the whistle as it had been approaching. The brakes gave a squeal as Luggard slowed the train, and then the train gave a gentle rock upon stopping. Roland hollered to his men.

Then he walked up to the cab. "Looks good, boys!" he called up to them. "Tha's faster than Ah 'spected."

Link put his knees on the bench and looked over the edge at him. "It was actually a pretty easy pick-up," he said. "The Gorons were really helpful. They even gave us these cars."

Roland nodded. "'Ow's the slope?"

"Tricky," Luggard said, joining Link by stepping on the bench and leaning his butt on the edge. "Bu' tha' sal' 'elped. Never 'ad t' take a slope like tha', bu' we ge' trainin' for anythin'."

"Lucky for _us_," Roland said as he glanced at his men unloading the supplies. "Wha's the passenger car for?"

Luggard shrugged. "Passengers."

"Is there anyone you'd like us to take back to the Forest Realm?" Link asked. "Sick, injured… anyone?"

Roland frowned as he glanced at the passenger car and then back to the settlement. "Ah'll see wha' me boys go'a say. Ah migh' 'ave ya take a few'a the boys laid up 'ere; we ain' go' the supplies t' deal with injuries."

"Sounds good," Luggard said.

"I wish it was possible to do moah," Cale said as he, Lidago, and Irleen approached. "Even if we made it heah, it still may be time befoah anotheh train arrives."

"Ah'd say ya boys did plen'y," Roland said. "More'n wha' we was 'spectin'. 'Tween the supplies 'n ya takin' some'a me boys 'ome, ya migh've jus' saved our asses."

"You believe so?" Irleen asked. Roland nodded at her.

Link glanced over at Lidago. "Are you all right?" he asked.

Lidago, arms wrapped tight around his shivering body, shook his head. "N-n-n-n-n-n-no l-l-l-l-like."

Roland nodded at Lidago. "Wha' 'is story?"

"We're taking him back to the Forest Realm with us," Link said. "We think he might be able to help us put together an airship."

Roland pursed his lips as he thought. "An airship, huh? Sounds like an ambition."

Link shook his head. "We just wanna go home."

Roland nodded. "Don' we all. Wha's yar plan? Ya 'eaded ou' t'night?"

"T'morrow mornin'," Luggard said. "We go' plen'y o' fuel t' ge' there, bu' we could use a couple good meals b'fore we go."

"Ah think we can manage tha'. C'mon down, we'll ge' ya in the warm."

…

~~We returned to the Dark Ore Station for the night. Roland worked out a list of men we could take back to Library Town with us, mostly apprentices and long-hour workers with a few of the injured. Somehow, only three people were injured when Crunchy went wild: me, Sello, and one of the apprentices who got hit by a stray piece of wood. It seems like Sello runs on an insane amount of luck.

~~That seems to be all we have to rely on. Luck. Luck we found the descendents of three Architects. Luck we found a way to the Fire Realm. Luck we haven't been killed somehow. Ever since falling to the surface, it feels like I can't do anything that I was trained to do. I had to learn how to use a sword on the spot. Although, now that I think about it, those few years of broom-fighting on the lower decks with Line might've helped. Still, what kind of training prepares you to take down an armor-plated beetle? Or a psychotic machine?—machines? I have to admit, as a former airman, I'm a little worried my luck may be running out soon. I can only hope to be back home before it happens.

…

Link went to bed early, still feeling sore from two days prior. It took him a while before he fell asleep, and he had been awakened when Luggard wandered into the small room and fell onto the bunk beneath him.

He woke up again when he heard voices outside. At first, he was not lucid enough to tell what was going on. He rolled over to get comfortable, one hand scratching at his exposed ear.

But the action seemed to wake him further. His head cleared, and, although he could not make out what the voices were saying, he could tell that they were shouting. Shouting like he had only heard once before.

When Whittleton was under attack.

The first sound he made came out as a moan as he forced himself to roll back over. "Luggard," he croaked. Then, "Luggard!?"

There was a snort from the bottom bunk. "Ugh?" Luggard grunted.

"Luggard, get up," Link told him as he slung his legs over the bed.

"Wha?"

Link dropped to the floor and located the Lokomo Sword in the corner where he had left it. "Come on!" he shouted while slinging the belt over his head.

"Ya _go'a_ be kiddin'," Luggard groaned, finally pulling the blankets off his head. "Wha' coul—"

Link hissed to quiet him before stepping over to the door. "Keep it down, Luggard."

Luggard sat up. "Wha's goin' on, Link?" he asked, still not quite awake.

"Listen," Link told him as he slipped on his boots. "I think the settlement's under attack."

"Wha?" Luggard angled one pointed ear toward the door. "Wha' is tha'?"

"I don't know, but we'd better find Irleen, Cale, Lidago, and Sello; they could be in trouble."

Luggard threw his blankets off and stood up from the bed. "Don' Cale 'ave yar other sword?"

"Yeah, but I doubt he knows how to use it," Link answered. Then he looked up and down Luggard. "You wore your boots to bed?"

Luggard glanced down at his black-leather boots. "They's comf'terble."

Link shook his head and opened the door a sliver. The settlement outside was only illuminated by a few window lights too far away to see with. He could tell there was scuffling in the middle of the large, open area at the center of the settlement's grounds, but he could not make out the shadows in the dark. He did hear voices, though, and the nature of some of them left him wondering.

He turned back to Luggard and asked, "Women?"

"Wo-huh?" Luggard asked in return as he looked around the room for something to use as a weapon. "Women? Where?"

"Outside."

In the faint, red light of their stove, Link could see Luggard pause and cast him a confused look. "Bu'… there ain' s'pose t' be women 'ere."

"That's what I was thinking, too."

Luggard, failing to find anything else, picked up Sello's pin hammer from the table Link had left his possessions on. "Cale 'n them should be two doors down."

"Okay, let's go." Link placed one hand on the Lokomo Sword and the other on the door. After pulling it open enough, he and Luggard slipped outside.

Link could hear metal clanging in the distance. Their room was not far from the train platform, and there was no immediate sign of battle around them. Both kept their eyes cast to their right while they felt along the walls for the door to the other room.

When Link found the door, he stepped in as fast as possible. "Cale, Lidago! Guys, wake up!" he hollered.

"Dooooh?" Movement to Link's right caused him to jump. What he initially thought was a piece of furniture uncurled and stood, revealing a drowsy-looking Lidago. "You buy pot?" he asked.

"Con tùkħanu?" Irleen asked drowsily, rising from the table. "Līnca?"

Link stepped over and picked up her translator gem. "Irleen, are you awake?"

"Surprisingly, yes," she groaned. "And I'll ask again: what's going on?"

"The se'lemen's under attack," Luggard said, carefully closing the door.

Irleen suddenly jerked side-to-side in the air, releasing an alarmed ring like a small bell. "Wait, _what_!?"

"Cale!" Luggard said as he stepped over to the bunks. He kicked the side of the lower bunk. "Ge' up!"

Cale suddenly sprang up from under the sheets. "It can't have been me; I don't even _like_ erotica!"

The room fell silent as Link, Irleen, and Luggard passed around the same, confused look. "Well, now I know where t' ge' some," Luggard commented with a grin on his face.

"Oh… was… was that aloud?" Cale asked, bowing his head to hide his face.

Luggard spotted Link's sword on the table and picked it up. "Ge' up."

"Why?" Cale asked, shoving the sheets off his body. "I've only _just_ gone to sleep."

"Someone's attacking the settlement," Link said, watching Luggard buckle the sword belt. Then he glanced between Lidago and Cale. "We have to get out of here."

"Who could possibly be attacking?" Cale asked as he rose from the bed. "And at _this_ time, too?"

"Girls, 'parently," Luggard said. Then he realized that the sword was on the wrong hip and tried to turn the belt around over his waistcoat.

"Come again?" Irleen asked.

"They buy pot?" Lidago asked.

"I don't think they're interested, Lidago," Link told him.

"Dooooh…" he droned in disappointment.

Luggard drew the sword. "So… we's awake. Wha' we gonna do?"

"Where's Sello?" Link asked.

"Oh, up theah," Cale said, pointing to the top bunk.

Link stepped up to the bunks and put a foot on the bottom edge to look up at the top bunk. "Sello, wake up," he told the dark lump.

"Ah told ya ah'd take ya ohm, budyou fergodda ask da toilet," Sello mumbled, followed by a strange chuckle.

Luggard glanced over at Cale. "Jus'… wha' was goin' on in 'ere b'fore we came in?"

Cale held up his hands. "Sleeping, I sweah!"

Link grabbed a handful of blankets and started shaking it. "Sello, get up!" Then he pulled on the sheets, almost falling from the bunks in the process.

Sello's arms immediately lashed out for the nearest object and wrapped around Link's head. "Ah wanna ride da tree!"

His arms slid down Link's head, and Link could feel the edge of the bed press against his throat. "Hk!" he choked out. "Khhhhs! Ghhhs, hhhhlpk!"

Luggard set his sword on the table and joined Cale in prying Sello's arms open. "Le' 'im go! Le' 'im go, Sello!"

"Shuddup!" Sello cried out. "_You_ kizzd da brush!"

"Idio's more dangerous sleepin' than awake!" Luggard declared. He pulled himself up and delivered a smack to the side of Sello's head. "Knock it off!"

Sello's eyes snapped open, and, in his confusion, he released Link. Link collapsed to his knees in front of the bunks and wheezed for a bit as he caught his breath. Luggard dropped down next to him and asked, "Ya okay, Link?"

"I'll be fine," Link said in almost a whisper.

Luggard stood back up and grabbed Sello's sleeve. "Ge' down 'ere!" he declared as he hauled Sello out of the bunk.

"Shelly likez _legzzz_!" Sello shouted just before hitting the floor on his stomach with a metallic clang. Link ducked to one side so Sello's boots would not pummel his head. Sello got to his feet and put on a triumphant stance with his hands on his hips. "Didn' hurt!"

"Shu' up," Luggard told him. Then he glanced down at Link. "Wha's the plan?"

Link coughed a bit before rising. "We should get to the Seventeen," he told them, his voice tinged with a small wheeze. "We should protect it."

"What about the fighting?" Cale asked.

"The fi-_heet_!" Link coughed again. "The fight isn't here yet. We should make sure someone's watching the train so it doesn't take damage. Then, if we can, we help the miners."

"Wha' good's tha' gonna do the miners?" Luggard asked.

"Retreat," Link said. "In case they can't hold the settlement."

"It's a plan," Irleen added in a hopeful tone.

Luggard shrugged and picked up the sword he had set down. "Okay. Irleen, can ya watch our backs?"

Irleen shook herself side-to-side again, making the same ringing sound. "Ugh. Yeah, I think so," she replied.

"Let's get going," Link urged.

Luggard went out the door first, followed by Cale holding Sello's hand. Link stepped out next, waving Lidago and Irleen behind. Lidago followed, his face showing confusion after not being able to follow the Hylians' conversation. While the rest of them huddled against the wall and moved carefully, Lidago just bumbled along behind them. Not that Irleen was any subtler, a little ball of light flying circles above Lidago's head to keep an eye out for trouble. Although more shadows were moving and even being thrown about the central clearing, no one seemed to notice them slipping by in the dark. The group hustled up the stairs to the platform.

Luggard and Link stopped cold in front of the others, halted by their shock upon seeing movement around the Seventeen in the light of a single lantern that had been left hanging on a pole at the top of the stairs.

"Xwali!" a woman's voice hissed in alarm. "Xili'anu!"

"Uh oh," Link uttered.

"Oh, not good," Cale whispered.

"You buy pot?" Lidago asked, his voice apprehensive as the situation dawned on him.

"Hayxwolan!" another woman's voice declared.

They finally jumped out of the locomotive's cab and into the wide cone of light. They stood at about Luggard's height, dressed in tight, silk-like clothing which only served to cover select parts of their bodies. Their skin looked dark in the lantern light, a tone that Link thought he had seen before. Two of them had brilliant, red hair while the other three sported black, all five having their hair tied high in the back into ponytails that swayed with their movements. Their mouths and foreheads were covered in hoods. A tight-looking waistcoat protected their chests, all blue except for the one wearing red at the head of the party. Their trousers appeared tight around their waists and wide further down, clasped shut at their ankles. And each one sported a large, curved sword which was much thicker at the blade's end.

"Get back!" Link shouted over his shoulder. Then he drew his sword as the women charged. He put it up just in time to block a swing from one side, although the weight of the larger blade came as a surprise. He stumbled sideways out of the cone of light. Then another strike came from the same side at about chest-height, and he decided to jump backwards to avoid it. He saw an exposed shoulder and tried to lay his own blade into it, but she proved far too fast and spun out of the way. This gave him a split-second to see another horizontal strike and hold up his sword to intercept the blade. Without his shield, he decided to put more strength into the sword by wrapping his right hand around the pommel. When the swords clashed, he found that the added hand helped him hold back the blade. His attacker tried to hook his sword and fling it aside, and the additional hand helped him keep it from flying out of his hands.

Meanwhile, Luggard held up his borrowed sword horizontally to intercept a high strike. His guard collapsed under the weight of his opponent's sword, and he stepped to one side before either blade embedded itself into his skull. He backed up and swung at her. She only leaned back, allowing the sword to glide untouched a hair's breadth from the end of her nose. Then she simply brought up her sword and clipped Luggard's exposed shoulder, slicing into his shirt sleeve and drawing a line of blood on his skin. Luggard let out a surprised shout and retreated with his left hand covering the shoulder. His opponent, twirling her sword, held up her free hand to signal her friends back. Luggard could sense the smugness oozing through her mask, realizing that, as the odd-waistcoat-out, she must have been their leader. This only made him mad, and he swung the sword from his left and up. She caught the sword with hers, positioning the straight blade on either side of her curved blade. Then, with a twist of her wrist, she ripped the sword from Luggard's hand and watched as it flew away from the fight. This left Luggard unarmed.

And, in her moment of gloating with a chuckle, he reminded her with a left cross that knocked her hard to the ground. "Ha _haaah_!" Luggard declared. "'Ow ya like th—ohf!" His victory was cut short by one of the other warriors stepping forward from his right and delivering the same blow to his cheek, tossing him to the ground.

Link found himself pinned against the far side of the platform, two of the warriors having backed him there with sword blows that he managed to keep at bay. He stood with his sword pointed between the two, head shifting side to side as he waited for one to make a move.

"Wahayxwolak max?" the warrior on the left asked.

"Ay'a," the warrior on the right, the one who originally attacked him, replied with a nod. The left one nodded, dropped her guard, and backed away. Link, puzzled by this, kept his guard up. "Salya, Xili'anan? Nayx walayxomak max?"

Link thought he heard the word "Hylian" in that statement, although it was hard to tell with her pronunciation. He was sure she was taunting him. But Link had never fought against another human before, let alone a girl. He was not sure how he should handle the fight. At least, not until he remembered sparring practice against Meilont. Although he had actually been the target, he remembered how Meilont use to fight against him. He steeled himself and tried to picture her as Meilont.

He advanced one foot, and she swung low as if to take off his leg at the knee. He blocked the strike and advanced again. This brought him close enough that he turned the sword in his grip and swung the flat into her ribs. She let out a startled wail and backed up. Link could not see her expression in the dark, but the way she pressed her right arm against her side appeared to indicate that he had done damage. She swung out with a grunt and nearly clipped Link's head. He stumbled to his left and, after placing the sword completely in his right hand, laid the blade against her right thigh and sliced through both trousers and flesh.

"Maylofan!" she declared. "Hayxwolan!"

Link's eyes snapped right just in time to see her friend charge. The blow was heavy, having come from over her shoulder and down on him. Metal clanged together when Link tried to catch it with his off-hand supported by his left hand pressed against the flat of his sword. Her swing sent a shock through both arms, and he could feel his arms want to fall lifeless to his sides when she pulled away. She reared back for another strike, and Link quickly switched hands. Then he spun out of the way. He used his momentum to swing the flat of his blade and caught the side of her head just above her ear. She stumbled, dropping her sword, and fell over the side onto the roof of a building in the pit below.

Pain shot across Link's lower back as the other warrior's sword ripped through both his tunic and his undersuit. He almost stumbled over the edge after her, but he kept his feet and spun just in time to catch a diagonal slash intended to cut into his right shoulder. His movement was swift and powerful, knocking the heavier sword away with a force she did not have time to recover from. He lunged and used the tip of his blade to draw a red line across her forearm. She cried out and dropped her sword. Link held up the sword as if to lay in another strike, and she backed away with both arms cradled against her stomach.

"Xwali…" she said to herself. "Waba muskak ijd…" Then she turned and jumped off the platform onto the tracks.

Link did not watch her run away. He turned to see that Luggard was wrestling with the group's leader while another was latched to his left leg, trying to keep it pinned. Lidago stood near him and held the last one at arm's length from him by her leg, taking sword strikes to his legs as if they were nothing. Sello had disappeared from sight; Link hoped he had taken cover. Cale was still standing in front of the stairs, looking left and right as if trying to figure out what to do. Irleen hovered over Cale's head, her shouting incomprehensible to Link due to the distance.

Then Link spotted a glint near the train. With horror, he realized that there was a sixth warrior. And she had a bow and arrow in her hands.

"Look out!" he shouted as he dashed towards them as fast as he could.

_Fuh! Thip!_ Link stopped in his tracks, his breath halted by pure terror.

Cale glanced down at the arrow in his left shoulder with almost an unperturbed intrigue.

He stumbled backward and tripped over the stairs. Irleen's scream pierced the night, a horrific sound that could not possibly come from a being as small as her. Link could only watch as Cale tumbled out of sight.

Then his grip tightened on the sword, and he ran forward again. "You bastard!" he hollered.

He did not see Lidago's captive suddenly laid the flat of her blade hard against Lidago's face after pulling herself up to get the reach. Lidago reeled and dropped her onto her back. She recovered, sword forgotten. Link's only target was the archer hidden in the locomotive's cab, who fumbled around for another arrow when she saw Link charging for her.

She was saved, however, when Lidago's former captive performed a spectacular leap over the pile made by Luggard and the two others. Link dodged to one side, surprised to see her suddenly so close. She took advantage of this shock and the fact that Link was still holding his sword in the left hand. She drew back her right elbow and thrust it hard into Link's chest.

Link dropped his sword and fell to one knee, stars blurring his vision, breath suddenly no longer in his lungs.

When he looked up, the last he saw was her leg swinging at his face in a powerful, spinning kick.


	54. Prisoners

Chapter 54: Prisoners

…

Biting wind against his exposed face. Ears filled with the endless sound of scraping. Eyes watering from the dust in his face as he looked out at an expanse of black.

Then his transportation struck a bump, and his consciousness merely ended again.

…

When Link woke again, his vision was blurry, and his eyes stung as if someone had thrown dirt in them. He could not tell where he was, only that there was torchlight flicking light on whatever surface was in front of him. He could not tell if it was a wall or a ceiling. Or maybe even a floor. His mind was a strange haze, as if he existed in a state between awake and asleep. He could not put any strength into his body, feeling almost paralyzed save for his breathing. His skin pounded with a dull throb which almost felt like pain, but he could not name where he felt it. There were also points of pressure probing across him. Voices sounded from nearby, but his groggy state rendered them little more than almost inaudible mumbling.

The sight before him moved. Or maybe _he_ moved. Through his blurry vision, he thought he could see a human form lying flat. He could not see a face, and the human had been stripped from the waist up, revealing a pale blur of a body. Darker forms wandered back and forth behind the other body for a moment. Then a spike of red light came into view. It slowly lowered to the human in front of him.

Although his hearing was dull, he listened as the room was suddenly filled with the shrill cry of pain. The human in front of him writhed as it looked like the spike of light was pushed into his body. The cry did not sound human, but Link though he recognized the voice. He wanted to watch more, to try to understand what was happening. However, something pressed against his face, and he was unconscious again.

When Link came to once more, it was with a snort and a start as if he had been sleeping the whole time. He lay on his back with his arms and legs spread out across a hard floor. His heartbeat pounded hard throughout his head. He was reminded of waking in Talein's house. Naturally, the pain he felt was his only real cause of comparison. The ceiling he looked at was grey, warped wood which looked to be slowly rotting away. He turned his head to find stone walls on either side. When he finally put effort into moving, he managed to roll to one side and get his left arm underneath his body. He pushed up and glanced around some more. There was another stone wall near his head. But near his feet were bars, the kind found on a jail cell. He pushed himself up further until he was sitting. The movement caused what felt like a rip across his lower back on the left side, and he arched is back in hope that it would subside. When the pain calmed, he reached his hand around to the site. There was a tear in his tunic and undersuit, and he remembered who had caused it. But where he expected to find bare flesh and maybe some blood, his fingertips felt some kind of bandage wrapping. He used his other hand to feel the wrapping over his stomach. Someone had taken pains to dress his wounds. So why was he in a jail cell?

Shaking fatigue from his mind, he slid to the nearest wall. He pressed his back against it and stared up at the ceiling as he tried to put the puzzle of his recent memory together. He knew that he had taken on a pair of women who, mysteriously to him, decided to attack the mining settlement. They had hung around the Seventeen as if in ambush. He remembered being trapped at one end of the platform by those women. One had decided (he assumed) to take him on one-on-one, and then called her friend for help. He had struck the side of her head with the flat of the Lokomo Sword, causing her to fall from the platform. The second had struck him from behind, and he… what had he done? He had cut her arm, and she dropped her sword and ran. Then, when he had looked back at his friends, he had seen the archer still hidden in the locomotive's cab. She had shot—

"Cale," he finished the thought in a low voice. He felt a lump form in his throat. He remembered watching in the purest of shock as Cale had fallen down the stairs, his body as lifeless as a puppet thrown by a child. The thought sickened him, and he felt he might throw up.

As his head lolled to one side, he saw something through his cell bars. There was another cell across from him, the floor of this one covered in straw. A body lay in the middle, positioned much gentler than Link had been. He reached a hand up and clawed against the wall as he stood up. Upon seeing the body's face, he croaked out to get the young man's attention.

"Cale. Cale! Cale, wake up!"

Link could hear Cale suddenly inhale as if he had not been breathing at all. Cale sat up, revealing his waistcoat and shirt missing and his left arm in a sling. He grunted and placed a hand on his bandaged scalp.

Link stumbled to the bars. "Cale!"

Cale looked up in surprise. "L-Link!?"

"Are you all right?"

Cale's eyes passed over the cloth sling. Then he pulled it aside when he found a bandage around his whole shoulder. "I-I… I _think_ so."

Link released the breath he held in a loud sigh. "Good," he said. "For a moment, I thought you might've been dead."

"What happened?"

"You were hit with an arrow. Remember?"

Cale frowned and looked off into space as he tried to recall the attack. When he did, his eyes widened. "Goddesses above… I _was_ shot."

"I know; I watched it happen. You fell down the stairs. I thought they'd _killed_ you."

Cale nodded and released a heavy breath before saying, "Luck would appeah to have it that I suhvive. Although I find it hahd to undehstand why _I_ was shot."

Link wrapped a hand around his bars and shook them. "Probably has something to do with why we're in here."

Cale glanced around his cell as if realizing it existed. "Oh… oh, no."

"What is it?"

Cale covered his eyes with his free hand. Link watched him as he seemed to struggle with his realization, the hand over his face shaking. "The Gelto, Link," he finally said. "We've been captuahed by the _Gelto_."

Link thought he recognized the name, but he could not place any meaning behind it. "What are the 'Gelto'?"

Cale moved his hand to look at Link. His expression told Link that he ought to know the answer, but he shook his head. "The Gelto. They ah a race of deseht dwellehs living in the eastehn expanses of the Sand Realm."

"Were they those women who attacked the settlement?"

Cale nodded. "The Gelto have a heavily matriahch-style society. This is mostly because very few males ah bohn to the Gelto. In fact, I believe that it is supposed to be some kind of race trait that a male be only bohn every hundred yeahs oh so. But… well, it isn't the kind of thing backed up by ouh undehstanding of biology."

"So you're saying that the Gelto don't have any _men_?"

"Well, theah should be male membehs of society, but they ah very few. Males in Gelto society often have a harem which sehves theih every need. Oh… so I believe. Theah's so much mysticism to theih cultuah, it's hahd to tell fact from fiction."

"What can you _definitely_ say about them?"

"Definitely? I would suhmise that we ah in quite a bit of dangeh. The Gelto who attacked the Dahk Oah Station weah likely gathering men foh procreation puhposes."

"Procreation. As in…"

"As in they will likely milk us foh… well, they will want to use us."

"Okay. Okay, that can't be too bad."

"Then they might kill us when they'ah done."

Link paused for a moment. "Except that part."

"I can't give testimony to what they might do. To tell the truth, I'd ratheh have avoided it if I could."

Sighing, Link leaned all of his weight on the wall next to him. "Well, we're here now."

"Yes. This could quite likely be a problem."

"Ideas?"

Cale gave him an uneasy look. "I think my only idea of not being captuahed has already failed."

"Hence why we need more ideas, Cale."

Cale bit his lower lip and looked away. "Right…"

Link sighed and said, "Don't worry. I'm sure we'll figure something out."

Cale nodded and looked around. When he glanced out to the left side of his cell, he pushed himself to his feet. "Link, oveh heah."

"What is it?" Link asked, walking to the other side of his bars.

"It's… it's _Sello_."

"Sello? Is he all right?"

The look on Cale's face told him more than Cale's response. "Not likely."

"Is he breathing?"

"Actually… he doesn't appeah to have been affected at all. He's just… lying theah. I-I wondehed what might've happened to him afteh the attack. It appeahs they found him, too."

Link tried to look around at the cells across from him, but the narrow corridor in between did not offer him more than the cells on either side of Cale, both of which looked empty. "Can you see anyone else?"

Cale angled his head to look better into Sello's cell. Then he crossed to the other side. "No, I don't. I'd have expected that, if theah weah anyone else with us, they might've spoken up by now."

Link turned to look harder at his cell. No windows, not even any sort of hole. At least, he did not see one until he approached the back of the cell. There was one hole in a corner. But, due to the amount of dried feces around the hole, Link found that this was little more than a half-hearted attempt to provide a place to relieve oneself. "Nice to see they gave us a restroom," he uttered to himself.

A metal bolt clacked somewhere outside, and Link turned to exchange looks with Cale. Cale looked down either end of the corridor before backing away from his bars. "Sound like we have company."

Link nodded. "I don't suppose you know anything about the Gelto language."

Cale glanced to one side at the sound of a woman shouting before shrugging his good shoulder. "I'm afraid my Geltoan is wohse than my Sorian." Link nodded, having experienced his knowledge of Sorian thus far.

"Balu 'anki wabin?" one voice asked.

"Than," another said. Link moved back to his bars and glanced out.

It was a few more moments before he saw someone. They were a party of five women, all but one appearing to be well in adulthood. Without their masks, Link saw that each one sported a tall, slender, pointed nose. They wore the same type of trousers that the raiders had been wearing, except theirs were more elaborately decorated with geometric dye patterns and gemstones woven into the fabric. The closest one to Link, the youngest of the group he guessed, wore a clean, red waistcoat over a pink, semi-transparent shirt. Her red hair had been left untied, revealing that it stretched almost to her knees. Her gold eyes gave Link a side-glance before indicating Sello. "Zhi," she said.

The next one to talk was much taller. Her waistcoat glittered purple in the wild light of a torch, and she wore a blue shirt of the same transparent material as the younger girl next to her. Her black hair was tied into pigtails hanging off the back of her head. She wore a gold diadem just above her brow. "Zhi dhol? Zhi tanolak max?" she asked.

She looked to the woman next to her, a woman dressed in white with very little decoration. Her red hair was braided and draped over one shoulder. "Uuuh… 'Inu nadbilunak zhi tanol," she said. "Zhi milikak ciynolot."

"'Ak Goronwan nasxwya'ak zhal 'an sayil aduro," the young Gelto explained. "'Inu safitya'ak 'anw Xili'anan milik ciynolot, 'idh 'inu haxwlya'ak zhal."

The new one to talk wore a yellow wrap over her head, similar to the warriors who had attacked the station. Her waistcoat was also yellow, and her purple trousers looked to be adorned with only a red stripe down the outside of the legs. "'Inakwint, ciynolot, zhi nadyitibl'ak."

The Gelto in purple looked at her, and her tone sounded annoyed as she asked, "Wabilunak 'inu nadmatik max?"

The Gelto in yellow looked a little cowed, bowing her head and stepping away. That was when Link caught sight of the glaive slung on her shoulder. "Nadda na', 'Inakwint," she said.

But the one in purple turned to her. "Zhi lwaytoybal'ak max?"

"Nadda ay'a, 'Inakwint," was the reply as the Gelto in yellow kept her head down.

"Bisuxan," Purple said.

"Ay'a." Link watched her turn and signal to the far end of the corridor. "Hayxwolan!"

Both Link and Cale stepped away as the group approached. Link had a clearer view of the fifth woman holding the torch, wearing the same clothing as the yellow Gelto. The purple-clad Gelto looked at Cale first. "Zhi mushak," she told the young Gelto.

"'Ayyib," the young Gelto said. "Zhi nayx saylwobak."

The woman in purple then turned to Link. "Zhi tisikak," she purred, a pleased smile on her face. Link kept silent and tried to maintain a straight face, hoping that they would leave him alone if they thought he was a threat.

"'Inu bilunak zhi lwa'in," the young Gelto said. "'Ak Xili'anan 'atsya'ak 'idu Gilto lwu'un."

"'Iduki?" Purple asked. "Xili'anan?" She nodded at him, her smile growing larger. "Coydhoysonak 'inoy. Addu 'inhayxwolak zhal 'immu zanak."

The woman with the glaive nodded and signaled to the far end again. "Hayxwolan!"

The woman in white leaned forward and said to Link, "Beliefe it o' not, this is you lucky day, Hylian." Link tensed up at the sound of Sello's bars opening. "Do you speak?"

"Yes," Link replied.

She nodded. "Good. I will examine you, then you will go to wo'k."

"Where?"

"You will unde'stand."

"Link, don't go with them!" Cale suddenly shouted, surprising the group. "Don't go! They'ah going to—AGH!" Cale backed away after the yellow Gelto's hand smashed his fingers against his cell bars.

"Don't do that," the white Gelto told him in a calm voice. "We stopped you bleeding. I do not want to do it again."

"Leave him alone!" Link shouted, surprising the group again. "I'm responsible for him! If either of them need to be hurt, then hurt me!"

All five gave Link surprised looks. Then the Gelto with the glaive asked the Gelto in white, "Zhi nagthya'ak dhol max?"

"'Inu nadbisixak," the white Gelto replied with a concerned tone. "'Inu nadlwaymoytakak caxwit. 'Inbilunak zhi sanagidh 'anw Xili'anan." She indicated Cale.

"Xilitak," the purple Gelto said. "Zhayzokan yabbid 'a."

"Ay'a, 'Inakwint," the armed Gelto said as another yellow-clad Gelto joined them. She unshouldered the glaive and held it to one side as she waited for the new Gelto to open the door. Then, she walked into the cell with her glaive held ready, poised between her and Link. Link took a step back.

The white Gelto stepped in and stopped right in front of Link, revealing him to be about half a head shorter. "You mofe, you die."

Then she leaned over and punched Link between the legs. "GAH—!" Link's voice cut out as the sudden rush of pain flooded every thought. His hands covered his groin, and he dropped to his knees. His breathing became rough, and he tried his best not to scream. He could feel his eyes well up, so he squeezed them shut.

"Xilitak," the white Gelto said as she turned around. Link felt someone reach under his arms and pull him to his feet. But he could not support himself with the pain coursing through him, so they dragged him out.

Link opened his eyes as they brought him out of the prison. The sky still looked dark, although the few stars in the sky told Link that sunrise was on its way. He managed a glance over one shoulder and found that the prison was behind a wooden door in the side of a cliff. The surrounding ground looked like bare rock with paths worn into the surface. Tents dotted the region around them, square tents of patchwork made with what Link thought looked like white leather. Cale was right; Link could not see a single man in sight, or if there was, they did not dress any different from the women. Some of them wore yellow and seemed to stand guard. The rest wore a vast array of colors and patterns and wandered around when they were not busy doing something. Link saw weavers, potters, and smiths working under tents without walls.

Link found that they were dragging him to the darker outskirts of the camp. The tents in this area were much larger and decorated with heavy-looking blankets on the outside. They dragged him to the end of a long tent and pulled him in. Immediately, the transition from the cool, dry air to thick and scented shocked Link into forgetting his pain. The interior was completely covered in a warm, orange color. Shrouds of different hues of red hung at the point where the walls met the ceiling. At the far end of the tent was what looked like a bedroom. The bed in the left corner was covered in cushions and silky-looking sheets. In the other corner was a desk which appeared to have a number of writing implements. There were a couple of lounging couches sitting across from each other in the middle of the room. Rugs were also piled in the middle of the room and under the couches. The Gelto on either side of Link dragged him to the closest couch and dumped him onto it.

Link groaned and pulled himself up the back of the couch. His breath still came out ragged, and he tried very hard not to move his legs around. He coughed.

"You'll have to fohgive the guahds," a woman's voice said in a dialect that Link only knew to come out of Cale's mouth. "A punch to the groin ensuahs that youh hands ah busy while they bring you heah."

He saw movement in his peripheral vision and looked up at the bed. He did not know when, but a young woman, probably a few years older than him, sat on the edge of the bed. She was dressed in red, but her outfit looked more like a bedsheet wrapped to cover her chest and waist. "Who-_uh_…" Link croaked out. He forced a couple more coughs to help clear the lump that had formed in his throat. "Who are you?"

"The one who is going to make you feel comfohtable," she answered as she rose with a smooth motion. "Captain."

Link felt his heart bounce against his sternum. "H-how…?"

She reached over to the bed and picked up a book. She held it up, showing Link the leather-bound journal he always carried. "The dialect is a little strange, but I've been reading of youh adventuahs down heah. Welcome to the suhface."

"Y-you read my _journal_?"

"I find I've had very little to do lately. Pehsonally, I was expecting you to stay in Whittleton. Although, in the lateh pages, you seem to think a lot about Meilont."

Link could feel heat flood his face, and he looked away. "I-I sometimes wonder… you know, how she's doing and all."

"Youh conquests would be commendable to any otheh Gelto out heah." She glanced down at the journal in her hands and gave him a smile. "Youh adventuahs, at any rate. I'm afraid that you fail in the realm of romantic conquest. Three women of the pehfect age, yet not one night togetheh."

Link gave a silent stammer, unsure how he should respond. "W-w-well… I-I think… uh…"

"Well, I suppose youh chahm lies with youh ratheh abnohmal innocence. Unless you didn't find any of them attractive?"

"N-no!" Link's shout reminded him of his pain, and he huddled his body to help suppress it.

She stopped next to empty couch and dropped the journal on the seat. "I see you'h still huht. Pehhaps I can help you with that?"

Link gulped. "I-I don't feel very comfortable with this."

"You think you might run?"

"Well… it's not like there's much to stop me."

She took a step closer. "Where would you run? From the camp? Even if you could make any significant distance, you would be lost in the deseht by noon. Youh body would dehydrate, and you would simply become anotheh skeleton in the sands. You couldn't hide within the camp, eitheh. If the guahds don't _kill_ you, you would simply be back heah. In _chains_." She took another step, and Link leaned against the back of the couch. "Just relax. Pictuah me as one of youh gihlfriends. What would you like to do with heh?"

Another step. Then another. Then—

"Whoa—!" _Thump._ She tripped on the edge of one of the rug, fell forward, and smacked her head against the armrest. Link pushed away in surprise, but she simply rolled off and fell to the floor. He leaned forward to find that she was out cold, a small spot of blood on her dark forehead.

Link blinked in surprise. For a moment, he thought the situation would heat up more. But now that the person who was supposed to be with him was unconscious, he saw an opportunity. He thought he must still have some luck after all. After a few minutes of waiting for his pain to subside, he dragged her to the other lounging couch and set her on it carefully. He found a ribbon on her desk and used it to tie a quick bandage over the spot on her head to stop the bleeding. Then he pocketed his journal and exited the tent.

She had been right. Only one other tent stood between him and the open desert. And he knew he would not be able to cross it even if he knew where he was going. He felt around his chest, but he found that his compass had been taken. His wallet, his gear, and Irleen's bomb gem had been left behind, meaning that the only other possessions he had on him at the time would have been Irleen's translating gem and the sheath for the Lokomo Sword. He would need a weapon, and he needed to find that sword. And he needed to find Sello and Cale.

Using a flap in front of the tent's opening, Link peered around to get a good look at the camp. The space between him and the closest tent was wide, but there were no torches directly shining light on the open area. There was a narrow opening between the tent and the cliff face. If there was no one else around, it would be a good spot to hide while trying to move across the camp.

"WOOHOO!" Link blinked in surprise at the sound. It sounded like Sello's throaty voice, but higher-pitched. Link glanced back at the tent behind him, the one marking the edge of the camp. He looked just in time to see the back end of the tent collapse. After a cautious look into the camp, Link hurried to the other tent and went inside.

The interior was only half the size of the other tent, likely because of the collapse. A Gelto woman hollered in anger. However, the first person Link saw was Sello crawling out of the collapsed portion.

Upon seeing Link, he declared, "I am the wart to wash all pictures!"

Link stared at him in surprise. "Yes," Link told him. "Yes, I suppose you are." Then he waved a hand. "Come on, let's get out of here."

"Ye-okay!" Sello started for Link, stopped, looked around for a moment, and dove back under the collapsed canvas.

"Sello!" Link shouted.

"Oy!" the Gelto still rustling about under the canvas shouted. Sello re-emerged with a pair of bottles in his hands.

"Sello, let's go!" Link shouted, starting for the exit.

"Wait for me!" Sello shouted, diving out the tent after him. To his fortune, the ground outside was sand, and he kicked up a wave when he face-planted the ground. Link spun and grabbed the back of Sello's body suit. He hauled Sello to his feet and held onto him as he rounded to the back of the tents. They ran to the hiding spot Link had seen earlier.

Although Link was hunched low near the tent, Sello stood at his full height. "Whudda we doin'?" he asked.

Link hissed at him. "Keep it down, Sello," he said. "We have to stay hidden." He looked around the corner and spotted another tent, this one with a number of rugs and baskets behind it. So he reached back to grab the front of Sello's orange body suit. Then he glanced Sello up and down. "What happened to your tools? And your waistcoat?"

Sello glanced down as if just realizing that they were missing. "Oh. Dunno." Then he held up a bottle. "But I got _dis_."

Link gave an exhausted sigh, realizing that Sello was drunk again. "Okay, come on." After a quick check around the side, he dragged Sello over to the next tent and shoved him to the ground. He dropped to his stomach next to Sello. Then he froze at the sound of a frantic woman hollering in Geltoan. He figured it to be the woman from Sello's tent and grabbed one of the rugs above Sello. The rug unrolled and covered them. Sello started chuckling, and Link elbowed him. "Be quiet, Sello," he said. But Sello did not, so Link wrapped his arm around Sello's head and covered Sello's mouth with his hand. And he listened. The scuffing sound of thin shoes seemed very close to his head, and he dared to look between the rug and the ground. A foot covered with a curled-toe, leather shoe was all he could see until more scuffing heralded two pairs of feet passing by.

"'Ak Xili'anu thaycalxwya'ak!" one shouted. "Hayxwolan!"

"Ay!" two others said.

Link listened to the same footsteps leaving, but he waited for a moment just in case one lingered. The foot had disappeared from sight. When Link was convinced it was safe, he released Sello's head. After hissing to remind Sello to be quiet, he slid toward the tent next to him and pulled up the canvas. The glint of metal indicated something promising, and he dared shoving his head inside.

It was an armory. Racks of glaives and swords lined the walls. The middle of the room sported a large barrel of arrows, and Link could see bows sitting in a pile in the corner across from him. The tent was lit from a small, metal lantern hanging above the arrows from a rope. He waited a moment to see whether anyone would enter looking for a weapon, and then he crawled into the tent.

Sello crawled in as he crossed to the tent's opening. "Whoooooooa. Shiny."

Link peered out the opening to see if anyone was approaching. Fortunately, the guards appeared to be too well armed to need to pick up a weapon, most carrying either a sword or a glaive and the rest carrying both (with the sword strapped around their waists). And it appeared that no one unarmed roamed the grounds. Link sighed and tried to come up with a plan. Now that the Gelto appeared to have sounded the alarm, getting across the camp would be much harder. That was assuming that Cale had not been moved.

"Hey, Link!" Link spun in alarm. However, Sello only showed that he had balanced his new bottle on the end of a sword.

The Lokomo Sword.

"Sello, where'd you find that?" Link asked, striding over and snatching up the sword.

Sello juggled the bottle for a moment. When he caught it, he pointed to a basket with his free hand. "Z'on top'a dat."

Link shouldered the sword and moved to the basket. Upon throwing off the lid, he found Sello's missing waistcoat on top of a pile of weird tools. "It looks like your stuff, Sello."

"Zweet beans!" Sello said, shoving Link aside so he could dig into the basket. Link glanced at the tent opening before strapping the Lokomo Sword on. He pulled the sword to check it, and he found that someone had cleaned the blade. Satisfied that it appeared the way he had left it, he sheathed it and looked back to Sello. He cringed when Sello knocked over the basket and started re-attaching his tools to his body suit. He checked outside again, but their fortune still held.

He looked back to see that Sello had left a small bag on the ground. He stepped back and quickly swept it up. He dumped the contents in one hand. His compass appeared intact, as did Irleen's translating gem. He double-checked that the basket was empty. Then, after pocketing the items, he sighed and said, "Sello, we—… Sello, where'd that second bottle go?"

"Wha?" Sello asked. Then he showed Link a large pocket on the left leg of his body suit, from which the narrow top of a bottle protruded. "Big pockets."

"Is it alcohol?" Link asked.

Sello retrieved his open bottle from the floor and pulled the cork off. Then he took a large drink. He stumbled a moment and then said, "I dunno. Ma head feels all mzzy-mzzy, bu' I can still see you. It's… it's like… ah can _see_ I'm drunk."

Link blinked at him. "That's… actually kinda scary."

Sello offered him the bottle. "Try some?"

Link took the bottle and sniffed its contents. His nose was assaulted by a disgustingly strong sweetness that made him pull the bottle away quickly. The smell of alcohol was almost too subtle. Whatever Sello had taken, it smelled volatile.

Which gave him an idea. He remembered a money-making side job that Line had thought up, where Line had been decorating bar tables by lightly scorching the surface in artistic patterns. The job had failed when Line had burned down the workshop they had been using, but Link remembered that he had been using alcohol to control the flames before extinguishing it with a large pan from the main office's kitchen. One of the cooks had stolen them back, so he had thought a heavy blanket would help control the ensuing fire which had burned the workshop down. He glanced up at the lantern, and then at the pile of bows near the tent opening. "Sello," he said, "can you get that lantern for me?"

"Zure!" While Sello reached over the bucket of arrows, Link turned to the pile of bows and picked up the top one. Realizing that the small bag was still in his hand, he put it between his teeth and tested the bow's string a few times. Then he held it up as if to fire, the string pulled back as far as his chin. When he released, he felt the string snap his right forearm. It did not hurt much because of his undersuit sleeve, but he would have to watch out for it. He found an empty quiver stashed behind a nearby glaive rack and snatched it up.

"Gotchur lantern," Sello said.

Link took a handful of arrows and stuffed them into the quiver. Then he set both on the floor, dropped the bag from his mouth into his hand, and held a hand up. "Let me see that bottle again." Sello frowned at the lantern in one hand and handed over the bottle. Link placed the bag over the mouth of the bottle and upturned the bottle to soak the bag. Then he handed the bottle back to Sello and took an arrow from the barrel. "Open the lantern up." Sello did so while Link skewered the bag with the arrow. "Hold it steady."

"M' holdin' it steady," Sello said as Link carefully stuck the bag into the lantern. "Z'world's shakin'."

The bag lit, and Link quickly moved back to the opening, snatching up the bow as he went. "Come over here," he said as he nocked the burning arrow. He had seen a tent outside which looked like a good target. If he could set it on fire, it might distract the Gelto long enough for he and Sello to get to Cale. He drew the bow back until the burning bag was as close to his hand as he was comfortable with. "I'm going to count to three. When I say 'three', pull the flap open as fast as you can. When I fire this arrow, let it go and step away. Okay?"

"Gotcha!" Sello said, smacking his forehead as if to salute.

"Okay." He stepped up to the flap with the bow at the ready. "One. Two. Three."

Sello ripped the flap aside, and Link aimed and fired the bow into the air. Sello shoved the flap back in place, but Link thought he caught a glimpse of a Gelto warrior look directly at him.

"Now what?" Sello asked, an eager look on his face.

"I don't know. I guess we wait f—"

_BOOOOOOOM! BAM! BaBAM! BAM BAM!_ Both Link and Sello jumped at the sound of explosions nearby. Chatter outside rose in response. Link pulled open the flap to peer outside. He saw that he had missed the tent he had intended to hit.

But the area behind it was on fire. Link closed the flap and gave Sello an uneasy look. "Oops."

Sello glanced aside. Then he pointed for Link. "Whoops."

Link followed Sello's direction to see that the discarded lantern and discarded alcohol had started a fire on the tent's rug. "Right, no more fire," Link told him. He pointed to the back of the tent. "Quick. Out the way we came."

The two scrambled outside and under the rug they had been using. Link waited to see if anyone was still looking around the back of the tent, then they followed the cliff and stopped behind tents before advancing. The explosions, though an accident, had done their job in distracting the Gelto. Most of the warriors Link saw were too busy scrambling back and forth with buckets to see two Hylians sneaking back towards the prison. Only a few tents away from Cale's location, they heard fresh cries of surprise from what Link expected to be the discovery of the fire consuming the armory. Soon, they were behind the last tent looking at the unguarded door.

Which, upon yanking the door as hard as possible, Link discovered was still locked.

Holding his head where flesh met wood, he turned to Sello and asked, "You think you can get past this lock?"

"Heh-yeah," Sello said as he removed a long, slender item from his waistcoat. Link watched him jam it into the tight keyhole, then remove another tool and smack the backside of the first tool. The lock let out a bang, and Sello secured the second tool around the handle of the first. He cranked it around a couple times while Link kept his eyes on the camp. He heard Sello grunt. Then…

_Kin!_ Link glanced back to see Sello yank out the first tool from a loose door. He glanced at the lock. "How'd you do that?"

Sello pointed at the lock. "Iron," he said. Then he indicated the tool. "Steel."

Link gave a slow nod, unsure if he understood. "Yeeeeah, okay. I need you to go get Cale."

"Yeokey-dokey!" Sello slipped inside, and Link followed and pulled the door until he had just a sliver to see with. He could hear Sello working behind him due to a number of metal-on-metal sounds, indicating Sello was probably using another method to open Cale's cell. No one seemed worried about the prison, although Link could not tell if the fires were out yet. He passed his glance over the grounds to a group of torches on the edge of the camp. He could see platforms which appeared to be anchored to the ground like ships to a dock.

And when he saw the collapsed sails sitting on a simple gaff rig, he knew exactly how they would be leaving.

"I got Cale," Sello called.

Link turned to find both of them jogging up the corridor. "Good," he said, fitting the bow into the quiver he had strapped to his back under the sword. "Cale, you think you can do some running?"

Cale nodded. "I believe so." Then he looked down at himself. "Ah… d-did eitheh of you happen to find an extra shiht?"

"Oh," Sello uttered. He removed his waistcoat and offered it to Cale. "Here."

"Thank you," Cale replied, looking hard at the oversized garment.

"Okay, here's the plan," Link said. "There are some kind of sloops within running distance from here. If we can get to one, I might be able to pilot us out of here."

"S-sloop?" Cale asked, wincing from fitting his injured shoulder through the waistcoat.

"It's a vessel with a simple sail plan," Link told him. "If the winds are strong enough, we can get enough of a head start that they won't follow us."

Cale nodded. "When do we go?"

"Now."

"Now?"

"Now!" Link flung the door open and tore across the rock surface as fast as possible. Both Sello and Cale were slow to respond, but they took off after Link. Link did not intend to make it look like he was trying to leave them behind, but the sooner he could raise the sails (hopefully while Sello and Cale were still running, as it would give him room to work), the sooner they could move out. The Gelto must have been very determined to put out the fires because Link had not caught sight of any of them calling attention to the three Hylians running in the open across the camp.

The transition from rock to sand almost made Link trip, but he boarded one of the sloops and moved to the front. First, he untied the bottom line of the jib and unwrapped it from the stay. Sello and Cale boarded just as he was tying the bottom line to a hook in the deck. He made sure it was loose so the jib would catch as much wind as possible, but he was a little dubious because he had never had to set a jib in that manner. The fact that the jib was already filling with wind made him confident.

"Move to the front," Link told them as he stepped to unravel the mainsail.

"Oy!" Link glanced over his shoulder. A young Gelto, probably about a decade older than him wearing a simple, green shirt and matching slacks, was standing on the sloop on their sloop's right. "Waliyxomot dhol max?"

"Crud," Link said under his breath, dropping the binding lines onto the deck. "Cale, keep an eye on her."

"Already am, Link," Cale said.

"Xili'anu?" the woman asked. "You a' doing what?"

"Uh…" Cale droned. He watched Link untie a control line and start hoisting the sail. "Leaving."

"You not can take!" she hollered at them. "I fixed that one!" Wind caught the main sail, surprising Link. He kept his feet and hauled the sail to full.

"I believe we ah, actually," Cale told her.

"I will stop you," she warned.

Cale glanced back at the camp. "How? By the time you find someone, we'll have already left."

The deck rocked under them. "Grab something," Link shouted, holding the control line wrapped around one arm.

"Watch this," the Gelto woman said. She turned toward the camp where most of the activity seemed to be and cupped her hands around her mouth.

And she let out an ear-splitting scream that made the boys wince. More women broke from the activity to look over at the sloops before hollering in their direction. The woman then turned and smiled at them.

"Uh, Link?" Cale called out.

Link drew the Lokomo Sword with his free hand. "Hang on!" he shouted. Then he swung at the ropes holding the sloop. One snapped, then two.

But the sloop did not move. The Gelto gave them a mocking laugh.

Link then noticed the waist-high handles on either of the sloop's trailing boards. "Cale, Sello, I need you guys to push!"

"Ye-okay!" Sello shouted as both of them jumped to the back of the sloop and onto the sand. They each took a handle and shoved as hard as possible.

Coupled with the wind filling the sails, they started the sloop enough that the wind took over. "That's it!" Link hollered at them. "Get on!" Sello pulled himself up and over the handle, slamming onto the deck.

But Cale, on Link's right, could not pull himself. "He-e-e-eeelp!"

Using the control line to support himself, Link spun and grabbed Cale's left wrist. Cale tripped trying to run with the sloop, but Link's grip kept him from falling into the sand. Link then hauled Cale onto the deck next to Sello after using the swing of the mainsail to help him gain a bit of momentum.

He looked back to see the Gelto stop at the edge of their camp and watch them sail away.

"You guys okay?" Link asked his passengers.

"Heh-yeah!" Sello shouted. "Lez do it again!"

"Oh, _please_ no," Cale groaned, lying back on the deck.


	55. Cliffhead Malgyorg, Desert Leviathan

Chapter 55: Cliffhead Malgyorg, Desert Leviathan

…

By late morning, Link had piloted their stolen sloop far enough from the Gelto camp that the Gelto did not seem interested in following.

Then Link crashed.

Not realizing that the sloop needed to avoid large dunes, Link tried to pilot it over one. The sloop flipped forward, throwing all three passengers before smashing into the sand. The crash snapped both the main mast (which was thin to begin with) and the gaff. The deck was also cracked, and Link did not want to chance trying to fix it, especially since they did not have any materials for repairs. Cale, being the only one without sleeves, took the jib and tied it around his shoulders for protection. After a few minutes of discussion, they decided to head east in hope of finding shelter or the Spirit Tracks, which might lead them back to the Fire Realm.

Where it would be colder. At high noon, the sun's heat beat down hard on them. Link could feel sweat over his whole body, and he eventually pulled the bandage off his back so his collecting sweat would not make his wound itch so horribly. Then, he pulled his arms into his tunic and turned it around so the sand was not blowing into his wound. He was not any more comfortable with the dry collar scratching his neck, but he found it better than inviting sand in. Cale's hair had flattened against his scalp from all the sweat, and the skin on his face burned. Sello continued on with them, seemingly not bothered by the heat and wind.

Until he flopped face-first into the sand.

"Link, wait," Cale called. Link turned to them. Cale grabbed Sello by the shoulders and attempted to roll him over. "I think he's out cold."

Link pocketed his compass and walked to them. Dropping to Sello's other side, he pressed his fingers against Sello's neck. "Hold on," Link said as his fingers probed Sello's neck. Then he gave a relieved sigh. "Yeah, he's out. Probably dehydration."

"You would think he couldn't be any moah dehydrated than us," Cale said.

"He's been peeing a lot, right?"

Cale nodded. "Yes, I've seen him urinate while walking backwahds." Cale started to pull the bottle of strange alcohol from Sello's pocket.

But Link grabbed the neck of the bottle. "No, don't," he said. "It's all the alcohol he's been drinking. That's why he's been peeing so much."

"But… we have to give him _something_."

"And if we walk him anymore, he'll just walk to death. That alcohol is too weird, not that giving him regular alcohol would be any better. He needs to recover."

Cale looked around at the horizon. "I don't think we should stop. This sun is too hahsh."

Link pointed to the sail Cale was still wearing. "I'll trade you my sleeves for that. We can use it to haul Sello behind us."

Cale considered the proposal for a moment. "Agreed."

Link stood and prepared to pull the Lokomo Sword to cut off the sleeves of his undersuit. But something to his right, the direction they had been walking from, caught the corner of his eye. He became dismayed at the sight of two sails on the horizon. "Uh oh."

"What is it?" Cale asked as he untied the sail.

"Company."

After a glance at Link's profile, Cale stood to better follow his line of sight. "The Gelto?"

"I can't believe they followed us."

Cale opened his mouth to voice his doubt, turning his head back to Link. However, movement over Link's shoulder caused his eyes to grow wide. "I feah that ouh problems have just gotten wohse than that," he told Link, pointing. Link, confused by Cale's words, glanced over his shoulder.

They were barely visible in the sand, but Link could make out at least four thin blades cutting through the desert. "Oh, great," he groaned, allowing the hand reaching for his sword to fall and slap his thigh. "Malgyorgs."

Cale's eyes switched between the Malgyorgs and the Gelto sails. "What do we do?"

"Can't run _or_ hide," Link said. He drew his bow. "Do you think you can use this?"

"The bow? I-I don't know, I've nevah used one befoah. I _think_ I'm familiah enough with the technique."

"Here," Link said, tossing the bow at him. Cale fumbled and dropped it on Sello, whacking the drunk's head with one limb. Link then unbuckled the quiver and handed it over. "You can't be any worse than me. I nearly blew up the Gelto camp."

Cale glanced at the quiver and then at Link. "H-how…?"

"If we get caught, they'll explain later. Get ready to shot that at the Gelto. I'll keep an eye on the Malgyorgs."

Link pulled the sword and took three steps away from Sello. He figured that if they jumped to attack, the distance would prevent them from hitting Sello or Cale. He hunched low and watched the Malgyorgs for a moment. Then he looked over his shoulder. Cale had nocked an arrow, but he did not draw it. Link signaled at him to get down, and Cale ducked low enough to still have sight on the sails approaching them.

Turning back to watch the Malgyorgs, he sighed and said to himself, "This is crazy."

They waited in silence, and it felt worse than walking. They had been walking with the wind behind them. But now, Cale had to squint to keep sand out of his eyes, and Link eventually had to close his right eye to protect it. Link tugged at his dry collar, annoyed that its itchiness only increased with the sand blasting the right side of his face.

"Link," Cale called to him. "The Gelto ah moving south."

Link stood up. "The Malgyorgs are still coming this way, though." He started walking. "Stay with Sello. Shoot anything that comes after you."

"Be caahful!"

As Link walked, he tried to think of the best way to get them out of danger. With Sello passed out, Cale and Link would have to drag him. Link remembered that he had the cloth that Soog, the Yook leader, had given him to protect against the volcano. If he gave it to Sello, it might help him against the heat. The sleeves would go to Cale; perhaps Link would cut the whole top off his undersuit just to make it easier. But he had to deal with the Malgyorgs first.

Link stopped when he thought he was a good distance from Cale and Sello. He drew himself up and brandished the sword to psych himself up. As soon as the first one was in range, it leapt out of the sand in a cloud. Link only had a second to see it and barely twisted his shoulder out of the way to avoid it. It was far too close for him to strike, and it slammed back into the sand as if it was water. The next also came close, and Link had to jump aside to avoid its maw. When the third one came to strike, Link was already spinning out of the way and swinging at the Malgyorg. The blade cut into its tail and somehow threw off the Malgyorg's jump. Instead of disappearing back into the desert, it landed awkwardly on its nose.

The next two jumped at the same time, surprising Link. Again, he spun out of the way, but his swing fell short of one tail. It did not seem to matter because the Malgyorgs bashed their rocky noses into each other. Link watched them flop on the surface of the sand twice before they both dug back into it. That was when he noticed the Malgyorg he had managed to strike still floundering nearby. At first, Link thought he had injured it more than he first believed. But looking at the cut on its tail reminded Link of the wound on his back. And he wondered if sand in the Malgyorg's wound felt as bad as sand in his. If so, then he understood how the Malgyorg would prefer not to retreat back underground.

This information could only help Link. He glanced around until he found another fin moving toward him. When the Malgyorg leapt for the attack, Link stepped forward and ducked under it. Then he whirled on it and slashed its belly, and the Malgyorg twisted before hitting the ground hard. The next one Link spotted came from behind the first one he had struck. He became horrified when he saw this one strike.

Because it was aiming for the wounded one.

It was not just that one, either. The other two (Link presumed that there were only five) joined in, and they jumped and dove back into the sand while taking large chunks out of both wounded Malgyorgs. He retreated a few steps and kept track of them as the fit Malgyorgs eventually ate their wounded companions down to their heads. Link found that he could not turn away from the sight, morbid curiosity getting the better of his twisting stomach. Even after only the heads were left, Link could still see the two decimated Malgyorgs moving, even if it was only their jaws twitching. Blood had seeped into the sand, although the feasting Malgyorgs' diving in and out had left only a few places in the sand maroon.

Link's mind jerked back into his task, but he saw that, after their meal, the other Malgyorgs had disappeared. Fearing the worst, Link quickly located a small mound and stepped atop it to look around. He saw that Cale and Sello were still in the spot he had left them. Then he looked around a bit more until he thought he saw a fin disappear around a dune. Glancing back at the heads of the dead Malgyorgs, he realized that they might have lost interest in chasing Hylians because their stomachs were full. He would have to hope that they were the only Malgyorgs in the area.

He returned to Cale, his sword sheathed. "How are you two doing?" he asked.

"Fine, I suppose," Cale replied. He indicated Sello. "He's still unconscious, though. What happened to the Malgyohgs?"

"Disappeared," Link said, glancing at the horizon behind Cale.

"I wish the same could be said foh the Gelto," Cale said. "I thought I'd seen theih sails a moment ago."

Link used a hand to indicate smoke on the horizon. "I think we're saved, though," he said.

Cale looked over his shoulder. "Could it… do you think that's the Seventeen?"

"It looks like it's moving. Unless the Gelto have some kind of steam engine to get over the sand, I don't think it can be anything else."

"But it's so fah away…"

Link busied himself with removing the blue cloth from his arm. "Hurry, take that sail off."

"Okay, but—"

"No buts. We've gotta get over there. If Luggard sees us, he should stop the train." He managed to undo the tight knot. Then he took in a gasp of air upon realizing how hot the desert atmosphere really was. "Yikes! It really _is_ hot out here."

Cale nodded as he unwound the rope from his stomach. "Now you undehstand my hesitation."

"No problem," Link said as he stepped around Sello. He slid the Yook charm under Cale's sling and tied a knot into its corners. "How's that?"

Cale froze with a surprised look on his face. Releasing the rope, he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. Then he felt his forehead with his fingertips. "It's… I've-I've lost feeling!"

"It's the charm," Link said, tugging on it. "The Yook gave it to me."

Cale glanced down as Link pulled the sail from his shoulders. "That's… that's _amazing_!"

"Give me a hand," Link said. "If we wrap Sello in this, we can drag him."

"But… will _you_ be all right?"

Link finished laying the sail flat on the sand next to Sello. "I haven't had to take the heat until now. I think I can make it."

Cale nodded, and they pulled Sello onto the sail and rolled him in it. They made sure to cover his face and tied the bundle around him so his dragging feet would not pull him out. Then they each took a rope and started pulling him across the sand in the direction of the smoke. Link had taken the bow and quiver back, although he felt that his sword would be enough for any Malgyorgs that decided to try their luck.

_HIIIIIIIIIiiiiiiiiiiiiir!_ The whistling caught Cale and Link's attention, and they stopped to turn toward its source. A flash of red light led a trail of grey smoke hanging in the air. The light appeared small, leading Link to believe that it was some distance from them.

"What's that?" Link asked.

"I-I can't be suah," Cale said. "I've nevah seen such a display befoah. But that might be the direction the Gelto had disappeahed in."

Link nodded. "I didn't feel like investigating anyway."

They continued on without giving the light a second thought. Link eventually started admitting to himself that he was not as tolerant of the heat as he had expected. While he could feel the heat when he was wearing the Yook charm, without it felt more like being thrown into a boiler. His body grew steadily heavier and harder to move. Sweat completely coated his body, making his clothes even more uncomfortable. The wound on his back stung seemingly to no end. He wished he could take off his clothes, and his concerns about the desert heat setting his skin ablaze grew steadily less. His eyes had begun to sting even though they were traveling perpendicular to the wind now. On the bright side, Cale appeared to improve thanks to the charm. But the desert had already taken its toll on him. The skin on his unbandaged hand and his face was bright red, and a red outline of the rope had formed on Cale's bare stomach and chest. His movements were stronger, though; he was overtaking Link at points and had to slow his pace so Link could keep up.

"Link, Link, wait," Cale spoke up a while later.

Link stomped to a stop and nearly dropped into the sand when he doubled over. He had never breathed so hard before, and each breath raked his throat. So when he turned to ask Cale the inevitable, it came out in a rasping voice. "What is it?"

"You didn't feel that?"

"What?"

"It… it almost felt like an eahthquake."

Link's face was a blend of annoyance and exhaustion.

It changed quickly when he saw a massive form leap over the high dunes in the distance.

Cale saw Link's change in expression and glanced over his shoulder. "What? What is it?" he asked.

"It's that-that _giant_ one!" Link answered. "It's _here_!"

Cale glanced over his shoulder again, this time catching sight of the giant Malgyorg as it rose and ducked in the distant sand again. "Oh, goddesses _above_ no," Cale breathed. He turned back to Link, his face molded into a pale expression of terror. "W-wh-what do we do?"

Link looked back towards the train. Even though the smoke was still clear, the heat from the desert surface made seeing the train itself difficult, never mind the Spirit Tracks. But the smoke gave him an indication of directionality, so he pointed far ahead of the smoke. "Take Sello and go in that direction," he told Cale. "If you can reach the train, get on and tell Luggard to go as fast as he can."

"Link, you… wait, you'h not thinking of _attacking_ that thing, ah you!?"

"I'm just going to distract it," he replied. He pulled out his bow. "Don't worry, I'll try not to be very close to it. Maybe I can slow it down by wounding it. The smaller ones won't dig into the sand if they're bleeding, so maybe this one will be the same way."

"Ah-ah you suah this is a good idea?"

Link gave the smallest smile he could manage and shrugged. "No. But I'm just going to wound him and then run."

Cale gave a tentative nod. "Be caahful."

They parted. Link did not get too far before he began to regret his idea. His one fortune was that he no longer had a thick rope digging into his shoulder. His backwards collar and sword belt were beginning to chafe his neck. The sword was getting heavy. His whole body felt like it was covered in a layer of sweat, and he entertained the idea of holding onto the back of the Seventeen and sliding barefoot along the tracks. Then he dismissed the idea as a result of the heat messing with his mind.

The large Malgyorg had yet to jump again, probably waiting for the Seventeen to venture further down the track. Link still had an idea of where it was. After watching the Gelto fire two more lights into the sky, he reasoned that the lights were meant to be a warning to trains that the Malgyorg was nearby. He wondered if they were out here for that reason instead of hunting him, Cale, and Sello.

The sand in the air started to thicken. He managed to glance to the east long enough to see a bank of brown clouds in the distance. If he wanted to avoid the sandstorm, he would have to loose the arrow and run as fast as he could. He hoped that, if he was caught in the storm, it would at least provide protection against the sun.

Atop the next dune near where he thought he had seen the Malgyorg, he saw that the two Gelto sloops were moving further west. No immediate sign of the Malgyorg, though.

Until the sand to his left rose.

Link did not have time to set up an arrow. The dune he stood on shook a moment. The large blade of the Malgyorg's dorsal fin was still some distance away.

Then Link felt himself rising in the air before he realized and collapsed to his hands and knees. Wind shoved him across the Malgyorg, and he tumbled along its golden-brown body until he landed back in the sand. His head spun, reminding him of his adventure down a steep incline inside an empty barrel.

_Pff-HHHIIIiiiiir!_ Link looked up at another light sailing through the air, but this one was blue instead of red. He turned around and saw the Malgyorg's fin follow the wave of sand as it flipped in the other direction. Aware that it could jump out of the sand again at any moment, Link pushed himself back to his feet and recovered his bow. He hustled to the top of the dune as the fin approached. He barely had time to nock an arrow before the Malgyorg jumped, so he just made sure that the arrow at least flew in its direction. Then he had to duck. The pectoral fin sailing over him brought a lot of sand into the air, and Link could feel the light blanket sweep over his back just before the Malgyorg disappeared into the sand. When he looked up, the Malgyorg was traveling away from him, and his arrow was nowhere in sight.

So he chased it.

Link clambered into the trench its dorsal fin left behind and ran to catch it. Well, he tried to run, but between his exhaustion and his boots sinking in the loose sand, there was no way for him to keep up with it. With fortune to his lack of energy, the Malgyorg was intrigued by the presence of some small thing behind it and slowed to let it catch up. Link, after seeing that he was catching up to it, climbed out of the trench and nocked an arrow. He did not know how to guess distance with an arrow, even without a moving target; that had been part of his failure in the Gelto settlement. He just released and hoped it made the distance. He could see the arrow's black form sailing through the air in a bit of a wobble, likely because of the wind blowing from behind. But it was too far left. It had the distance, but Link felt he would be firing again as he pulled another arrow.

Then the Malgyorg decided to turn left.

The arrow, still descending, struck the fin and bounced off as if it was nothing. The Malgyorg appeared to react by ducking and jumping out of the sand. Link could see its rock-laden nose and thick hide from this distance. If he had to guess, the creature could easily match the height of the _Grand Sails_ while being double its length. It had turned north, and Link thought it would be going after the Seventeen.

Then he realized that the Malgyorg was circling him. Its dorsal fin only changed shape once Link realized this, narrowing as the moving mound of sand turned in his direction. Fear spurred Link's mind to renewed life, and he raced to his right to get out of the Malgyorg's path. The Malgyorg jumped, and the spot where Link had been standing disappeared into a pit as the Malgyorg dove back under the sand. The jumping had amazed Link before, but the pit left Link frozen in pure terror. The Malgyorg had jumped high enough to show Link its light, flesh-toned belly. If he had been standing there, the Malgyorg would have either crushed him or eaten him whole like the Seventeen's office car.

Link watched the Malgyorg start its circle again. But when the Malgyorg did not turn for another attack, it occurred to Link that it might not be sure it had eaten him. Link was surely small enough that a creature that size would never be certain. So it circled, waiting for some kind of sign that Link was alive. He needed to attract its attention again.

He pulled an arrow and started jumping side-to-side, careful not to fall into the sand. His eyes tracked the Malgyorg. The Malgyorg did not turn to him right away, but it eventually did.

And Link ran for it, nocking the arrow. He hoped that the Malgyorg did not like swallowing a mouthful of sand as it occurred to him that all it would have to do is shove its nose above the surface in order to catch him.

Instead, the Malgyorg jumped in the air perhaps far too early than it needed to catch him. Link ducked and spun as the Malgyorg's titanic form flew overhead. He drew and took a split second to aim at the creature's belly. He released, assuring himself that he would not need more time to aim at something as large as the airship decks he used to fall on.

Link did not see the arrow penetrate, already covering his face from the sand the creature threw up with each jump. But he felt the ground shake as the Malgyorg landed on the same sand that it could so easily swim through. After he was sure the sand had cleared, he looked up. The Malgyorg lay on its side, and Link could see that his arrow had actually penetrated its fleshy belly. At first, Link was confused that it did not jump around like the smaller Malgyorg did.

Then it started thrashing. Its tail sent up a cloud of sand that covered the Malgyorg in seconds. Link felt content to leave it in that place.

As he turned around, he saw a swarm of smaller Malgyorg approaching him fast.

Link only had a second to respond. So he ran for the cloud surrounding the larger Malgyorg, replacing his bow. He was not sure what he would do, but if he presented a wounded Malgyorg just as before, he had a chance of filling their stomachs while he escaped. He bowed his head against the rush of sand the Malgyorg kicked up. He could hear the Malgyorg slamming against the sand, which seemed softer than he expected when considering the tremors it had produced just by jumping. He found a point between the Malgyorg and the sand where he could see. And, upon identifying the Malgyorg's belly, he drew the Lokomo Sword. He only hesitated a moment, which was the time it took for him to determine the best time to strike at the thrashing creature.

Then he stabbed the sword into the Malgyorg's belly the moment it was still and on the ground. The Malgyorg gave off a grunt before choking itself off. Red blood squirted from the open wound, and Link decided to repeat what he had done to the massive insect in the woods and pulled the sword in one direction. The creature's flesh parted, showing a pink inside that blood immediately stained red as it sprayed out of the Malgyorg's body. It was like cutting open the side of a leather flask just to make water spill out, but the scale was far more powerful and impressive than Link thought it would be.

And after he made a cut comparable to a mast from his last ship, Link bolted. He ran long, and he ran hard. He never looked back to see if the smaller Malgyorgs were chasing him. All he could think was _run, Link, run_. Out into the heat, out into the sandy wind. He had forgotten about the approaching sandstorm. He did not even know which direction he was going.

He just ran.


	56. Dubbl, Dubbl, THIEF! and Trouble

Chapter 56: Dubbl, Dubbl, THIEF! and Trouble

…

Link did not know when he lost consciousness, never mind why. Between the heat, the dehydration, the starvation, and the fact that he had expended the last of his energy bleeding open a creature that could only make a small snack out of him, he probably should have been dead.

Instead, he opened his eyes to a field of orange. The surface he lay on felt like the most comfortable thing he had slept on in weeks. He did not want to move, although he was not too sure he _could_ move. His whole body seemed to be giving off a dull throb timed to his heartbeats. His ears burned, and moving even the smallest muscle on his face invited a mild sting. He sighed at the orange in front of him.

"Good mohning, Captain."

Link's eyes became wide at the sound of a woman speaking in a Hovela accent. Just to confirm his fear, the Gelto woman he had left behind stood above him. Although her face had a compassionate smile, Link could not suppress the idea that his life was about to get more difficult.

She giggled and pulled away. "Deah Captain, don't tell me you've developed a feah of me," she joked. "It makes me wondeh if I might become one on an expanding list of gihls you will nevah be involved with."

"D—" Link tried to say before he started coughing uncontrollably. It hurt to cough, feeling pain in his chest and throat with each instance. He put a hand around his throat, but it was not until the Gelto put her hand on his chest that he brought the coughing under control.

"You've just taken on the hida'tawalw dhugra and suhvived a day undeh the deseht sun," she told him. "You probably don't want to talk at the moment." She gently lifted his head and touched a clay cup to his lips. "Heah, drink this. You need wateh. Just sip." Link did as she said, feeling the water sooth his throat as it went down. "I imagine you'h wondering how you retuhned heah." Link finally turned his head to her and nodded. "Did you eveh see the flaahs?" Link's brow wrinkled, trying to figure out that last word. "You might've seen them. Bright lights in the sky." Link nodded. "Those ah the scouts that follow the great dhugra, the creatuah you call the 'Malgyohg'."

Link took the next cup she offered and drank it himself. Then he asked in a scratchy voice, "They… they brought me back?"

She smiled. "The irony is they did not even know who you weh. To them, you weh just some crazy Hylian who suhvived an encounteh with the maddest beast the Divine behthed to the deseht."

Link sighed, triggering a cough. "Yeah, well… I think I'll avoid it from now on."

"You hahdly need to avoid it; you killed the creatuah."

Link's face became blank. "Oh."

"By the time they found you, the lesseh Malgyohgs had eaten most of its entrails. The scouts may be a little angry with you; you've put them out of theih jobs."

Link turned his head back to the ceiling. "Sorry."

"I'm only joking," she assured him. He felt the bed shift as she took a seat near his legs. "So how did you do it?" She held up his journal. "You've fohgotten to write it down."

Link coughed out a laugh. "I didn't have a pen."

"Moah wateh?"

"Please," he answered, offering the cup.

She stood up and stepped out of his sight. "A fool challenges a Malgyohg. A madman challenges a Malgyohg hohde." He heard water pouring. "A death seekah challenges the greatest Malgyohg."

Link gave his head a slight shake. "No. Wasn't anything like that."

"Abandoned by youh friends and alone in the deseht?"

He put a hand on his head, now aware of the splitting headache setting in. "I told Cale to keep going. If that giant Malgyorg reached the train, there wouldn't be any point in going with them."

She sat back on the bed and gave him the cup. "So you expected to sacrifice youhself," she reasoned.

Link took a drink before shaking his head. "Actually, I didn't know _what_ I was expecting. I guess I didn't think it through."

She gave him a half-smile. "You appeah to suhvive on an extravagant amount of luck."

He managed a clear chuckle this time. "What, you didn't read _that_ from my journal?"

"Mmm. Pehhaps."

Link finished the cup and let it rest on his chest. "So now what? I'm a prisoner again?"

"That remains to be seen, actually. If you'll excuse me, I promised to tell ouh queen that you've awoken." She stood up and began walking away. Then she had an afterthought and turned back to him after crossing half of the room. "Oh. Don't try to run away this time. Theah ah guahds outside."

Link chuckled to himself at the thought. Never mind that he could barely move his body as it was, he was in no mood to try escaping. He shifted a bit, and that was when he realized that the Gelto had left his journal behind. He tried to push himself up, but he found that his arms just did not have the strength. So he thought he would try nudging toward the head of the bed with his foot. Unfortunately, he found that she had left it just out of reach.

He settled his head back down on the pillow and let his thoughts wander as he stared at the ceiling. His first thoughts were of his new situation. Without the strength to move around like he did before, he could not escape the Gelto again. If the guards were any indication, they were prepared in case some kind of mysterious incident troubled the settlement again. Although, even with Cale's concerns over Gelto captivity ringing in his ears, he found that maybe it would not be so bad. After all, aside from the assault on the mining settlement and the punch Link took to the groin, the Gelto had been quite nice to him, especially this one.

He found his thoughts wandering back to the comment she made before, about his trouble with romance. How many women had she mentioned? Three? Link counted them on his fingers. The first, he figured, was Princess Zelda. And it reminded him of his failure to save her and the _Horizon's Eye_. Even if they ever met again, he could not be sure that she would not reject him because of that failure. He probably had that impression from his dreams, knowing (or at least believing) that she had indirectly witnessed the _Island Sonata_'s sinking on its way to help the _Horizon's Eye_. The second was… Valley. The cheerful academic who already had an impressive amount of men in her past. She had already made her stance with Link clear, although her attitude towards him made him wonder. But he ultimately decided that she would never fall for him, especially since he was trying to return to the sky and she was afraid of heights. The third was…

Meilont. By far the kindest and most compassionate person he had met while, at the same time, being the strongest and most independent girl he had ever known. Of the three, he had only had prospects of living out the rest of his life with her. Although they had been fantasies because he had surrendered to the idea of never returning to the sky, he had genuinely wanted to stay with her in Whittleton. He remembered the last time he had seen her. That face, those eyes… what had she said? Only minutes before, she and Irleen had been making fun of him. Had she had romantic feelings towards him like the Gelto had suggested?

How long ago had that been, anyway? A month? It seemed like longer. Between the ventures back and forth between the realms, Link had seen so many different sights, different ways of life. He had never seen that kind of diversity before. In the sky, everyone had their own places in life, never deviating from the expected. Then… Link realized that this new world he had found had started on Forelight Island. The Sorians had been so radically different from the life he knew, and he had just kept finding other people who had never known what life was like for Link. Maybe that was why he kept finding so much trouble.

All to help Irleen. She was probably panicking by now, annoying anyone nearby with her constant jabber in her native language because Link still had her translating gem. He felt he had really screwed up. Link was a Hylian. He could adapt to life on the surface. Irleen was a Sorian trapped in a fairy's body. What did she know about the surface? She had almost been eaten once or twice. She needed him.

And he had seriously sc—

"Link!"

The high-pitched voice was jarring. What surprised him more was a green light bolting out of nowhere and latching to his face. "Wah!" he shouted, raising a hand to smack it.

The sobbing made him pause. "Link, I was so worried!" she hollered in his face, sounding somewhere between angry and relieved. "I thought you'd been killed! Or _eaten_! Or… _or_…"

"Irleen…" he trailed off, unsure if she was real.

"'Ow 'bou' tha'! 'E's really alive!"

"Goddesses _above_, Link! I thought we'd nevah see you again!"

Irleen detached from Link's face. Finding renewed power, he propped himself up and glanced to one side. "Cale! Luggard!" he cried out upon seeing his friends.

Luggard, being the closest, delivered a slap to Link's arm. "Wha's tha'?" he asked in a loud voice. "Ya think ya wasn' gonna see us 'gain?"

Link blushed and scratched the back of his head. "Well… it _was_ kinda close… But I'm glad to see that Cale and Sello made it."

"Yeah, surprised me," Luggard told him. "Though' I was seein' things a' firs'. Then 'e told me ya was goin' after tha' big Malgyorg, 'n I though' 'yeah, _tha's_ no surprise'."

"We weh amazed that you'd suhvived," Cale added as Lidago came to a stop behind them. "The Gelto have been talking about you since we arrived. It took us this long to realize it was _you_ the whole time."

"Yeah, but… what _are_ you guys doing here?" Link asked. "I thought you'd try going back to the Forest Realm."

"This was Roland's idea," Luggard said. "When the Gelto scattered, 'e asked if we could take 'im to the Gelto's se'lemen' 'ere so 'e could ask wha' they was thinkin'."

"Yes," Cale said, "it tuhns out that the mining settlements ahn't the only ones who rely on the Spirit Tracks. The Gelto use them foh transpohtation to the Forest Realm as well. When the trains stopped, they weh concehned that theih population had been cut off from all the men in the Forest Realm. So they revehted to some… traditional methods, I suppose, and tried to kidnap men from the mining settlements in the Fiah Realm. Not that they weh very successful; you, me, and Sello weh the only men they could catch."

"Not that the catch seems all that good," Irleen said. "Cale, fine. Sello, dud and definitely a drunk. But _you_? You seem to do some pretty stupid things. I mean, come _on_! You went after a giant _Malgyorg_!"

Link shrugged, failing to suppress the smile on his face. "Not one of my best plans, okay?"

Luggard half-turned and looked up at Lidago. "Wha' ya think?" he asked.

Lidago's thick lips quivered. Without warning, he shoved between Luggard and Cale and wrapped his arms around Link. "Doooooh," the Goron moaned as he hugged Link.

"Hk… Lidago…" Link groaned as he felt body parts popping in strange places. "Lidago… I-I can't breathe."

"Doh?" Lidago's hold relaxed, and Link dropped onto the bed. He looked down at Link with a happy face and watery eyes. "Goron."

"I'm glad to see you, too," Link laughed as he patted Lidago's arm. Then he glanced around Lidago. "So, everyone's all right, then?"

Luggard pointed to a cut on his cheek. "More or less. Cuts 'n bruises. Two guys… missin' fingers. We go' 'em loaded in Ol' Seventeen. Clean as a bar figh', really."

"I imagine that killing anyone would have been against theih intentions," Cale remarked to him.

Link nodded. "So, where do we stand now?"

"You stand wheah the queen tells you." Luggard, Lidago, and Cale turned around at the sound of the Hovela-speaking Gelto. "And right now, she says 'Move aside'."

"Don' wan' any trouble," Luggard mumbled as they stepped out of the way.

The Gelto Link had become acquainted with walked beside another Gelto that Link recognized. Purple garments with blue, transparent clothing and a golden diadem. It was the bossy Gelto. And if the wide eyes and raised eyebrows were any indication, she recognized him as well.

"Wabnik?" she asked him in confusion. "Wabotaykwya'ak 'anw hida'tawalw dhugra max?"

"Ay'a, 'Inakwint," the other Gelto said.

The queen indicated Link with a hand. "Hacinw!" she declared to the servant. "Zacliyxw 'imayn sicnid min, zamudhj zatniyl 'anw ta'lif ca, zagaykwl zasayal 'anw hida'tawalw dhugra… _thuzahxwiyl 'idus_… ha'alw zhax layxomak nwaki max!?"

"Ay'a, 'Inakwint," the other Gelto said, unable to suppress a smile. "Liynk zhi layxomak."

"Liynk?" the queen asked.

"Nwaki 'ak Xili'anay dhalbin."

The queen frowned at her servant. "Nadbukwlak, Dholit."

Her servant giggled. "Tigi bukwlak, 'Inakwint."

The queen gave an exasperated sigh. "Hacinw… Xili'anan. Kwal Xili'anan? 'Al zhi Gilto, nway nayx nadtoxaylya'ak zahaxwanw."

"Nadda na', 'Inakwint."

The queen then turned to Link. "Amda Liynk. Wabin gayix taf wabin hacinw naday, waba yi'atsya'ak 'anw hida'tawalw dhugra. Kwint Ladhib thutarudhak."

The servant, grinning madly from ear to ear, addressed Link, "Saah Link. Through youh courage and youh…" She wrinkled her nose as she thought. "Uh… detehmination… you have defeated the greateh Malgyohg. You have humbled Queen Ladhib."

A moment passed before Link realized that he was expected to respond. "Oh, uh…" Link droned. "Th-thanks, I guess."

"Zhi nagthya'ak ''Imtowu' to," the servant said to the queen.

"Zhi towanwak 'inoy?" the queen asked, casting the servant an irritated look. "'Inu kwutsak."

"Zhi midhujak zalxiym, 'Inakwint. Zhi addu ya'lu kili'ak."

The queen huffed before returning her attention to Link. "'Inu towanwak Amda Liynk. Gilto Kwint ib taf 'al 'imayn bawir ta'ab, 'inu nayx soynwodak wabin gallidh nayf nayx thulaxum." She bowed one knee and spread her arms out.

"She thanks you, Link," the servant said. "As queen of the Gelto, and if it is in heh powehs, she will see that any request you have will be done."

"That sounds nice," Irleen commented, circling Link's head. "We'll take one airship to go."

"Irleen…" Link moaned.

"What? That's what _I_ want."

"Yes, of couhse," the servant said. "You _did_ express a desiah to retuhn to youh previous life."

The queen stood up and looked at the servant. "Dholit?"

"Zhi xoykwalitak, 'Inakwint," the servant replied. She turned to Link. "Unfohtunately, I do not believe that to be within heh influence, Link. It has been lifetimes since we used ships. We would know nothing of aihships if not foh ouh contact with Hylians."

But Link snapped his fingers when he realized something. "Maybe not airships," he told her. "But _sailing_. Who made that vessel we stole?"

"The skiff? That would be one of ouh craftehs, Dubbl. Why?"

Link stretched a hand towards his friends, causing Luggard to snap to attention as he tried to hide the fact that he was observing Queen Ladhib's posterior. "Cale," Link said. "Were any of the Architects Gelto?"

"I'm afraid I can't be suah, Link," Cale answered. "I spent so much time trying to locate Agoro, I hadn't the time to find othehs. Though, given ouh cihcumstances, I suppose it's possible."

"Wait a minute," the servant said, sounding offended. "You can have _anything_ the Gelto have, yet you desiah one of ouh _craftehs_?"

"Wha—I-I just want to _talk_ to her," Link defended. "See if she'd help us with building an airship."

"Well, of _couhse_ she would!" she told him. "You killed a humongous Malgyohg! How daah you go afteh anotheh woman, Link!"

"Huh?" Irleen uttered.

"Wha?" Link responded, a blank look on his face.

But Queen Ladhib, unable to understand the conversation, wheeled on the servant and delivered a smack to the back of her head. The servant became stiff, and the rest of the room's occupants remained silent.

Then the servant blinked at her queen. "'Imtowu, 'Inakwint," she said. "'Inu yaxwtya'ak nwaki."

"'Inmoytok, Dholit," the queen responded. "Zhi xaylokwak dhol max?"

"Zhi sanagithak Dubbl thib."

At this, the queen cast him a confused look. Then she gave her head a single nod. "Xilitak. 'Al waba yixaylikw kwuhat, 'inan nayx saylotak."

"She says that if you have more requests, we will help," the servant said.

She turned to follow Queen Ladhib, but the queen held up a hand. "Dholit, cobalan taf dhaykwozan wabin fulux," she said, her tone a little irate.

"Ay'a, 'Inakwint," the servant replied in an exhausted tone.

As the queen left, Cale took a step toward the bed. He stood in Luggard's way, so Luggard had to lean backwards to watch the queen from behind Ligado. "I hope we haven't caused any trouble," he told the servant.

"Sounds like the only one causing trouble is Link," Irleen said, circling his head. "What woman is she talking about?"

"Nevah mind," the servant said. She crossed her arms and turned her face away. "I don't want to talk about it."

Luggard moaned and turned his attention back to the group. "So wha' now? Can we go?"

"Were you even paying attention to the conversation?" Irleen asked. "Just wait. We're trying to find another Architect."

"Why?" Luggard jerked a thumb at Ligado. "We go' 'im."

"We need someone to come up with a sail plan," Link said. "I can't do it; I can't account for all the rigging that needs to be done."

"You mean all the rigging that you showed me how to do?" Irleen asked.

"It's a lot more than just manipulating ropes, Irleen. I can put up rigging, but I've never had to _construct_ rigging."

"How hard can that be?"

Link started holding up fingers as he named, "Sketching, designing, sizing, forging, matching plans, drilling, moun—do I need to go on?"

Irleen gave a sigh. "Okay, I get your point."

"Ya imagine wha' these guys could do for a train?" Luggard asked Cale. "I could 'ave a train tha' _flies_!"

"Let Sello modify your engine anymore, and you'll probably get close," Irleen joked.

Link noticed a water pitcher on a table next to the head of the bed and decided to reach for it. When the blanket slid off, he quickly withdrew. "Wha—" He lifted the blanket and discovered that he was naked. "Wha… who took my _clothes_!?"

"Oh, that was me," the Gelto said in a cheerful tone.

"That wa—What? Why!?"

Her grin became larger as Luggard started laughing. "It's hahd to bathe a man when he's clothed."

"Ha-wa—" Link pulled the covers over his head. "Where are my clothes!?"

"Don' worry, Link," Luggard said. "I go' ya covered." Link poked his head out and watched Luggard dangle Link's pointed cap over the end of the bed. "'Ere's yar 'at!"

Link threw the covers back over his head. "It's not funny! Gimme back my clothes!" he shouted.

"They'h oveh on that chaih," the Gelto told them through a break in her own laughter. A few minutes later, Link felt the clothes plop on the bed next to him. He pulled them under the covers and started dressing himself.

"No' a dull momen' 'roun' 'ere," Luggard said. Link felt him throw the hat at his head. "Where do we pay?"

"You ah annoying," the Gelto accused.

"Makes things more interestin'."

"Oy, Dholit," a new voice called out. "'Inyiynwo'otak."

"Ah, Dubbl," the servant said.

Link had just finished buckling his pants when he heard one of the present Gelto taken in a sharp, surprised breath. He took the covers off his head to see why. Standing next to their Gelto attendant was another Gelto. Upon hearing Link remove the covers, she turned to face him with a shocked expression. Link also found himself gaping. The Gelto was about the same age as Luggard with black hair braided and draped over one shoulder. She wore a simple green shirt and slacks, a more Hylian fashion style than the rest of the Gelto. He recognized her as the Gelto who had caught them stealing a skiff.

She looked between Link and Cale for a moment. Then she pointed at Cale and shouted, "Calikw!"

"Sha-wha-what!?" Cale replied.

Then she pointed at Link. "Thief!"

Luggard also pointed at Link and shouted, "Thief!"

"Shut up!" Irleen snapped at him.

The Gelto strode forward, grabbed handfuls of Link's body suit, and started shaking him. "You took! You took! You took! Youtookyoutookyou _took_!"

"_Some_body hel-el-el-el-_elp_!" Link cried.

"Dubbl, waliyxomotak dhol max!?" the servant declared.

"Zhayf haxwlya'ak 'imayn salkif!"

"Dubbl, nwoyrotan!" the servant shouted as she grabbed the other Gelto around the waist. "Dubbl!"

Link grabbed her wrists and wrenched himself loose. "I'm sorry!" he shouted.

The servant flashed him a surprised look. She wheeled around and threw the other girl to the floor.

Then she let out a primal scream and leapt on top of the other Gelto, ranting incomprehensibly. "Dhol! Dhol!" the new Gelto screamed in surprise as the servant wrestled with her. The servant still continued to scream as she pinned the other's flailing arms to the floor. She used a knee so that one of her hands were free, and she grabbed the other by her braid. "Ah!"

"Excuse me, saah," the servant said as she began to drag the new Gelto.

"Dholit!" the other Gelto screamed. "Dholit, na'! Na'! Nadlayxoman! Na'!"

All five of the room's other occupants watched as the servant dragged the other Gelto screaming out the exit. They spent a few minutes exchanging uncomfortable looks.

"Did… we jus' see a catfigh' 'n no' cheer it on?" Luggard asked, pointing to the space where the two had been wrestling.

…

The two Gelto returned a few minutes later. The crafter Gelto introduced herself as Dubbl and apologized to Link for attacking him. Her change in attitude left the Hylians and Irleen confused; she had become eerily submissive. This gave Link the opportunity to calmly explain his and Irleen's situation and ask her for help.

By the end of Link's explanation, she seemed to snap herself out of a daze. "Incledible," she said, leaning forward in her seat. "You… fell flom the sky, and you want to go back?"

"And we need your help," Irleen said. "You won't be alone; we already have… uh…" She turned to Link. "How many Architects do we have?"

"Uh, well…" Link started before trailing off into a silent stammer. "I-I can't say, actually."

"Well… to call them 'Ahchitects' is a bit of an… inherited position," Cale said, rocking nervously on his feet. "But-but we do have a wide range of areas covehed. Lidago agreed to help design an appropriate hull."

"You like pot?" Lidago, standing behind Link, asked.

"Ah… no, no please," Dubbl replied.

"We also have an inventor who's putting together a preliminary design," Link continued. "And… well, we have Sello to help us build an engine, but…"

"But he's a _drunk_," Irleen finished. She feigned dropping out of the air a few times for emphasis. "You know, the third thief."

Link groaned and looked up at her. "Would you stop calling us 'thieves'?"

"That's what I heard," she defended with a joking tone.

"I… not make ai'ship befo'e," Dubbl said.

"Well, as he said, Dubbl," the servant, who had been standing behind Dubbl's couch, said as she leaned over. "You won't be alone."

"And, if necessary, we have a library at youh disposal," Cale added.

"I don't lead Hylian," Dubbl said.

"That's the fun paht," the servant said. Her next comment could not be heard by the others, but Dubbl's eyes became wide, and her back stiffened as if she had a chill.

Link tried to ignore it as he spoke again. "Look, we don't expect you to drop everything, but we _can_ use your help if you don't mind. We-we might even be able to pay, if that's what you would like."

"Pay?" the servant asked. "Oh, how like a Hylian, Link."

Link gave her a confused scowl, unsure if she was teasing him or not. "Is there… something wrong with that?"

"What kind of warrioh _pays_ foh help?" she asked. "A selfless slayeh of the greatest of Malgyohgs? No, the Gelto ah in youh debt. Dubbl should do it without question."

"Well, we don't want to fohce heh," Cale said.

She responded with a loud exclamation of mockery which caused Dubbl to jump. "Oh, how little you know of the Gelto," she said. "It's… _almost_ funny."

"Ya find _tha'_ funny, ya go' a weird sense o' 'umor," Luggard said as he poured himself a cup of water at the side of the bed.

"She light," Dubbl said. "It my duty." She gave Link a hard look. "I will help."

"Are you sure?" Link asked. "Like I said, if you don't want to, it's your choice."

But Dubbl shook her head. "I will help." She stood up. "I have to gathe' my things."

Link watched her leave the tent. Then he turned his attention to the servant. "I wasn't trying to force her."

"That isn't how we do things in Gelto society, Captain," she replied. "I give you points foh integrity, but Dubbl should have known heh fate the moment she was asked foh by the one who slayed the greateh Malgyohg."

"What I don't get is the change in attitude," Irleen said. "A while ago, she was ready to _kill_ Link."

"Yes, well," the servant said, flexing her fingers as she examined them. "These fingehs have been known to tame the wildest of Gelto warriohs. I have a very _special_ talent."

Luggard suddenly spat out the contents of his cup and started coughing. Cale, Link, and Irleen took a moment longer to realize what he was reacting to. They gave the servant wide-eyed stares which she seemed to delight in, raising her eyebrows suggestively.


	57. Architects of the Square Table

Chapter 57: Architects of the Square Table

…

~~Day 23. Finally.

~~I let it pass as a given that strange things have happened to me since I came to the surface, but I think this whole day has been a large exercise in the world's general absurdity. Last night, Cale, Sello, and I were captured by the Gelto, a desert-dwelling race which I believe Cale had mentioned before. Our capture was carried out through the belief that contact with the Forest Realm (which, of particular importance to the Gelto, contains eligible men) had been cut off. Roland, the leader of the mining settlement that the Gelto attacked, assured them that everything that was being done to restore train travel to the Sand and Fire Realms was being done. How much they believe is open to speculation, but I suppose we'll find out when the rest of the miners go missing.

~~Following our escape (which involved explosives purely on accident), we tried to travel the desert until about midday. Or maybe it was after midday; it was very hard to tell. We saw the Seventeen crossing the desert, but we saw the giant Malgyorg at the same time, so I told Cale to take Sello to the train while I tried to distract the Malgyorg. And, as odd as this may sound, I accidentally killed it. According to the scouts who picked me up, the smaller Malgyorgs ate it when I bled it to distract them.

~~The scouts took me back to the Gelto camp. They decided to let us go out of gratuity for killing the large Malgyorg. We also picked up someone else to help with building another airship. I hesitate to call her an "Architect" because its meaning seems to be becoming a little muddy lately. Irleen has reminded me a number of times that, while the people we've found before are descendents of the Architects, they aren't exactly Architects themselves. Leynne is an inventor, Lidago is a potter, and Sello is—I don't know what Sello is. At best, he seems to be an engineer. At worst, a piece of furniture. To our fortune, though, Dubbl's position as a sail crafter seems more appropriate to the kind of help Irleen and I need.

~~As I'm writing this, we're returning to the Forest Realm from the Gelto camp. We're carrying about fifty men from the mining settlements in the Fire Realm, including men who were injured during the Gelto raid. In addition to Dubbl, we've picked up ten Gelto, most of which are looking for husbands in the Forest Realm. The one who isn't, well—stop looking over my shoulder!

…

Platform Three in the Eastern Platforms was a bustle of madness. Over fifty men were trying to help their less-injured comrades onto a platform which was unusually narrow compared to the platforms on the west side. Those that had infected cuts or broken arms had to help out those who could not walk without causing themselves pain, and this quickly narrowed the space in which others could walk. This especially annoyed the Gelto passengers who had to ride in the freight car with men who had not bathed for over a week. They remained in the car while the men tried to organize themselves. To help make the process go faster, Cale was sent with one of the miners to find a clinic that would help them out. Afterwards, he was sent to the office which oversaw the workers in the Fire Realm to let them know that the wounded had returned. By the time the miners were seen to and the Gelto had departed, the crew in the cab guessed that there had been a number of injuries inflicted due to people getting pushed off the end of the platform.

"Well," the Gelto servant commented, sitting on the edge of the cab near the tender, "_that_ was a delightful disasteh. Hahd to believe that those men weh spawned from the same Divine as my man."

"_Yar_ man?" Luggard asked her as he opened the cab door.

She nodded. "Link, of couhse."

"Wahuxwnwak," Dubbl told her with an uncomfortable look on her face.

"Nadda 'inhuxwnwak," the servant answered. "'Inu yabbid."

"Well," Irleen said, "I can't imagine the setting sun has been much help."

Link glanced back at the sun peering over the edge of Library Town's central wall. "I thought it'd be much later than this."

Luggard, after jumping down to the platform, stretched. "If we 'ad a normal train, yeah, maybe," he said. "Bu' with tha' sword, we ge' 'roun' much be'er."

"So, what happens now?" the servant asked.

"Well," Link said as he picked up the pack which contained the items he had left at the mining settlement, "I figured relaxing and winding down for the evening and getting a good start in the morning. With Sello, Dubbl, and Lidago here, they can meet up with Leynne tomorrow and probably start putting a plan together."

"Righ'," Luggard said, clapping his hands. He almost smacked an approaching Cale in the head as he pointed toward the cliff face. "T' the Rusted Boiler!"

"Ah, if you don't mind, Luggahd," Cale said, ducking under his outstretched arm, "I think I'll avoid the Boileh tonight. I need to find something else to use as my assignment jouhnal; the last one was eaten by the giant Malgyohg."

"Goron?" Lidago asked as he stepped next to Link.

"Something wrong?" Link asked him.

"Doooh," Lidago droned, one hand rubbing his stomach.

"Mus' be 'ungry," Luggard said.

Cale gave a thoughtful hum, one hand clipped to his chin. "This may be a problem. Gorons only eat rock, and I feah we've traveled too fah from the Fiah Realm to find a sufficient souhce available."

"Miners migh' 'ave some ol' stock they don' mind 'im eatin'," Luggard suggested.

"I could take him to the minehs' ovehseeh," Cale offered. "The office is still open."

"I'll go along with them," Irleen said as she flew out of her space above the locomotive's instrument panel. She settled into the air above Cale. "Link? My gem?"

"Yeah," Link said, already reaching into his pocket. He pulled the gem out and tossed it to Cale. "Irleen, are you okay?"

"Yeah, why?"

Link gave a shrug. "I don't know. You seem a little… down."

She rocked from side to side. "I'm just tiahd, Link. It's been a very long day, and I'd ratheh get some sleep soon."

"I don' think I can 'til I ge' somethin' t' ea'," Luggard said. "Who's with me!?"

The servant Gelto leaned backwards to avoid Dubbl legs as she leapt over the side of the cab. "Me!" Dubbl declared. "We eat!" Luggard gave Link a shrug and followed Dubbl down the platform.

Lidago stepped out of the cab. "Goron!" he said to Link and the other Gelto, waving a hand as he walked over to Cale.

The Gelto giggled as they watched Cale and Lidago walk away. "Quite the delightful bunch, ahn't they?" she asked.

"Yeah," Link said with a frown. "But one's missing." He turned around and looked under the bench. "Where's Sello?"

"Who?"

"The drunk man we've been carrying around for almost a week," he replied as glanced across the platforms on the left side of the train. "Wears orange. Never seems to be conscious at a convenient moment."

"Oh," she replied, sliding off the side and joining Link on the other side of the cab. "I think I saw him fall oveh afteh we arrived. I don't think he wanted to wait foh the crowd to cleah."

Link glanced around the edge of the train. "Well… I don't see his body. He's probably okay. Just looking for more alcohol."

She raised an eyebrow as she glanced at him. "A man disappeahs, and you assume he's looking foh alcohol?"

Link shrugged. "Or spare parts. It's very difficult to tell with Sello."

She gave a laugh. "Wheah did you find him? He's so… strange."

Link took in a breath and stretched. "We found him in a volcano on the northern border of the Snow Realm."

"A volcano?" she asked, following him across the cab. "What was he doing theah?"

Link jumped down to the platform and stumbled when the pack on his back caused his weight to shift. "Whoops." He steadied himself and turned as she carefully climbed down. "We know he's a descendent of the Architect Neektam. They built some kind of… large generator in the top of the volcano. But, from what Sello told us, it sounds like the rest of the people in the volcano died from accidents over the years. If the way he acts now is any indication, he's been drinking for quite a while, probably since his father died."

"Deah Sello," she said after turning to him again. "I've heahd that some Hylians tuhn to alcohol in times of tragedy, but I had always assumed they would give it up afteh some time."

"Whoa, wait, don't let Sello be a _example_ or anything. It's not like Hylians look for excuses to get drunk."

She gave him a half-smile. "I know that much, Captain. Still, I would have expected someone indulgent to have eventually died on his own."

Link pursed his lips as he considered the idea. "Yeah, I suppose he should've at this point. Who knows, maybe it'll happen soon. All the more reason to ask for his help while he's still around." He glanced around the platform. "Are you hungry? _I_ could use something to eat."

She smiled. "Oh? Is this the staht of a date?"

…

~~Day 24.

~~I had dinner with the—I just realized that I don't know Dubbl's escort's name. I had dinner with her last night and convinced her to stay at a tavern not far from Cale's apartment. Because you creep me out. Cale, Irleen, and Lidago returned not long after. They're sleeping in as I write. I was waiting for them to wake up before I go get Dubbl and take them to meet Leynne, but I just might go get them first.

…

Link was less than enthusiastic about picking up the Gelto servant. His attitude did not improve when she answered the door to her tavern room with the bedsheets wrapped around her. Her explanation was that the Gelto were used to sleeping without clothes on, although the subsequent teasing about Link's bashful nature indicated it was only another means of driving him crazy. After she got dressed, Link took her to the residential area on the south side of town, thinking that Luggard would have spent the night there.

He was a little disappointed to find out he was wrong. After having to argue with one of Luggard's little brothers about being one of Luggard's friends, Elle answered the door and told Link that he had not appeared at all last night. She went on to say that she was not even aware that the Seventeen had returned, worried that something might have happened to them in reaching the Fire Realm. So they bade each other farewell, and Link decided to check the Seventeen.

"Do you always go looking for friends before eating breakfast?" the Gelto asked him as Link glanced around the locomotive's cab.

"I guess I'm just used to it," Link said, jumping down. "I always had to know where my friend Line was before I could go to breakfast. It was the worst when we were on shore duty; when he doesn't sleep in, he's the world's worst insomniac."

"How so?" she asked as she followed him to the passenger car directly behind the locomotive.

The passenger car had been painted sky-blue all over, which Link took as an indication that it would be painted over by whatever company used it. He slid the brand new door aside, a little surprised at the lack of sound it made. As he climbed in and looked around the front of the car, he answered, "I once found him on the other side of the port, making rude gestures at our coworkers on the _Dawn's Ascent_. He hated those guys."

The interior of the car had a strong smell, reminding him of the time a new bell nearly landed on top of him. Due to the lack of wood from Whittleton (Link assumed), most of the materials used to make the car was metal. The Goron builders had elected to make a simple design; almost everything was steel-blue. Copper trimming had been handily applied to many of the edges and formed a series of crisscross designs on the ceiling. The upholstery on the benches was tanned leather. Link discovered that the upholstery had not been properly secured to the benches by lifting one up. When he considered that it looked considerably low-grade compared to the car he had ridden in on the Number Twenty-Seven train, he concluded that these were stand-ins until someone else put in permanent seats.

"Ratheh basic, isn't it?" the Gelto asked him. "This cah?"

"Brand new," Link said as he searched the benches. "The Gorons gave us both cars so we could transport supplies to the mines and the men back here."

"Quite generous," she remarked.

"Yeah, they were." Link knocked on the door to the small water closet at the back of the car. "Luggard? You in there?" He paused to wait for a response, and then he opened the door. "No, I… guess you aren't."

"Would they have found a room foh the evening?" she asked. "Does Luggahd have money?"

"He might've gotten _Dubbl_ a room, but he could've stayed with his mother." He indicated the door on the far side of the car. "Let's check the last car before we go wandering around." She shrugged and preceded him out of the car.

On the outside, the freight car was still sporting bare metal marred black in between pieces. The door was mounted on the outside of the car on a pair of rails. The thick chain which held the door shut had been left hanging, and the door itself was open a sliver. Link fit his fingers inside and pushed the door open.

Upon first seeing the contents, the Gelto tilted her head to one side. "D'aaaaw…" Link was not nearly as endeared.

When the miners had used the freight car, they had left behind the blankets they used to protect themselves from the cold of the Fire Realm. Both Dubbl and Luggard had wrapped themselves together in a large one and rolled up two more to use as pillows. Neither one of them had reacted to the door, but Luggard, closer to the door than Dubbl, stirred when sunlight hit his face.

Link saw their clothes discarded just on the inside of the door. He placed a hand over his face. "I… do I _want_ to know what happened in here?" he groaned.

"Who's tha'?" Luggard asked, his normal speech slurred. "Link?"

"Yeah…" Link groaned in response.

"Wha's go'n on?"

"Looking for Dubbl."

Luggard pulled one arm loose of the blanket and used it to shield his eyes. "Wha' makes ya think _I_ know where she's a'?"

"Certain circumstances."

"Like wha?"

Link removed his hand. "Like the fact she's sleeping right next to you."

"Huh?" Luggard rolled over. "Oh. Oy, I know where she's a'." He rolled back and pointed over his shoulder. "She's 'ere."

"Thank you."

Luggard put on a confused look. "Where we a'?"

"Back of the Seventeen."

Luggard nodded. Then he glanced down at himself. "I's naked."

"Yeah. Yeah, I thought so."

He rolled onto his back and prodded Dubbl's shoulder. "Oy. Ya naked?"

"Hmm?" Dubbl responded.

"Is ya naked?" Luggard repeated.

"Joydhosan zacniyl 'inoy…" Dubbl groaned.

Luggard glanced back at the door. "She naked?"

The Gelto picked up a thin, black, silky item of clothing which Link could not immediately identify. "Undeniably," she replied with a wide smile on her face.

"Oh." Luggard appeared dumbfounded for a moment. Then he must have recalled the previous evening because his face slowly changed into one of shock. "Oooh."

Link turned to the servant. "Bring them out to the Library when they're done. I'm going ahead to get Lidago."

"Oh, you don't want to join them?" she asked.

"No."

…

Link, Irleen, and Lidago spent a few minutes waiting for Luggard and the Gelto. When Link informed them that Cale had gone to the Library, Luggard volunteered to help with research. Link was beyond thinking about his and Dubbl's circumstances and led them to the Western Platforms without another word.

Leynne's apartment building was actually a small branch of tunnels in the cliff face close to the center of Library Town. Both of Leynne's rented apartments were labeled, so Link walked up to the door marked "Leynne's Studio" and knocked lightly on the door.

"Who is it?" Leynne's voice called through the door.

"It's me, Link. I brought some help."

"Come on in!"

Link, Irleen, and the Gelto entered. They saw that all of the furniture had been removed from the room save a single, large, rectangular table set in the center. Metal scrap, balled paper, and empty bags and bottles littered the floor against the bare walls while a clean path formed a ring around the table. About a dozen rolls of paper had been stashed under the table. Leynne stood at the farthest corner from them. He wore a pair of baggy, brown slacks and a short-sleeve, button-down, blue shirt. His black hair was a mess, and the fact that he was scratching it with a pencil indicated why.

He glanced up at them. "Well, this is different. I was expecting a Goron oh two."

"We have one," Irleen said as she fluttered over to the table. "He's outside."

"He's a little big for the door," Link explained.

Leynne put on an understanding look. "Okay. Who ah these two?"

Link stepped aside. "Leynne, this is Dubbl and…" His face formed an irritated look. He asked the servant, "Hey, what _is_ your name?"

"Dholit," she answered.

"Dolit?"

"No, no. _Dho_lit. Dolit's a boy's name."

"They're pronounced the same way!" Irleen shouted. "And how do you have _boys_' names when you're all _girls_!?"

Dholit shrugged. "Just in case."

Link let out a sigh. "Anyway," he continued. "Ladies, this is Leynne. He's been helping me with this whole airship situation."

"Ladies," Leynne said, saluting with his pencil. Then he looked at Link. "I'm confused. I though you weh going to the Fih Realm to find a Goron."

"We did," Link said as Dholit and Dubbl explored the room. "But Dubbl's a rigger for the Gelto. She puts sails on the skiffs they use to travel the Sand Realm."

"And I do good," Dubbl told him, glancing at the table.

"I'll remembeh you said that," Leynne told her.

"So how far have you gotten?" Irleen asked as she traveled across the paper on the table.

"Not as fah as I'd hoped by the time you'd retuhned," Leynne admitted. "I put togetheh a sketch of a hull based on books I found at the Library. The problem is I don't know how well they would do in the aih. I want to compensate foh the fohces a ship would experience having to lift most of its weight, but I can't be suh of the structuh."

"I thought you were going to Hovela to look at some ships," Link said.

"I was. Tomorrow."

"Oh."

"Between selling a few inventions and doing reseahch, I only managed to put this sketch togetheh last night."

Link stepped up to the table and turned his head to look at the outline of a ship. Or at least a hull. Leynne had a rough, boat-like shape on the paper with separations in the cross-section to indicate different decks. Link put a finger on what he assumed was the front end. "No forecastle?" he asked.

Leynne let out a sigh. "I'd fohgotten. Kind of stupid, really; I'd intended to put the pilot's station theh."

"You mean the helm?" Link asked. "Why there? The helm's traditionally on the aftcastle."

"Why?"

Link shrugged. "Usually because it's easier for a captain to watch the crew from there."

"Oh, while piloting the craft, right?" Link nodded. "Oh. I always assumed it was someone otheh than the captain who piloted."

"Yeah, sometimes, when the captain isn't on the deck. The aftcastle is elevated. If it had a poop deck, that would be an even better location."

Leynne leaned his forearms on the edge of the table and clasped his head between his hands. He gave a sigh and said, "Okay, this might not be as easy as I planned."

"Well…" Link said as he considered the idea further. "It's not without its merits. With the helm at the front, it would be easy to see the air in front of the ship. That's just as important. The problem is you couldn't look _directly_ ahead because the bowsprit would be in the way."

Leynne looked up. "Given time, I suppose I could wohk my way around that. I suppose my biggest concehn is the size of the engine and what kind of strain it would put against the hull."

Link put on an irritated face. "Yeah, we don't have Sello with us. We haven't seen him since we pulled in last night."

"Sello? He's already heh."

Irleen exchanged looks with Link. "He is?" she asked.

Leynne stood up and indicated the door with his hand. "He showed up outside my apahtment dooh late last night. He smelled like he'd been drinking. Again. He's sleeping in one of my chaihs in the otheh apahtment right now."

"I guess he found a place to call home," Irleen said with a smile in her voice.

"At least somewhere he can remember," Link agreed. Then he asked Leynne, "Do you mind if he stays here? There isn't enough room in Cale's apartment for all of us."

"I'll have to speak with my landlohd, but as long as he doesn't lose complete control, it's okay." Then he snapped his fingers. "Oh, since you'h heh, I wanted to ask you something. What kind of ship was youh old vessel? What kind of sail plan?"

"The _Island Sonata_? It was a schooner. It had three masts with gaff-rigged sails."

"Gaff-rigged. That's… foh-to-aft, right?"

"Yeah."

Leynne put on an intrigued look and nodded to himself. "That makes this easieh then," he said.

"How?" Irleen asked.

"I've had a few thoughts about the sail plan myself," he explained. "Now that you've brought a riggeh, I can discuss it with heh."

Dubbl, standing next to Leynne, turned and glanced down at the plans on the table. "This appea's ha'd," she said. "I not made sails fo' big ships."

"It's a fihst foh me, too," Leynne told her with a grin.

"Maybe you can bring the plans to the Library so Lidago can look at them," Irleen suggested.

"Lidago?" Leynne asked.

"The Goron," Dubbl said.

"Oh." Leynne nodded. "That sounds like an idea." He looked at Dubbl. "I can show you some of the literatuh I've been looking at. That might help."

…

Link did not recall the Library being so crowded, especially in the back room that they were always using. When he asked Cale about it, Cale explained that a number of scholars had become interested in airship history lately because of Link's presence. He added that Valley's babbling might have contributed to the activity. The front area was crowded enough that the group had to set up on a pair of tables recently added to the dais at the back. No one seemed interested in using this area, so Leynne laid out his sketch on one table and started a discussion group with Sello (when he wasn't drinking), Dubbl (often needing translation through Dholit), and Lidago (who would ask of someone would buy a pot every few minutes). Irleen hovered around Link's table as he, Cale, and Luggard looked through a pile of books for more potential Architects.

Luggard, when Link had arrived, had the same bored look on his face as he idly flipped through the same book. At first, Link thought he was remembering his night with Dubbl.

Then he said, "Why we doin' this? We know where we's goin' nex'."

"You know something we don't?" Irleen asked.

"C'mon, don' ya ge' it?" he asked, looking up from the book. He held up fingers as he named, "Fores', snow, fire, sand. I the only one seein' the trend."

"You assume we will be traveling to the Ocean Realm next?" Cale asked.

Luggard shrugged. "It's the only one lef'. And it's a realm with Hylians. Person'ly, if I retire, I'd find an island ou' there 'n live on it."

Cale nodded. "It would be an ideal place to retiah. The trouble is most of the islands and the Spirit Tracks ah currently undehwateh. Even if we found an Ahchi—"

Luggard lofted his book in front of Cale, startling him. "Well, we found one," he said. "Two, actually."

Cale shoved the book he was reading to one side and straightened out the book Luggard had thrown. "Lorie and Ben. Married… 'Wohked with Royal Engineehs Agoro and Ryain on a few projects befoah moving to an outlying island neah Kakucha Island in the southeast.' How-how long ago did you find this?"

"Jus' after Link showed up," Luggard replied.

Link slid the book towards him to read the page. "Neither of them were Royal Engineers, though," he pointed out. "Ben was a metalworker, and it looks like Lorie was a… a home decorator?"

"Yes," Cale said. "Having a strangeh decorate one's home was a trend up until a few yeahs ago. Fell out of fashion, though. I can't be suah why." Luggard, Link, and Irleen glanced at him at the same time. "I-I—my fatheh used to hiah a home decoratoh until I was seven."

Luggard nodded at the book. "Check the page 'gain," he told them. "They wasn' Royal Engineers, but they _was_ the only two who worked person'ly with Agoro."

"They would have had access to Agoro's wohk," Cale reasoned, exchanging a look with Link. "Maybe even helped put togetheh the fihst aihships. A metalwohkeh to build the engine and most metal components, and a home decoratoh to design the interioh structuah."

"Okay," Irleen said. "So how do we get there? Aren't the rails in the Ocean Realm underwater?"

"We 'ad the same prob'm goin' t' the Fire Realm," Luggard said. "Remember how we solved _tha'_ one?"

"Maybe," Link said, "but I don't think the Lokomo have any more tricks for us."

"Ah… w-well, ahn't we ovehlooking an obvious fact?" Cale asked.

"What's that?" Irleen asked.

"Well, the Ocean Realm may be inaccessible by train," Cale said. "But most of the realm _is_ ocean. Taking a sea-faring vessel would be a viable solution."

Link snapped his fingers. "The harbor in Hovela," he said. "Leynne said he would be going there tomorrow to look at sailing ships."

"So by that logic, we should _all_ go," Dholit said.

"Woohoo!" Sello hollered.

Link, Luggard, Cale, and Irleen jumped in surprise when they realized that they were surrounded not only by their craftsmen, but a bunch of the scholars had also gathered around their table. All nine looked around at the crowd. "Is _everyone_ getting this?" Leynne asked, causing two scholars behind him to shrink away.

"What are you guys doing here?" Irleen asked as the scholars slowly walked away. "I thought you were working on a ship."

Dholit gave a playful hum. "Youh convehsation was moah interesting."

"We found a problem," Leynne said. "Namely, afteh we put this vessel togetheh… how do we get it off the ground?"

Link groaned and rested his jaw in one hand. "Oh, great," he said. "The ballast system. I don't even _know_ how to put one together."

"Ballast?" Leynne asked.

"It's how most ships in the sky kingdom stay in the air," Link explained. "It's a large tank filled with Loft Steam. It circulates throughout an airship, keeps it from falling to the ground."

"I remember you mentioning that before," Irleen said. "That was the reason the _Island Sonata_ fell, right? Because the ballast had been hit?"

Link nodded. "It may be a long shot," he told Leynne, "but if these two who assisted Agoro _did_ work on the first airships, they might have left something behind. Maybe some notes about the ship's structure we can use to figure out a ballast system."

"Uh…" Cale said, raising a timid hand. "D-do we have the _money_ to pay foh passage? Oh to even _reach_ Hovela?"

"One-fifty, 'n I'll take everyone," Luggard said.

"I've had some contact with sailohs out of Hovela," Leynne said. "I might be able to arrange passage to the Ocean Realm."

"I'd betteh speak to Madame Seilon," Cale said as he stood.

"Will we be going tomorrow?" Dholit asked.

Leynne shrugged. "The mohning would be the best."

"I'd betteh speak with heh _now_, then," Cale said as he stepped around Lidago.

"Meet at the Seventeen tomorrow mohning," Leynne called after him.

"I need wliting stuff," Dubbl told Leynne.

Leynne nodded. "Writing stuff? Anyone else? Lidago? Sello?"

"Juzd a box of bottles an' a smooooooth hat," Sello replied.

Leynne pointed a finger at him. "_You_ need to sobeh up."

Luggard stood. "I'll see wha' I can do for tha'," he said. He rounded the table and took Sello by the arm. "'Ave Cale bring the money t' the Boiler."

Something nearby grumbled, and Lidago rubbed his stomach. "Goron?" he asked Link.

Link pointed a finger over his shoulder and shrugged. "Goron." Lidago smiled and walked away.

Dholit glanced after him. "What did you tell him?" she asked.

"To go get something to eat," Link answered. Then he shrugged. "I hope."

"I'd betteh get some correspondence posted," Leynne said. But before he walked away, he turned to the Gelto. "Do you two need a place to stay?"

Dholit gave an exaggerated sigh, eying Link for a moment. "I suppose we do," she told Leynne. "Afteh all, the captain seems to become very uncomfohtable when I am neah."

"Come with me," Leynne said. "I'll see if we can find you an apahtment oh something in town."

Dholit ran a finger over one of Link's shoulders as she walked past. "I'll see you lateh, Captain."

Irleen and Link lingered at the table in silence. "Are… we the only ones who don't have anything to do?" Irleen asked.

"Kinda feels like that, doesn't it?" Link said.

"Sooo… what should we do?"

Link tilted his head. "I could use some lunch; I haven't eaten anything yet."

Irleen let out an indifferent sound. "Okay, I'll go along."


	58. Hovela Town and the SES Goddess's Tides

Chapter 58: Hovela Town and the _S.E.S. Goddess's Tides_

…

~~With everyone else busy, I decided to try my luck at a shooting gallery on the Western Platforms. Totaling all of my winnings with how much I paid for three games, I made three rupees. I think I've gotten a little better with this bow the Gelto let me keep, and it seems like it might come in handy later on. It's as if I'm just collecting junk, though. I probably should give Sello his hammer back; up until now, I'd completely forgotten that I had it.

~~Found out earlier that shields are still out of my price range. I realize that one would be pointless once I make it back to the sky, but, if anything, it'd probably look good on the wall of my next assignment.

~~Whatever that might be. I just realized that losing the Island Sonata probably hasn't won me any sort of favor. I don't know that there are any policies or procedures for captains that lose their ships and happen to survive. I remember hearing a story about one captain who was fired from the company because his ship sank while he wasn't on it. His career was ruined because the Skyriders circulated his picture to other companies to let them know that he wasn't to be trusted as a captain. But then, I think they said he'd done it on purpose, for some kind of insurance scam. I don't know that I'll be allowed to keep any ship that I command back to the sky. I don't think I've done anything to get myself fired, but I can't say I'm looking forward to explaining why I left with the Island Sonata and returned with another vessel. The part involving the Princess of Hyrule is definitely going to get attention.

~~It's evening now. Irleen and I haven't had anything to do for almost the whole day. It feels weird. I took a look at a few history books in the Library. Then I took a bath. I just realized that my undersuit's missing. The Gelto must have taken it and replaced it for me; the one I've been wearing for the past two days is grey. They also patched my tunic. I'll have to thank them if I ever visit their camp again.

~~Our goal tomorrow is to at least get underway to the Ocean Realm. Luggard seems to believe that our going there is a foregone conclusion, and I think I can see where he's coming from. It'll feel strange not taking the Seventeen far beyond Hovela, but I admit that I can't wait to set foot on another ship.

…

The following morning, Link, Cale, Irleen, and Lidago picked up a quick breakfast from a produce stand and ate on the way to the platforms. Well, Link and Cale did; Lidago did not eat until a passing craftsman gave him a lump of coal as they passed each other. They had gotten up early enough to watch the sun peak over the eastern mountains as they walked. Cale had opted for a wardrobe change due to missing and ruined clothes from their venture through the Sand Realm. He wore a black waist coat over a blue-and-grey-striped, button-down shirt and a clean pair of brown dress slacks. It made him look the calmest Link had ever seen. Link, meanwhile, had put on all his gear so he was not carrying a heavy pack with him the whole time. Cale had returned the blue charm given by the Yook, which Link had tied around his right bicep.

When they reached the Seventeen, Luggard was examining the scarred boiler with an annoyed frown. Because there was a cylindrical tank jury-rigged to the top of the boiler behind the cooking pot.

"Sello again?" Link asked as they stopped to look at the tank, a battered hulk of slapped-together plates (most of which did not appear to be made of the same metal) with steel dinner plates pinning it to the boiler just a little off-center. Only a single, thin pipe connected it to the boiler.

"Yeah," Luggard groaned. "I go' 'ere 'bou' an 'our b'fore. When I pu' me 'ead in the firebox, I could smell somethin' wrong."

"Could it have been whatevah's in this… structuah?" Cale asked.

"Prob'ly."

Cale nodded. Then, after a brief pause, he asked, "What's in it?"

"I think it's booze, but I can' be sure. It don' smell righ'."

"Pehhaps it's an additive foh the engine?" Cale suggested with a shrug.

"Or he's put a distillery on top of the locomotive," Link said. When Luggard glared at him, he flashed a nervous smile and held up his hands in defense. "Maybe."

"Me boss wants me t' take 'er t' the shop," Luggard said. "I told 'im I would after I take ya t' Hovela. Bu' 'e's pissed, 'n the repairs is comin' ou' o' me own pocke'."

"It's not like Sello does this just to ruin the engine," Link pointed out.

"Couldn't you just… paint it?" Cale asked.

Luggard opened his mouth to argue, but he froze after the first sound. He glanced back at the locomotive and swept across its long body with his eyes. Then he scrunched his face as he thought. "Tha's no' bad, actually," he remarked. "Me boss only 'ates it b'cause it look like 'ell. _And_ it'd save me money."

"Sounds simple enough," Link said. Then he glanced up at his brow. "What do you think, Irleen?"

Irleen let out a yawn. "Huh? Wha?" she answered.

"Did you fall asleep?" Link asked with a chuckle.

"Oh. Yeah, I guess I did. It's probably because you're standing around not doing anything."

Link glanced down the train's length. "So do you have everything we need?"

"No' much t' ge'," Luggard replied, scratching his nose. "I's only takin' ya down t' Hovela."

"Ah you ready to leave, Lidago?" Cale asked.

"Goron," Lidago replied with a definite nod.

"I've noticed you don't seem to have much in that satchel," Cale said, nodding at the strings Lidago held slung over his shoulder. "Is theah anything else you might need?"

"Lidago ready," Lidago answered. "Lidago have crack pipe."

Irleen emerged from Link's hat and hovered nearby. "You know, I get a completely wild image whenever you say 'crack pipe'," she said. "What's it for?"

"Pipe for crack," Lidago replied with a wide, toothy grin.

Luggard gave them a humored look. "Wha' else?" Then he nodded to direct attention before holding up a hand to wave. "Oy, Leynne! Some men 'roun' 'ere would be jealous!"

"Yes," Dholit replied as she, Leynne, and Dubbl approached, "but it's a tragedy that the one I wish to make jealous won't respond."

"You mean Link, right?" Irleen said.

Dholit gave her a grin as she leaned a shoulder against Lidago's arm, prompting a confused look from the Goron. "Well," she said, "at least the _thihd_ woman in the group undehstands."

"Third?" Irleen replied with an indignant tone. "I was here _first_."

"We go' everyone?" Luggard asked.

"Dlunk?" Dubbl asked as she looked at the train.

"That's right," Leynne said, "Sello was supposed to come along."

"Not," Dubbl replied, pointing at the passenger car. "Dlunk."

All eyes fell on the orange limb hanging over the top of the passenger car. After collective sigh, Luggard scratched his scalp as he asked, "Someone wanna help me ge' 'im down?"

…

The journey to Hovela turned out much more quiet than Link had expected. With sunrise staring at them for most of the time, Leynne, Dubbl, Sello, and Cale had fallen asleep only minutes after Luggard departed Library Town, using the benches in the passenger car as beds. Link and Irleen, by contrast, felt restless. Link caught himself fantasizing about the looks on his fellow Skyriders' faces when he showed up at the home port in a new vessel. He could not wait to tell Captain Alfonzo about his travels across the surface. But as soon as his thoughts shifted to Line's reaction, he realized that he still did not know what had happened to his best friend. Signs pointed to Line being on the _Horizon's Eye_ before it finally sank, but Link was still troubled by the fact that Line and his crew were missing. He was beginning to feel like he was an airman on the _Grand Sails_ again, always trying to find Line because Line never seemed to be up to any good.

Irleen sat on the top of a bench and stared out one window for most of the trip. Her wings stood ready to fly the whole time, indicating that she was not sleeping like the other four in the car (Lidago and Dholit rode in the locomotive with Luggard). If his homesickness was any indication, she was probably thinking about her life back on Forelight Island. He knew she had been a little moody lately, and he wondered if their situation was bothering her more than him. He wanted to say something comforting to her, but he spent so long trying to find a good way to start a conversation with her that they had arrived at Hovela before he could get a word out.

Hovela turned out to be an architectural wonder. On the surface, it looked similar to Diggerton; cobblestone walls with flagstone foundations and exterior corners appeared to be the trend, although Link noticed a few houses had been made of wood or had some kind of wooden construction. These wooden houses looked like older buildings, making Link wonder if they had been built before the woods around Whittleton had begun to suffer from the haze. Although the ground was mostly bare instead of dried, dying grass like he had seen all over the realm, this area was showing signs of green growth. From a train platform accessible only by a walkway over other platforms if one did not want to chance being hit by a train, the group passed through a large station sporting sophistication not unlike some of the company offices Link had seen during his assignment on the _Grand Sails_. The station looked like most of it had been built using pure white stone shaped as if to emulate some kind of heavenly palace. People seemed to bustle about, many of them carrying some kind of travel bag. Link had only ever seen this kind of gathering at the Skyriders' travel office on Castle Island, but it was a storage shack compared to the lavish Hovela Station. He found himself intrigued by one hallway marked by an overhead sign reading "Station Hotel". What was a "hotel"?

As they stepped back outside, Link could feel a difference in the air. He felt as if he had stepped back into the sky, feeling the initial burst of a Sky Line like he would whenever he stepped onto the deck of an airship. But then he could sense that the air was not the same. He could not figure it out, but when he opened his eyes again, he found himself staring down a long, wide road. The road was mostly dirt, but in places where it was steep, stone steps had been placed on one side. It descended until it became a wharf of flat, stone blocks. Offices and open-air shops lined the road, most of them open and already taking customers. Link thought it was strange that they would be open so early, but then glanced up at the sky to find that it was actually quite late in the morning. He could make out a few voices in the air, the ring of the local accent already familiar enough to be comfortable.

"A'oy, mateys!"

Except that one.

One man was standing to the side of the station's entryway, calling out to them with a hand raised. He wore a blue, button-down shirt with sleeves short enough to reveal a thick set of arms. His slacks were black and neatly pressed. From what Link could tell, he wore leather shoes painted black and polished to an unusual shine. His head had been shaved of all hair, leaving it to shine in the sun. Link at least assumed that it had been shaved because the man looked too young to be affected by baldness. Curiously, Link saw that he sported some kind of patch on his shirt. As he approached, he saw that it was a hammer and a wrench forming an X-shaped cross.

"Good tae see yeh again, Master Leynne," the man said, offering a hand out.

"Thank you foh meeting us," Leynne replied, shaking hands with him. "I… trust my message arrived at an oppohtune moment?"

"Couldn't be be'er," the man replied. "Already spoke tae me cap'n. 'E's waitin' fer us at the wharf." He glanced at the rest of the group. "'Ow many are we takin'?"

"Well, half of us will be staying in Hovela to leahn about vessels," Leynne said as he looked back at the group. "That will be myself, Ligado, Dubbl, Sello… oh, Dholit, I believe you'll have to remain as well?"

"No, I think Dubbl will get on fine without me," Dholit said as she stepped up behind Link. Link could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand and side-stepped away. "Afteh all, I wouldn't want my captain to become lonely."

Irleen, hovering above Link the whole time, flew a few circles. "You're creepy."

"Yer… cap'n?" the man asked.

"Yes, of couhse," Leynne groaned. He put a hand on Link's shoulder. "Link, this is Seaman Gold, a machinist aboahd the _S.E.S. Goddess's Tides_. Gold, this is Lieutenant Link, fohmeh masteh of the airship _Island Sonata_."

"Yeh'r kiddin'," Gold accused. "'Ow old is 'e?"

"Fourteen," Link answered, annoyed at the tone the seaman had taken. "And I know I might not look like much, but I _was_ a captain."

"No, 'course not, cap'n," Gold said, raising a defensive hand. "Master Leynne already told me 'bout yer sit'ation. I was just expectin' someone a li'l… older."

"Well," Link said, crossing his arms, "if it helps, I was an airman ever since I was seven. I spent seven years training to take on almost every job on an airship."

Gold's eyebrows rose. "Seven _years_? Cap'n, yeh've got a year on me. If I may." He stood at attention and saluted.

Link was a little surprised by the salute. First, Gold used his right hand. And whereas airmen touched their hand to their forehead directly above their eye, Gold's hand touched the side of his head with the tip of his middle finger against his temple. The orientation was wrong as well. Airmen often appeared to shade their eye with their palm facing the ground; Gold's hand was oriented so that his palm faced the air behind him. Despite the weirdness, Link decided to humor him and dismissed the salute with his own.

"As you were," Link told him. Gold responded by relaxing his stance again. "You've been at sea for six years?"

"Aye," Gold replied with a nod.

"What can you tell me about your ship?"

"Pehhaps we should attend to the discussion as we walk to the whahf," Leynne suggested, indicating the direction with a hand.

Gold led them down the road as he spoke. Link, Leynne, and Irleen were the only ones really listening; Dubbl and Cale appeared more interested in only following the back of the pack while the rest glanced around at the town. "The _Goddess's Tides_ is a steamer that's been in service fer a decade. Prob'ly ain't the youngest maid out there, but she still turns an 'ead."

"A steameh?" Leynne asked.

"She runs on a steam engine, but she's got sails in case o' engine failure."

"Just like an airship," Link said. "When the wind doesn't afford it, we switch to a steam engine to propel vessels upwind."

"But you can't rely on that soht of system foh too long," Leynne said. "What do you use foh fuel?"

"Coal," Link answered. "But we don't really use a lot of it; most airships can go as much as a year and a half without having to refuel. It's actually a little scarce, but we make do with the mines we have. Sometimes, we even find whole _islands_ made of coal."

"Me cap'n's been gettin' the same feel lately," Gold said. "We 'eard 'bout the train comp'nies stoppin' cargo from the Fire Realm. Our regular suppliers keep denyin' us fuel. And part o' our job's tae get supplies out tae the islands in the Ocean Realm we can still reach."

"You mean there are islands you _can't_ reach?" Irleen asked.

"A numbeh of the Spirit Tracks in that area span the wateh across the realm," Leynne explained. "With the wateh on the rise, it's made it hahdeh to navigate past them."

Gold gave them a side-nod and a pained look as he sucked in a breath through his teeth. "That ain't _quite_ the reason. Look, yeh'll prob'ly understand t'morrow. I need tae know where yeh'r goin'."

"Cale," Leynne called. Cale nearly collided with Sello as he jogged past the group. "I believe you have ouh destination."

"Well… not quite…" Cale replied. "All-all we know is it's somewheah neah Kakucha Island; anotheh island pehhaps in the southwest."

"Per'aps?" Gold asked. "Yeh don't know?"

"It's a ratheh vague description, I know," Cale said, "but if we had access to a chaht oh something, we could probably nahrow it down."

"Ain't many islands tae choose from," Gold warned.

Link shrugged. "Only makes the search easier."

"Most o' 'em are unin'abited."

Link glanced away for a moment. Then he said, "Which means that some could be, right?"

"Aye, I s'pose," Gold said with a nod. "But the one 'o says we go is the cap'n. 'E's waitin' fer us on the ship."

When they reached the wharf, Link was surprised to see how large it really was. Most of the area immediately around the main road was made of large slabs of grey stone. Shops and warehouses sat closest to the main road. Further down the shore, anchored to the cliff, several docks stretched almost to the horizon, each one of them the familiar wood construction Link could recognize anywhere. Seamen in similar outfits to Gold wandered up and down the docks, some of them hauling crates between the warehouses. Link found himself looking at vessels in as many shapes as he could see at any port in the sky. Brigs, barquentines, sloops, cutters, at least one galleon… he even saw a three-masted schooner which reminded him of the _Island Sonata_ down to the mismatch of old and new hull planks. He also saw a few ships without sails. One was a small, fat-hulled vessel with what looked like a shack built on the weather deck. The other one appeared to be the size of a brig and low to the water compared to the vessels nearby. Instead of sails, Link saw that its motion was achieved by a pair of wheels paddling the water on either side, demonstrated as the ship traveled west.

Gold took the group to a ship of the same configuration as the one passing the wharf. The hull was painted white, although it looked to have taken a beating at one point due to a number of scuff marks across the hull. These were being painted over by a pair of seamen suspended on scaffolds over the sides. Its most prominent feature was a large pipe protruding from just abaft the ship's superstructure, which sat amidships. The aft side of the hull bore the name _S.E.S. Goddess's Tides_, a practice Link had never seen before since all airships identified themselves by their unique pennants. Leynne told the group to wait while he, Link, Cale, and Irleen followed Gold onto the deck. Here, Link caught sight of seamen on their knees, scrubbing the wooden deck with soapy water. Two more appeared to be checking one of a dozen guns which sat secured to the deck.

"Those guns see much action?" Link asked, his head turned to look out at the deck while he followed Gold toward the rear of the bridge.

"On occasion, Cap'n," Gold answered. "Pirates an' all."

"Understandable," Link replied as he followed Gold up a small flight of stairs on the side of the ship's main superstructure.

Gold stopped at the top and knocked on the closed door. Then, instead of waiting for a response, he pulled the door aside and stepped in. When Link stepped in, he saw a room twice the size of his cabin on the _Island Sonata_. The whole wall facing the front of the vessel as well as a single panel on either side were glass panes fitted into a metal frame. A wheel sat right between the side windows, polished brass tubing with leather grips between every other spoke. There was a table near the back corner of the room, removed from the door. It looked like the kind of table used for plotting courses, its function confirmed by the number of measuring tools stored in the glass panels between the legs.

Two men stood on the opposite side of this table from the door. One was a seaman who, for no reason Link could gather, was missing hair from the left side of his head and face. The other was a tall man with slight tan. He wore a blue uniform jacket adorned by large, gold buttons and epaulettes. He also wore a blue bicorne, sitting on his head with one flat surface turned toward anyone he faced. Link noted to himself that, although nice, a bicorne worn by any airship captain would indicate that the captain had lost his mind. His thick, black beard reminded Link of Captain Alfonzo, although this man appeared shorter and a little leaner.

"Cap'n," Gold said, saluting. The man he addressed, the one in the blue coat, responded with the same salute. Gold indicated Leynne. "This is Master Leynne."

"Wha', Leynne?" the captain replied in a graveled voice. "Ah, yeah. Welcome abaard. Ye be the one wha' gave us tha' 'duoscope' thingy, do ya be?"

"Yes," Leynne replied as the captain rounded the table. "Captain…?"

"Albel," the captain replied as he grasped Leynne's hand. "Cap'n Albel. Been 'avin' some fun with tha' device o' yours."

"I'm glad you can find use foh it, Captain."

"Aye, meself as well. I take it yer 'ere t' ge' tha' 'tour' Gold said ye be lookin' fer."

"Actually, I have a favoh I would like to ask. And, if necessary, I _can_ pay."

"Well, I 'magine we can do somethin' 'bou' tha'."

Leynne indicated Link. "This is Lieutenant Link, fohmeh captain of the _Island Sonata_. He needs passage to the Ocean Realm."

"A cap'n? _'Im_?"

Link stood at attention and folded his arms behind his back. "Seven years as an airman, two days in command."

Captain Albel gave him a strange look. "As a… _air_man?"

"The _Island Sonata_ was a three-masted schooner. And an airship."

Captain Albel's eyes went wide before he started laughing. "Hahahahahaha! Those boys in the air mus' be _crazy_!"

"I've been an airman since I was seven, Captain."

Albel's laughter died to a quick chuckle before he spoke again. "No offense, Skipper. I wish I 'ad me own command tha' young."

Link relaxed. "I wish I _still_ had it."

Albel raised an eyebrow at Leynne. "The _Island Sonata_ was shot out of the sky oveh a month ago. Myself and a few colleagues ah attempting to put togetheh anotheh ship foh him."

Albel nodded. "Hence why ye need t' see a ship," he reasoned.

"Hence why Link needs to go to the Ocean Realm," Leynne said. "We believe that moh associates of the original shipbuildehs may still live in the realm."

Albel cocked his head to one side. "Travelin' the Ocean Realm, well, tha' be a prob'm lately, matey," he said. "An' we go' a cargo t' ge' t' Kakucha Island."

"Well, fortunately, our destination isn't too far from there," Link explained. "We believe there's an island to the southwest of Kakucha Island."

"Aye, dozens," Albel replied with a nod. "Bu' we don't go' time t' drop off cargo _an'_ passengers."

"Cap'n Albel," Gold said, stepping forward. "We don't got the time tae drop 'em off at _another_ island, but the people on Kakucha 'ave their _own_ boats."

"An' 'ow many be comin' 'long, _Mister_ Link?"

Link tried not to react to the condescending tone Captain Albel's voice took. "Me, Cale here, a Gelto associate, and a fairy."

"I will be remaining behind foh that touh," Leynne added.

Albel nodded. "One 'undred rupees, an' we 'ave no prob'm."

"Oh, well…" Leynne trailed off as he reached for his pocket.

But Link was faster, drawing his pink wallet from his trouser pocket and pulling out rupees before Leynne could tell what he was doing. Leynne stopped and watched Link deposit five red rupees in Captain Albel's hand.

The captain nodded as he held one rupee up to the light. "Ge' yer stuff. Gold'll show ya t' yer cabins."


	59. It Isn't a Ghost Ship

Chapter 59: It Isn't a Ghost Ship…

…

~~Day 25.

~~It's nice being on a ship again, it really is. But I can't help getting the impression that my being here is a little confounding, maybe even a little insulting. My first encounter with Captain Albel certainly could've gone better. While Seaman Gold can be open to the prospect of a commanding officer younger than him, I think the captain would rather not hear that I used to command an airship for whatever reason. I certainly don't want to get in his way or anything. I just wish that he hadn't suddenly turned hostile on me the moment Leynne mentioned my former command.

~~We're moving east at a steady clip according to Seaman Bently, the seaman assigned to see to passengers' needs. According to him, so long as we don't see any problems, we should be at Kakucha Island by tomorrow afternoon or maybe early evening at the latest. The ship will remain overnight before returning to Hovela, so we'll have to move fast if we want a ride back.

~~On another note, I've just found out that Cale suffers from violent seasickness. It didn't set in until after a late lunch provided by the galley. Cale hasn't left his cabin since. I have to admit that I'm feeling a little uneasy myself, but that just may be because I was really hungry and kinda stuffed myself. Dholit volunteered to keep him company, and Irleen suggested taking his mind off the trip by teaching him some more Sorian. Since then, I've just been wandering the ship's weather deck by myself, making comparisons between it and ships I know. I'm surprised to find out that, in addition to the wooden exterior with tar waterproofing, the ship's hull has a layer of steel plates behind it. A seaman explained this as a means of protecting the ship from hull damage in case of pirate attack. Evidently, pirates do more to eradicate ship crews with grape shot rather than just fill the hull full of holes and risk sinking her. Their company discovered that the steel layer in the hull that protects the crew was useful as defense against gunfire. It's very fascinating, but I wouldn't trust that kind of construction on an airship; it could make the ship too heavy to fly. An airship's ballast can only support so much.

~~Now that I've mentioned that, I hope that whoever or _whatever_ we find in the Ocean Realm will have some information on how to construct a ballast. So far, it looks like we have people to help us construct the other components of an airship, but we won't be going anywhere without a ballast. We'll need a tank, and then we'll need Loft Steam to fill the tank with. And I don't know where to find either.

…

Link had considered taking a look at the steamer's engine room before attending dinner. But after he saw the engine room just from the outside, he decided against it and stepped back onto the weather deck for another walk around the ship.

He found a surprise waiting outside.

In the two hours he had spent exploring below the weather deck and writing down his thoughts, the air outside had formed into a fog which prevented Link from seeing the bow from the door at the base of the bridge. Lights bobbed around near the bow, which Link took to be seamen wandering about the deck. He stepped out and closed the door as Seaman Bently had instructed him. He ventured a few steps away and glanced around. His first thought was that the haze which had cut off the Forest Realm for decades had returned, but it did not make sense that it would be so low. So what was this?

"Everythin' all right there?" Link looked over his shoulder as Seaman Gold approached him with a lantern in hand.

"Yeah, I suppose," Link replied. He indicated the fog with a hand. "What is all this?"

"That's just fog," Gold told him. "It's common in the evenin', though it's a little late in the year fer it."

"How late?"

Gold shrugged. "'Bout a month."

"So this is just—this is _natural_? It doesn't have anything to do with the haze that used to cover the realm?"

"Nah, it's natural." He shook a bag in his other hand, which rattled as if full of metal scrap. "I go'a take care o' somethin'. Don't get near the sides. If yeh fall in, we'll never be able tae find yeh."

Link nodded. "Okay, thanks," he replied before Gold walked away. Although he appreciated the warning, Gold could never know the depth of Link's fear of falling off a ship. It was a fear shared by anyone who had ever worked on an airship. Any airman would have no problem working near the bulwark; fear of falling was usually a good motivator to make sure that that airman kept himself secure to the ship in some way. It was bad enough that jumping over the edge of a ship was taboo among airmen. Link had heard stories of new, cocky airmen who had not heeded this taboo and decided to jump from the weather deck onto the dock below. One could never tell how close a ship actually pulled to the dock, nor where exactly the dock _was_, over a bulwark while running at it.

A deep, loud burst of sound startled him, and he glanced up at the bridge behind him. Captain Albel stood in front of the forward-slanted windows with a duoscope over his face, scanning the fog at the front of his ship. He had a hard time gauging the captain's face until he pulled the duoscope away. Narrowed eyes, shallow creases on the forehead… Link had seen that same look on Captain Alfonzo's face dozens of times whenever something bothered him. Was it the fog?

It must have been a habit he had picked up from serving Captain Alfonzo, because Link rounded the bridge and walked up the steps without knowing whether his intrusion on the bridge would cause problems or not. He found out regardless when he opened the door and stepped inside.

Captain Albel glanced at the door before returning his gaze out toward the bow. "Whacha wan', Lieutenan'?" he asked, his tone reeking of indifference.

Link shut the door and stood in front of it, hands hidden behind his stiff back as he tried to look obedient. "Just curious, Captain," he answered.

"When I go' somethin' fer ye t' 'ear, I'll le' ya know," the captain told him, eyes unwavering.

"Of course, sir," Link replied.

There was a moment of silence. Albel finally glanced back at Link when he noticed the distinct lack of a door opening and shutting. "Ye be tryin' me patience, boy?" he asked.

"I just want to know if there's anything I can do, sir," Link said.

Albel gave the window a quick look. "A'ead 'alf, steady as she goes," he grumbled to the helmsman before stomping over to the table at the back.

"A'ead 'alf, steady as she goes," the helmsman repeated as he grabbed a control lever next to his station. "Aye, _sir_!" The lever was connected to a drum-shaped base on top of a pedestal. He cranked it backwards from its position near the front until the arrow built into the lever pointed to the words "Half Ahead" on the side of the drum.

"C'mere, boy," Albel growled at Link, inviting him with a finger. Link approached the table. The single electric light on the bridge cast shadows in the corners of the room, making the captain hard to see until he leaned on top of the table. "Jus' wha' be ye on 'bou', boy?"

Link resumed his previous pose. "Nothing, Captain."

"Ye bother me. Ye tell me ye be a cap'n, bu' ye go' all them weapons an' thin's on ya like some kinda assassin."

"You want me to take them off, sir?" Link asked.

"I _want_ t' know wha' be yer story, boy. Ye see, I go' me a 'ard time buyin' ye bein' a cap'n."

Link nodded. "I've been an airman for seven years."

"Tha' be yer idea o' a 'seaman'?"

"Yes, sir. About a month ago, I was promoted to 'Lieutenant'. Although technically I should've been made an executive officer, my company assigned me command of a cargo schooner, the _Island Sonata_."

"A sailing ship?"

Link nodded. "We don't have the resources to make steamer vessels like this. I was in command two days before the ship was shot out from under me."

Albel's frown lifted for a moment. "Aye, ye mentioned tha' b'fore."

"Have you ever noticed the storm in the air overhead? The one that seems to just hang there with no end?"

"I noticed it a few times b'fore."

"I sailed through it."

One of Albel's eyebrows rose. "Don't be much fun sailin' through a storm down 'ere."

"It's even worse up there. No solid ground to stop you, no ocean to catch you… winds likely to tear your sails apart… lightning all over the place… No, it's not very pretty.

"I was transporting the princess of Hyrule through that storm. And when I found out that the ship she was returning on might be in danger, I sailed after it."

"An' ye found the ship?"

Link let his surprise slip for a moment; that last question sounded more like the enthralled voice of a child getting a bedtime story than a seasoned captain about to throw him overboard. "No. I saw the ship on the horizon, but I started taking fire from an airship that had already captured them. First went my foremast, _snapped_ in two! Then I caught another shot amidships, ripping off the bulwark on the starboard side. That second shot opened my ballast, and I and the only other person on the _Island Sonata_ at the time had to take refuge in my cabin as my ship started falling out of the sky. I remembered catching a glimpse of the lightning setting fire to my sails before I stepped off the deck. We hit, and I blacked out."

Captain Albel had rested his elbows on the table as he listened. When Link stopped, he stood up. "I don't know if ye go' yerself a wild imagination or ye be tellin' the truth, boy," he said in an even tone.

"I've come to respect a ship's ranking officers, Captain," Link told him. "And I don't have any reason to lie about my life."

"Aye, tha' may be so, bu' I'll save it fer me own judgmen'. Fer now, I'll give ya the benefi' o' the doub'. So, if ye be a cap'n, why the gear?"

Link looked down at himself. "Oh. Just a few things I happened to pick up while I've been exploring the surface. Most of them have been pretty helpful." He watched Albel give a dubious nod. "Look, Captain. I just want to go home. I'm not after your command or anything."

"I be eyin' anyone who comes abaard me ship claimin' t' be a cap'n, an' I _don't_ apologize fer it."

Link nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Bu' ye seem nice enough, so I won't be throwin' ya below. Jus' don't ge' in me way."

"Of course, Captain."

The door opened, and a seaman leaned inside. "Cap'n?" he asked.

Albel looked over Link's shoulder with a casual expression. "Wha' be it, Mister Avery?"

"Objec' off the starboard bow. Big one, too."

Both Link and Albel looked toward the windows at the same time. Then they strode to the front of the bridge and glanced to starboard, Albel placing the duoscope over his eyes again. The fog had grown darker around them, but a row of lights lined the _Goddess's Tides_' bulwark so the helmsman could see where the ship ended. Ahead of them, just off to the right, was a large shadow in the fog, barely discernible. It looked about as tall as the _Goddess's Tides_' bridge, but it was much wider.

"Send a 'ail t' it," Albel told Seaman Avery.

"Aye aye, sir," Avery replied before shutting the door.

"'Alf back, Mister Boxer," Albel told the helmsman. "Ease us t' por', jus' aside."

"'Alf back," Boxer replied as he cranked the throttle device next to him. "Aye, sir. Easin' tae por'." Link could feel the shift in the ship's speed just before the deck beneath him gave a shudder.

"Whacha think, boy?" Albel asked.

Link glanced out at the shadow again. It had shifted further to starboard, just enough that the ship was not at risk of running into it. It appeared closer, close enough that Link thought he could see a bowsprit at the front. It would indicate a sailing vessel, but… where were its sails?

"I think something's wrong," he admitted.

"Me, too," Albel replied. "Looks like a sailin' ship, bu' it be too small. An' where be its lights?"

The same loud sound Link had heard before sounded in two blasts. Two breaths later, it sounded two more blasts. The way the bridge seemed to rattle in response told Link that the source of that sound was above them.

"Positionin' speed, Mister Boxer," Albel said.

"Positionin' speed, aye, sir," Boxer replied as he cranked the throttle control again.

Albel frowned at the shadow after taking the duoscope away from his face. "Why don't ye be respondin', gal?" he told the window.

In the brief silence, Link could hear footsteps on the stairs outside. Seaman Avery opened the door. "Nothin', sir," he reported. "Everyone's gone quie' enough t' 'ear a cat walkin'."

"Can ye tell wha' she be?" Albel asked.

"Looks like a sailin' ship, sir," Avery said. "Bu' she don't 'ave sails. _Could_ be a _wooden_ steamer."

The ship's structure became clearer as the vessel came closer. And Link looked on with a surprised expression. He could see rigging holding onto the bowsprit. Or rather, what was _left_ of it. It appeared that the forward half of the bowsprit had been ripped off. Rigging dangled off the bowsprit, most likely the forestays that used to be attached to the foremast. As the prow came into better view, Link could see portholes at the front. The glass had been shattered out of them. As the ship moved further, he saw a few yellow paint stripes following the direction of the hull planks. It reminded him of…

Airliners…

"I know what it is," Link said in a quiet tone.

"'Ave Martin 'ail them again," Albel told Avery. Link crossed the bridge quickly and caught the door, prompting Albel to ask, "Where be ye goin'?"

Link stepped out onto the platform outside the bridge and hustled down the stairs. Albel called out to him, followed closely by a surprised cry from Irleen as Link ran past them. He stopped at the bulwark, but what he really wanted to do was leap over the edge and onto the other vessel. What initially looked like the upper part of the deck turned out to be the square-rigged and fore-and-aft-rigged masts of a schooner brig. Somehow, they had not ripped free of the weather deck and simply collapsed over the top of it. The yards on one side of the foremast had speared into the deck while the other ones looked to have been snapped off. The main mast lay flat on its side, its sails missing. Perhaps the most frightening of all were the holes in the hull. Two large chunks of hull and deck were missing from the starboard side. They must have been distant shots to have broken holes like they had; Link remembered the same kind of damage the _Smiling Gunner_ had done to the _Island Sonata_. And, just as he suspected, light from the _Goddess's Tides_ shone over a metal tank that was just barely visible to Link at this low angle. Another hole about eye-height with Link stretched amidships.

If Link had any intuition, he knew what this was. And how it appeared here.

"Link!" Link did not turn his head to respond, but he could feel the group gathering behind him. "Link, what is it?" Irleen asked in Cale's Hovela accent.

Link swallowed to clear the lump from his throat. "It's… it's an _airship_," he announced.

"Wha?" Captain Albel asked.

"You'h _kidding_!" Irleen replied.

"Goddesses _above_," Cale remarked.

Link's eyes then widened. He immediately spun to find Albel. "We have to board her, Captain," he said.

"Why?" Captain Albel asked.

"Because theah could be someone aboahd," Irleen answered for him. "If anyone tried suhviving like _we_ had, they could be sevehely injuhed."

"It's a slim chance," Link told the captain. "But we have to try."

Captain Albel looked over his shoulder at Seaman Avery. "Avery, tell Boxer t' heave-to; we be takin' a look."

"Aye aye, sir!" Avery replied before running back to the bridge.

"Bentley!" the captain snapped at a seaman standing on the other side of Cale and Dholit. The lanky man answered with a salute after nearly jumping out of his skin. "Go find the sawbones an' tell 'im t' cork it; time fer 'im t' earn 'is pay."

"Aye aye, sir, hold the doc's spirits!" Bentley replied before dashing in the same direction as Avery.

Albel looked towards the bow at some seamen staring at the wooden ship. "Kent, Bradley!" he snapped. "Drop anchor! Jeffery, Victor, Gondard, I wan' some ropes on tha' ship! Gold, keep yerself free!" He started clapping his hands impatiently, although seamen were already scrambling around the deck. "Move it, move it! I wanna be on tha' ship five minutes ago!"

"Can you tell what happened to it?" Cale asked.

Link glanced back up at the ship. "It looks like fire from another ship. Distant fire, like what sank the _Island Sonata_."

"Did it strike the ballast?" Irleen asked.

Link stood on his toes for a moment. "It's hard to say from here, but that's my guess. He—Irleen, could you fly up and take a look?"

"Suah."

"Wha' made ye think she was an airship?" Albel asked.

Link pointed at the hull. "You see those yellow stripes? I recognize them; it's a trademark."

"A trademahk?" Cale asked.

"Yeah. This looks like an Airliner vessel."

"Do you know which vessel?"

Link glanced back at the ship. Then he shook his head. "No. It looks like the ship's pennant is missing."

Albel looked over his shoulder and snapped at a passing seaman, "Charles, with me!" Then he addressed Link, "Over 'ere; we'll extend the plank."

Albel and Gold led them to one part of the deck closer to the bridge. There, Seamen Charles and Gold revealed panels in the deck which connected to a pair of grooves traveling toward the bulwark. They opened up these panels and lifted a pair of handles about waist-high. Then they waited for a moment as the airship threatened to pass them by. At the captain's order, they ran forward with the handles, sliding a metal plank from under the deck. The plank managed to reach the lower hole in the hull before the seamen were forced to stop. By then, Link saw that a line had been hooked to the bulwark of the other ship and anchored somewhere toward the forward part of the steamer. Albel ordered Charles and Gold to retrieve three more lanterns. By the time they returned, Albel, Link, Cale, and Irleen had been joined by the ship's doctor, a wide man with his advanced age showing through the sagging skin beneath his jaw and stark-white hair on his head. Link asked Dholit to stay behind, which she replied to by jeering about him wanting to protect her. It was true, of course, but the sarcasm in her voice told him it was just another means of irritating him.

The group took the plank one at a time due to its flimsy nature. Link was the first across with Irleen trailing behind him. The gear he wore made him feel a little stable, and he jumped off the end of the plank onto a solid deck. His feet made a splash, and he used his lantern to follow the source of the puddle he had just jumped in to a water barrel further along the wall. This directed his eyes to the ration packets piled in one corner and an iron stove covered in scattered crockery. The ship's kitchen, he presumed. It helped him conclude that the airship was a passenger vessel; no other kind of ship would have an iron stove and crockery on board unless it was cargo.

"What a mess," Irleen said, her voice now its familiar tone.

"Yeah," Link agreed. He stepped further in and found crates labeled "Food" on the opposite side of the room. The ship groaned horribly. "I'm surprised the hull was intact enough to float. You'd think the fall would've bashed it to pieces."

"Ooooh, you might be speaking too soon," Irleen replied.

Link turned around to find her as Gold hopped off the plank. He saw in his lantern light that the deck on the opposite side of the ship had collapsed, and there was a gaping hole in the hull showing the glow of the _Goddess's Tides_' light off the fog. "Oh yeah, too soon," he commented.

"Ship's galley," Gold commented as he looked around. "What're those? Ration packets?"

"Yeah," Link answered. He glanced around a wall near the hole in the deck and found it to be a partition. He held out the lantern to look around the other side. "Hallway aft over here." He carefully swung the lantern forward. "No stairs."

"'Bout where are we?" Gold asked.

"I can't be sure," Link said. "It's a passenger vessel; I've never worked on one before. And there's no standard for laying vessels out."

"Oh, my," Cale breathed as he stepped under the hole. He carefully slid off the end of the plank. "Find anything yet?"

"Yeah," Irleen replied. "Desolation."

"Cap'n," Gold called from the back of the galley. "There's a door 'ere." Link and Cale walked in his direction and watched him open it. He leaned in and looked around. "All clear."

"Irleen, could you fly ahead a bit?" Link asked.

"Sure, but I'm not going _too_ far," she said, moving past Gold.

"Cale, stay here so you can tell the others where we went," Link said as Gold stepped through.

"Right," Cale replied with a nod, turning around just as Captain Albel dropped onto the deck.

Link followed Gold into the hallway and to a staircase in the middle of an empty room towards the end of the ship. "Why's this so empty?" Gold asked him.

Link turned around and leaned aside so that he could see the hallway behind Albel. "Well, this might've been a storage area for the passengers," he said. "Probably luggage or whatever the passengers wouldn't mind leaving in the open. If the cabins were at the front, the spare luggage would be useful for helping the ship maintain balance."

"Interestin'," Albel said as he glanced back down the hallway. "But then, ye couldn't 'ave the passengers on the deck."

Link pointed at the deckhead. "This passenger ship was a schooner brig," he explained. "Forward square-rigged sail, aft fore-to-aft-rigged sail. A little shaky, but pretty fast."

"How fast?" Irleen asked, hovering near the ascending stairs.

"A ship like this could've run circles around the _Island Sonata_."

"Sooo… what did the _Island Sonata_ have going for it?"

"Maneuverability. And it could tack and sail upwind if it needed. Not to mention that it's front profile was minimal, so its engine would have a better run into the wind than other vessels."

"I be givin' ya this, boy," Albel told him. "Ye may not look it, bu' ye sure know yer ships."

"Which way should we go?" Gold asked, looking down the stairs.

"I'll wai' 'ere fer Charles an' the sawbones," Albel said.

"Let's check the deck above," Link said.

"Oooooh, weee, uh… we might want to look below, Cap'n," Gold said, already descending.

"How come?" Irleen asked. Link could only shrug at her and follow.

Link saw that they were entering the engine room. In front of them was the ship's boiler. A pair of shafts running past the stairs on either side showed where the propellers were connected to the engine. Machine parts littered the floor, both broken and intact. At first, Link was confused by the priority Gold had spontaneously assigned this deck.

Then he and Irleen took in sharp breaths simultaneously. Gold was hovering over a face-down body lying at the base of the boiler.

Gold touched the body a few moments. Then he turned and said, "'E's dead."

Link tried to swallow back the urge to throw up. He stepped closer until he had a clear view of the man's back. Yellow jacket and white, pressed pants… He nodded and looked away. "Yeah," he said. "It's the Airliners. The crash…" He took in a gulp. "The impact probably broke him over the boiler."

"At least it was quick," Gold said. He held up his lantern to get a better look at Link's face. "Yeh gonna be all right? Yeh look a li'l pale."

Link swallowed again and nodded. "I ju—… I can't help thinking how easily this… that this might've been _us_."

"Yyyyyeah, that's a little more depressing than what I was just thinking," Irleen said.

"Why, what were you thinking?" Link asked her.

"Well, I wa—"

"Ssh!" Gold suddenly hissed. Link and Irleen fell silent for a moment, watching as Gold's eyes seemed to trace something in the air. "I 'ear movement."

Link's jaw dropped open. "You mean… someone's still _alive_?" he whispered.

"Come on, while 'e still _is_."

All three rounded the boiler and found an even larger mess. The crash had forced ash and unburnt coal out of the boiler and across the floor. A few more bodies were scattered around, one of them stuck on machinery hanging from the ceiling.

Of particular interest was the face-down body on the far end. Because one hand was grasping a piece of metal and dragging it against the deck.

"Irleen, go!" Link shouted.

"Right," she replied, zipping across the deck as Gold and Link began stepping around the bodies and metal shrapnel all over the floor. "Ħo, ħo! Kakònāh ahà!? Ħo!"

"What's that she's speakin'?" Gold asked.

"It's the Sorian language," Link replied. "I have a translator gem in my pocket, but it only works if she's close by. Otherwise, she's just talking to herself."

"Ħo! Ħōħōħō, _ħō_!" Link looked up to see her flying circles in the air. "Kanàdīpa ō! Nàdīpa _ō_! Līnca! Kaħònùl tā!"

"We're almost there!" Link called to her. His left foot became caught on one of the bodies as he stepped over, and he stumbled into the bulkhead. "Agh!"

"Easy there," Gold said, stepping over the last body. He dropped to his knees and carefully rolled the airman to one side. "Oy. Oy, d'yeh understand me?" Link was close enough to see the airman nod. "All right, just 'ang on." Gold rounded the man so he could better see his face. "I'm Seaman Gold, machinist fer the _Goddess's Tides_."

The airman let out a croak that sounded more like a door creaking open. He lifted a hand to Gold, and Gold took it. "J-Jared," the airman replied. "C-c-…c-_Cloud Moon_."

"Miss Irleen," Gold said. "Go upstairs, brin' the surgeon and Charles. Hurry."

"Got it!" Link barely caught her suddenly zip out of sight.

"Jared," Gold said. "Jared, listen to me." He put a hand on Jared's jaw and turned his head. For a moment, Link thought he had passed on. Then Jared suddenly took in a breath, startling both of them. "Jared. Stay with me."

"Ha… hard," Jared replied. "H-hurrrrrt…"

Gold tilted his head when he noticed something. He used his free hand to pull aside the collar of Jared's jacket. "That's a big bruise yeh got there. That from the landin'?"

"Y-yes," Jared said. "Hit b-back… on…" He pointed a crooked and shaky finger at the conveyor belt behind Link. "Bracing… d-didn't work."

"Jared, stay awake," Gold urged. "Listen. Listen tae me." He huddled closer to Jared. "Who attacked you? Who?"

"D-d-… d-…" Link could hear someone running down the stairs along with Irleen's faint voice. Or was it really faint? He could not tell; it felt like his heart was beating in his ears as he waited for Jared's response.

"D-devils…"

"Devils? Is that what yeh said?" Gold asked.

"Gold!" came a cry across the room. Link and Gold looked up as the surgeon and Charles stepped around the boiler.

Gold waved a hand. "C'mon!" he shouted. "'E's still alive!"

Charles laid out a stretcher, and the surgeon examined Jared before ordering Charles and Gold to place him on it. Both seamen carried Jared across the engine room while the surgeon kept him company, although it was hard to tell if Jared was unconscious or not. Link and Irleen trailed behind, following them up the stairs and through to the kitchen. Link had to wait until the plank was clear before he could follow them back to the steamer.

Link set foot on the deck and was about to follow them below before Captain Albel called out, "Wai' there!" Link spun to see if Albel had been calling to him. "Jus' wai' a sec!" Link turned back to the door in the side of the bridge, wanting desperately to follow. Instead, he simply stepped out of the way so Albel could board. "'O'd ye find?"

"An airman, Captain," Link replied. "He's seriously hurt, but it looks like he survived."

"'E tell ya anythin'?"

"His name is…" Link caught the panicked vigor with which he was speaking and paused to slow himself down. "His name is Jared. He said that 'devils' shot the ship down."

"Ominous story as any," Albel commented to himself.

A nearby seaman spoke up, "Excuse me, Cap'n."

Albel turned to look at him. "Wha' be it, Mister Jeffery?"

"Sir, we 'ave the ship secure tae the _Tides_. An'… there's somethin' yeh should see."

Link and Albel followed Seaman Jeffery, trailed by a curious Cale who had just heard that last statement. At the stern of the _Cloud Moon_, Jeffery raised his lantern to show them the back end.

Link's breathing ceased all together at the sight of red words painted in a cruel script on the transom.

"'Skyriders are devils'," Albel read aloud. Then he asked, "Wha' be 'skyriders'?"

"I am."

Link spoke absently, so he was a little surprised by everyone around him spontaneously staring at him. When he realized what he had said, he turned completely to Captain Albel.

"I'm a captain for the Skyriders airship company. One of my fellow captains shot down this ship."

…

A while later, Link sat on a bench outside the ship's sickbay. The walls were painted a horrible grey, although that might just be his judgment mixing with his misery. He knew only a little of the history between the Airliners and the Skyriders, and he knew that they were two sides of one of the ugly company rivalries in the sky. But that was all it had been: a rivalry. Where the Skyriders charged a fair price for services, the Airliners were there to offer faster and cheaper services to spit in the Skyriders' faces. Not that it had been one-sided; Link remembered one day when some of his crewmates on the _Grand Sails_ had cut an Airliner vessel's moors so that it would float away with part of its crew still at port. While Captain Alfonzo had openly scolded his crew to the satisfaction of many Airliner captains, his punishments had been relatively light compared to some of the punishments Link and Line had received by them just trying to be boys. But open hostility… Airships were armed to protect them from pirates. What Skyrider captain had turned his guns on another airship company?

The more Link thought about it, the more he found he just could not wrap his head around the logic. Maybe Airman Jared was wrong, and he had mistaken another vessel for a Skyrider ship. But… how did he know who had attacked in the first place? He was found in the engine room; he would have had to be there the whole time they were falling. It implied that the ship's captain knew he was doing something that would get a Skyrider ship to fire at them. But what? If he knew the area above well enough, most of the sky over the surface realms was deserted except for the Sorians on Forelight Island. No one had anything to protect in the sky above, never mind the Skyriders, whose home port was far to the northwest. Turtle Island and Autumn Island were the closest ports, but if Link was right about the _Horizon's Eye_ being scuttled after arriving at Autumn Island, the only other viable option was Turtle Island. Since the airship had landed in the water, Link guessed that it could have simply flowed here with the ocean. What was going on above him?

Link heard a metal clack from the large door to the sickbay. Two seamen clad in blue, blood-stained gowns stepped out, followed by the surgeon. Link looked up in hope, wondering if he would get an answer.

But the surgeon, stopping in front of Link, merely bowed and shook his head.

Link's jaw dropped open, and he could feel his stomach simply fail to exist. The surgeon watched him for a moment before following the seamen down the hallway. Squeaking sounded a couple minutes later, and Link looked up to see Seaman Gold pushing a gurney out the door. A vaguely human shape rested on it, covered in a white sheet. Link's eyes traveled from the folded, yellow jacket lying atop the chest to Gold before he cast them down at his own lap. His whole body suddenly felt very cold, and he hunched up his legs so he could wrap his arms around them. He buried his face in his knees and began sobbing.

Captain Albel was walking the opposite direction down the hallway. He stopped and stepped aside for Gold, removing his bicorne as a show of respect to the deceased airman. Then he continued down the hallway with the hat under one arm.

When he stopped, standing over Link, he asked, "Firs' time losin' a man?"

Link sniffed. "No," he replied with an unsteady voice. He sniffed again. "And… and he wasn't even part of my crew."

"'E be a sailor still, sea _or_ air."

Link took a bigger sniff. "The worst of it is I was only in command for _two days_," he said, lifting his head. "I've _never_ seen so many people die before! I've—I've lost one airman from my own crew _and_ someone else's! And that's on top of all the Sorians that lost their lives on another ship!"

Albel heaved a sigh. "Aye. 'Fraid it don't ge' any easier. I los' maybe twen'y or so in me years o' sailin'. Mos' o' 'em off this very ship under me own command."

Link gave a pause. "Maybe… maybe I shouldn't be a captain. I mean… _look_ at me! You're the first person who doesn't just _blindly_ accept that I commanded an airship, and you had a _reason_!"

But Albel shook his head. "Doub' an' loss be the two big ones fer a cap'n t' deal with. I won't be sayin' ye be lucky or anythin' like tha', bu' ye go' the luxury o' cryin' 'bou' it on someone else's deck. _This_ time. No' many cap'ns ge' _tha'_."

Link nodded. "How do _you_ deal with it?"

Albel's eyes glanced down either end of the hallway before he answered. "I tell meself tha' it be par' o' the job. Tha' there be danger in sailin'. Maybe even tha' one man los' means I still go' the res' o' me crew. Bu', really, I like t' bus' me knuckles on somethin' 'til I can't feel anythin'. Then I do wha' ye be doin' now: doubtin' meself and torturin' me own conscience. An' then, jus' t' make sure me boys ge' where I be comin' from, I snap me tongue like a whip fer 'bou' a week t' make sure no one 'as t' die again." Albel held up one hand to examine his scarred knuckles. "Every time, it feels like I ge' closer to sha'erin' me hands t' pieces."

Link bowed his head again. "I-I'm sorry. This… this all must look so _stupid_ to you."

"Bein' a cap'n don't be 'bou' growin' callous. An' with _tha'_ attitude, no one will _ever_ believe ye be a cap'n."

Link wiped one eye off on his knee. "I guess I don't have what it takes then."

"Tha' be the sour taste on yer tongue talkin'. Ye don't be on a ship if ye don't 'ave the guts."

"I don't think I ever had a choice; sailing's been my whole life."

"Then ye bes' be gettin' yer ac' together, scum," Albel said with a tone shift toward hostile. "Somewhere up in those clouds, one idio' though ye 'ad wha' it takes t' be cap'n. I'll tell ya the secre' righ' now. A cap'n gets t' _be_ cap'n by doin' wha' 'e 'as t' keep 'is crew alive an' kickin'. An' a cap'n does tha' by orderin' 'is crew t' do their jobs knowin' tha' may be the _las'_ thin' you tell 'em." He paused for a moment as he contemplated Link's huddled form. "Take from tha' wha' ye wan'. Bu' the nex' time I see yer scum on a ship, I expec' ya t' 'ave a _spine_."

Link refused to respond, having nothing else to tell the captain who would so blatantly scold him for having feelings. Albel turned on his heel and walked back down the hallway towards the bridge.

At the same time, Dholit appeared in the hallway, trying to find Link. Upon seeing Captain Albel approaching her, she slid to one side. Albel stopped and eyed her for a moment. "Bes' be doin' yer thin', lass," he told her. "Maybe _coddlin'_ will ge' 'im ou' o' me 'allway."

Dholit let him walk further away before hissing at him, "Taf xwabdhiyn addu saylotak Liynk zasafat 'anw gayix tab coyyayxwot. Calfikw." She continued down the corridor until she was standing above Link in the same place Albel had been standing. She contemplated him a bit before asking, "How ah you doing, Link?"

Link tightened himself up. "Bad, Dholit," he told her. "I'm not in the mood."

"You ah _nevah_ in the mood." Then she took a seat next to him. "But that is why I find that you ah _always_ in the mood."

"A man died, Dholit," he said. "You could at least show some respect."

Silence.

"Link, look at me."

Link took a moment to respond. He lifted his head and turned to find Dholit's face close to his. Her mouth was drawn into an emotionless line, but her eyes told him that she was just as capable of taking a situation as seriously as he was. "Believe what you will about me," she told him. "But this is the wohst time to leave youh side. I've said it befoah; I can be anyone you want me to be. A loveh… oh just a friend. But I will _not_ be away from youh side. As much as you may detest me foh it, I will not leave you like this."

Link said nothing. Instead, he buried his face into his knees again.

Then, after maybe half a minute of thinking about it, he set his feet back on the floor and leaned onto her shoulder. She waited until he was asleep before picking him up over one shoulder and taking him to his cabin.


	60. Kakucha Island

Chapter 60: Kakucha Island

…

~~Day 26.

…

~~Day 27.

~~We've been delayed a day due to our encounter with the Cloud Moon, an Airliner vessel the Goddess's Tides encountered on the way to Kakucha Island.

~~I've been down lately. It's one thing to have someone you actually know die far away from you. And then there was Airman Jared of the Cloud Moon. I didn't even know him, and yet it feels worse to hear a man's name before he dies right in front of you. I w—I never felt so hel—I don't kn—

~~I can't tell what I should have done, or even if I could've done anything. One moment, he was lying on the deck having a conversation with Seaman Gold, and, the next thing I know, he dies on the Goddess's Tides with all the quiet of a long sleep. It disturbed me so much that I couldn't do anything yesterday. I didn't even eat or sleep.

~~About as disturbing were Airman Jared's last words. He told us that "devils" had attacked the ship. If it hadn't been for us finding "Skyriders are devils" written on the stern of the ship, it would have at least been a stretch to conclude that any single company could have done this. Instead, it's so damning that it's as if I have no choice but to hate myself. To think my own company did this, it's so disgusting that I feel like I can throw up if I think too hard. Actually, I think I did last night. And that statement—No one defaces their ship like that just to make a statement. Something very wrong is going on in the sky, and, somehow, the Skyriders are in the middle of it. I don't think it's possible but… could this have something to do with Line's scribbling all over that map we found on the Horizon's Eye? Maybe to do with whomever Line was transporting out of the storm? It's all so insane right now.

~~It's so insane that I'm actually afraid to return.

…

When Seaman Gold had told them that they might understand why the _S.E.S. Goddess's Tides_ could only reach certain islands in the next days at sea, Link, Irleen, Dholit, and Cale found themselves realizing that he had not been trying to be cryptic. What had happened to the Ocean Realm was beyond simple words. At first, it seemed as if everything was normal when Seaman Bently invited them onto the weather deck as the steamer approached the island. Irleen was the first to realize it due to her vantage point not being obscured by some of the steamer's geometry. To the north, the ocean simply rose up probably two stories higher than steamer. This shelf of water exerted all the calm of the ocean surrounding them as if it was a natural occurrence. Both Cale and Dholit expressed shock as they tried to explain the concept of "tides" to Link and Irleen (not realizing that islands in the sky were still subject to those same forces). Nothing seemed to indicate why the water was so high. It looked like the ocean simply rolled up and over something. At least, it appeared to Link that the water was moving up; the steamer maintained distance from the shelf as if fearing it would suddenly collapse on top of them. Of course, considering the madness to the situation, it seemed quite possible.

Kakucha Island appeared on the horizon about an hour later. It appeared as if a mountain had simply been planted in the middle of the ocean. But as the ship approached for docking on the southeast side of the island, Link could better see a grass plain surrounding a small town on the south side of the mountain. The port was a series of docks and a couple of wooden warehouses, surprisingly small as far as ports go, although Link _had_ seen smaller. Only a few small ships and boats were docked, maybe five of them steamers like the _Goddess's Tides_. Most of the sailing vessels were ketches, although Link happened to notice a cutter and a sunfish, the latter being a rare vessel in the sky due to its primary, lanteen-rigged sail being a hassle to use around Sky Lines.

The steamer docked and moored, and the crew set to work offloading crates. Cale had to retrieve the new bag he bought for his supplies, so Link, Irleen, and Dholit lingered about the weather deck waiting for him, watching as the crew moved stuff from the hold.

"A'oy, mateys," Gold said as he approached them.

"Hello," Dholit replied with a smile while Link gave him a vague nod.

Gold caught the downcast look Link gave him and released a sigh. "I'm sorry we couldn't do anythin' fer that airman, Cap'n," he said.

"No one's holding you responsible for it," Irleen said.

Gold indicated Link with a nod. "Yer cap'n is."

Link shook his head. "No, I… I understand," he said, turning completely to Gold. "I've… I've just got so many things on my mind right now. What could be going on up there… stuff like that."

"Aye," Gold said with a nod.

"The Skyriders don't have a reason to shoot down _any_ airships unless they're pirates. It wouldn't do anything to shoot down a _passenger_ vessel."

"Well, you _have_ been down heah foh almost a month," Dholit replied.

"Thin's change," Gold added. "Three weeks 'fore, we set out tae Kakucha Island fer our usual run. When we got back, the 'aze that's always over the Forest Realm disappeared. Yeh never _know_ if thin's are gonna be the same when you go 'ome."

"Maybe," Link said, "but that's too much of a change for me. It doesn't feel right."

"Aye. Look, I don't know what good it'll be, but there's a bar just outside the dock. The Friendly Sailor. That's the best place tae find a ship tae some o' these smaller islands."

"Thank you," Link said with a nod.

"Sorry we couldn't tow that ship fer yeh."

Link just shook his head. "It would probably sink by the time we got back to Hovela. And even if it hadn't, the most important part of the ship, the ballast tank, was wrecked. That's what we're missing."

"Aye." He glanced over his shoulder. "Look, I go'a get back tae work. Good luck, Cap'n. An' if yeh need any more answers, yer scholar friend's got the logbook from that ship."

"Thank you," Link said.

Gold stepped over to the bridge for a moment and glanced up at the windows. Then he disappeared around the side. Link looked up at the windows and saw Captain Albel glaring down at him. He could feel the captain's disgust across the distance, but Albel was the first to break their staring contest to talk to the seaman addressing him from behind.

"I didn't know they found the logbook," Irleen said, breaking Link's focus.

"They found it afteh you two followed the aihman back to the _Tides_," Dholit explained. "Captain Albel thought it should go with us since Link was wohking on retahning to the sky."

"Link, that could be something," Irleen told him as she flew a circle around his head. "Maybe it explains why one of your ships shot this other one down."

Link nodded. "Maybe, but we'll deal with that when we have the time."

"Cale!" Irleen suddenly snapped. Dholit and Link looked over at the boarding plank, where Cale stood with a surprised look on his face. "Wait for us!"

…

Lunch preceded the bar, although they saw it as they passed by. Many food stalls lined the streets close to the port, so they spent half an hour trying a few local foods while discussing their plan. Since they could not be certain which island was the one they needed to go, they would have to ask around before finding a vessel to take them there. The simplest thought they had was to ask if some of the stall owners or grocers ever had regular customers which did not live on the island. This turned out to be harder than expected; even though the grocers gave names, none of them knew which islands these customers lived on. Two names which kept on appearing were Cole and Rosaline, and they both came up due to none of the grocers ever meeting them. The third grocer to mention one of them (Rosaline) explained that neither of them actually traveled from their homes. Instead, they sent hired help to island. Cole's help was usually a well-dressed man or woman while Rosaline always sent the same man who generally appeared to be a tired-looking bum. Unfortunately, none of the grocers could establish whether either was the offspring of the Architects they were looking for.

When it came time for them to try the bar, they were surprised to discover a board set up on the wall in adjacent to the door. On it was a hand-drawn map skewered with pins and decorated with colored thread and cards bearing ship names and contact information. While Dholit chatted with the few seamen having a drink behind them, Link, Irleen, and Cale examined the map. Well, Link and Cale discussed it; Irleen could not read it.

"I think I undehstand it," Cale said. He pointed out the lines of threat on the map. "So, each of these strings is colohed, and the sample string on each cahd indicates which string belongs with which."

"Which I get," Link said, "but why are they arranged like this? It's weird. It'd be easier opening an office or something."

"Well, they'h all pinned to the top cohneh heah, which is probably this poht," Cale said, forcing Link back as he circled a fingertip around the top-left corner of the map. Link could see the reasoning behind it; the location corresponded to the relative location of the island with the other islands Cale had shown him on a map of the Ocean Realm. "The threads show wheah these ships travel."

"And dot be dee idea, friends." Both Cale and Link turned around at the sound of a woman's voice behind them. Dholit stood there, and next to her was a woman of larger girth and shorter stature. Her skin was not as dark as Dholit's, and she sported a wart in one corner of her mouth. Her clothing was a simple, wool wrap covering her chest under her arms and continuing down to end in a skirt. Her hair was black dreadlocks tied behind her head. She held a tray under one arm, which told Link that she was a worker in the bar and not part of a ship's crew.

Link pointed a finger at the map. "Your customers leave this information for other customers wanting to travel to any of these islands?"

"Yes," the woman replied. "Dis place, it don't be Hovela. It don't have a company based here. Dee only way to get work, it be by findin' contact here."

"How long have you worked here?" Link asked. "Do you know most of these people?"

She nodded. "Dey like to work out deir arrangements while drinkin'. Good for dem, good for os."

"Have you heahd the names 'Cole' oh 'Rosaline', pehchance?" Cale asked.

"Cole, he be a man who likes privacy," she told them, her free hand waving as she talked. "He don't like to show his face. He send his slaves here to bring him bottles an' people who don't have a job. He be a wealfy man, but no one here, dey don't like him."

"And Rosaline?" Dholit asked.

The woman frowned at her. "Never heard dot name before."

"Hey, guys?" Irleen spoke up. She made a circle in the air around an island on the map. "There's no thread on this island, but why is there a pin?"

The woman first replied with an irritated sigh. "Oh, _dot_. Dot be a mistake."

"No one goes here?" Link asked.

"A waste of man, _he_ go dere," the woman explained. "Seven years ago, he put his card an' route on da map. A week later, he take it down. I ask him why while he drink himself stupid. He say his employer, she don't want people to know she be dere. He make her mad, an' he drink himself out of business."

"Tough luck," Irleen said.

"Did you eveh heah the employeh's name?" Cale asked.

The woman shrugged. "He _never_ say her name. But… she may be dot 'Rosaline' you ask about. I know her name, it begin with 'R'."

"What about _him_?" Link asked. "Do you still have his business card?"

"He take it off da wall," she answered. Then she frowned as she remembered something. "But I know his boat. It be a steamer. I don't dink of it before, but he name it 'Rosaline'."

"'Rosaline' is the name of his _ship_?" Dholit asked. "Everyone else around heah says it's a _pehson_."

"But no one else has _met_ her," Irleen pointed out.

Cale held up a hand to silence everyone for a moment. "Have you heahd the names 'Ben' and 'Lorie' befoah?" he asked the woman.

She nodded. "After da problem wif dee ocean, dey helped build da port. Dem an' deir boy." She scrunched her face as she remembered. "Da boy, he moved to Salachia Island after his parents, dey die. Dot be a long time ago."

Cale hummed as he nodded, prompting Link to ask, "What do you think?"

Cale glanced back at the map. "All of these otheh islands have names," Cale said. Then he pointed to the island with just the pin on it. "Why not this one?"

"No one, dey don't know about the island until dot man, he come in here an' declare his business," the woman said.

"Why?" Dholit asked.

"The book Luggahd found," Cale explained. "It said that Ben and Lorie had moved to an _outlying_ island, not Kakucha. So they didn't live _heah_, right?"

The woman frowned. "I don't _dink_ so. No one, dey never say where dose two live."

"You think this island may be our answer?" Irleen asked.

"Well, ah most of the otheh islands inhabited?" Cale asked.

Link frowned and looked at the map. "I would _guess_ so," Link said. "Only a few of them have a single ship willing to travel to them."

"You be right, friend," the woman said. "Da people of dee Ocean Realm, dey move to dose islands when da waters, dey rise."

"But no one, as far as you know, lives here," Link reasoned as he pointed to the unnamed island.

She nodded. "I suppose. Oferwise, people, dey would need a ship dot go dere." Then she frowned at them. "Why do you be searchin' for dese people?"

"We need help making an airship," Irleen said.

The woman, who had begun forming a suspicious look, immediately changed it to a confused stare. "What?"

"It's a long story," Link said. Then he asked Cale, "Are you sure it's this island?"

"I'm suah that, if it weh any otheh island, someone would give us a moah definite answeh," Cale said.

"Wheah can we find the man who travels to that island?" Dholit asked.

"He like to sleep on his boat," the woman said. "He be in da port if not here."

"Cale, youh wallet," Dholit said, holding out a hand. Cale, after giving her a confused glance, handed over a blue wallet. Dholit opened it and took out a red rupee. "Thank you," she told the woman as she handed it over. "You've been a great help."

"My pleasure," the woman replied with a grin as she took the rupee.

They stepped out of the bar a minute later.

And Link nearly tripped on the way out. "Ah, geez!" he shouted.

"Whoop," Dholit uttered as she slipped between Link and the doorway as he stopped to lean on it. "What's wrong?"

"Ugh. I tripped on the doorframe, and it tore my boot," Link replied as he looked at his right boot. The sole had been torn from the toe, and Link just now noticed that the edge of the boot was frayed until his socks were nearly visible above the stitching which held the sole to the leather upper. He looked at the other boot and saw that a hole had been worn on the inside of the ball of the boot. Link gave a frustrated growl. "I guess I'm going to need new boots soon."

…

Not that it was easy for Link to walk around with the toe of his sole dangling whenever he took a step, but he did his best to ignore it as they searched the port. Fortunately, the search did not take long; they found a small steamship hidden at the northern end of the docks. It had a white hull, which was revealed to be made from wood due to many scratches and holes in the side. A cross-shaped anchor made of black iron hung from the side of the bow, and a steel plate just above it read "S.S. Rosaline". The bow supported a raised deck, but the overall ship could not have been any higher than two decks. The prow was reinforced with steel and sported a railed platform. The metal railing continued down until the stern, which was taken up by a dome-shaped superstructure and a pair of wooden waterwheels. A single plank bridged the gap between the dock and the weather deck.

And, above the waves breaking against the nearby cliff, all four could hear someone snoring.

"Well, it's the right ship," Cale said. He asked Link, "What do you think?"

"I think the guy who put this boat together may have been a little cross-eyed," Link replied. "I don't see any support for emergency sail rigging, the superstructure looks like someone's house… and I think I smell alcohol."

"You'd expect being around Sello would desensitize you to that," Irleen said.

"The boat's hull integrity is questionable," Link said as he waved a hand to point out the holes in the side. "The stern is weighed down, probably with the ship's steam engine. The mooring lines aren't properly secured. To tell you the truth, I'd rather build a sloop and sail there myself."

"I wouldn't mind if we had that option," Cale said as he glanced behind them. "But, as it is, we might be betteh off."

"He _does_ know the way," Dholit pointed out. "Remembeh, no one else would know about the island if it hadn't been foh his caahlessness."

"Unfortunately, it doesn't give much credit to his character," Irleen said. "On top of being a drunk, he's a blabbermouth. I'm beginning to question the people we've been getting involved with, Link."

"These Hylians can be very strange," Dholit said, giving an exaggerated shrug.

"You're not exactly sane yourself," Irleen told her, hovering in front of her face.

"We're losing daylight," Link told them. "So how do we want to approach this?"

Dholit held a finger to her lips. Again, above the sound of the nearby waves, someone was snoring quite loud. She curled a finger at Link. "Lend me youh swohd."

"Why?" Link asked, grabbing the handle.

"The best way to get a man to do something is to catch him off-guahd," she explained. "It's how I almost got _you_."

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?" Irleen asked as Link drew and handed the Lokomo Sword over.

He sighed as he followed Dholit up the plank. "I don't know anymore."

The weather deck only sported enough room for about a dozen people. The single man lying in the middle of the deck somehow made it look smaller, probably because of his height. He wore a blue jacket that reached as far as his knees. He had left it open, revealing a grey button-down shirt (which might have been white at some point in its life) and black slacks. Dangling from his neck was a red tie poorly positioned. He sported short, thick, black hair which looked more like a bird's nest. His long, narrow face wore a pencil moustache and a goatee, reminding Link of the men who ran some of the game shops on Timbre Island. His skin was a few shades darker than Link. He lay on the deck with one leg crossed over the other and his hands behind the back of his head for use as a pillow. If it was not for the dirt marring both his face and his clothes, he would actually look like a fairly decent man. As he was though, he fit the descriptions the grocers had given them of the man associated with "Rosaline".

Dholit flashed Link a playful smile. Then she twirled the sword in her hand, changing her grip, and thrust it into the slanted section of the deck in the space between the man's left arm and his head. The man's eyes opened, and he remained perfectly still as he followed the sword's glittering blade with his eye along its length, up across Dholit's arm until he met her face. His eyes widened with fright, and he remained motionless as if it would save his life. And, considering the first impression Dholit was giving, it was probably true.

"Hello there," Dholit said, the change in her accent prompting Link and Cale to exchange looks.

"Hi!" the man replied with a loud, reflexive voice. "I didn' do it!"

"Do what?" Dholit asked.

"Wha'ever!" the man said, remaining still despite the panic building on his face.

Dholit leaned backward to give Link a smug look. Then she turned back to the man. "Name?" she asked.

"Linebeck the Sixth!"

Dholit released the sword and placed her right foot on the guard. "Hi, Linebeck," she said in a casual tone. "I'm Dholit." She formed one hand into a gun shape and pointed it at him. "And you're the man I'm looking for."

"No I'm no'," Linebeck replied, sweat forming on his face.

"Oh, but you _are_," Dholit said. She leaned closer, a feat only feasible due to her flexibility. "Rosaline."

"I never me' the girl b'fore in my entire _life_!" Linebeck declared.

Dholit's brow furrowed in a fake show of confusion. "Funny. I was simply stating the name of your… your boat." Linebeck's jaw clapped shut. "Care to share more?"

"N-no' really," Linebeck told her, his tone relaxing.

"Are you sure?" Dholit said, standing back to her full height.

She stomped on the sword's guard, prompting a surprised jerk from Linebeck. "Look, I only bring her groceries anymore!" he shouted. "She dunni' like me tellin' people 'bou' her! Please! She already hates me enough, and I don' wan' her to hate me more!" He lifted his head so he could hold his hands up in surrender. "I'll give you anythin', I swear!"

"How about some answers, then?" Dholit said. "This 'Rosaline' girl, is she related to the same Ben and Lorie who put together this port?"

Linebeck glanced over at Link and Cale. "Y-yeah, she's their granddaughter."

Cale blinked at Dholit. "Wow," he commented. "I nevah expected it to be so… simple."

"Yeah, well, it probably has something to do with the implication of _death_," Irleen replied.

"Of couhse," Cale said with a nod. He indicated the plank with an awkward finger. "Sh-should I… go?"

"Maybe just look away for now."

Linebeck gulped audibly. "L-look, I-I don' wan' any trouble."

"Neither do we," Dholit told him. "So here's what we need. We have a project we can use some help on, and we would like to ask Rosaline if she would be interested."

"She's gonna say 'no'," Linebeck said.

"For someone who doesn't know a girl named Rosaline, you don't mind acting like her mouthpiece."

"Sh-sh-she values her privacy."

"So do I, but I don't mind meeting new people, either."

Linebeck took a moment to find the meaning in her words. Then he gave a silent stammer before saying, "Y-y-y-y-y-you can'!"

"It's not like we can't pay you," Dholit said with an indifferent shrug.

"Th-tha's why she dunni' like me in the firs' place!"

Dholit giggled. "Oh, my dear Linebeck the Sixth. I don't think _many_ people like you in the first place." Linebeck groaned and placed his free hand over his face.

"Dholit, don't you think this is a little… overboard?" Link asked.

"Oh, yeah," she said. "But you were the one who said we were losing daylight. If we can hurry this up, we might make it back to Kakucha Island and spend the night _here_ instead of his girlfriend's island."

"B-bu—" Linebeck started.

"Ah!" Dholit interrupted. "But you don't want to anger her, do you? Let me tell you something, Linebeck the Sixth." She leaned in closer again and whispered, "I'm worse."

Linebeck's slow nod sped up a bit. "Y-yes, ma'am." He made to stand, but he realized that his left sleeve was pinned to the deck. "Uh… d-do you mind?"

"Of course," Dholit said. She removed her foot from the sword and pulled it out with both hands. Linebeck rolled over and pushed open the hatch next to him. Then he crawled into it backwards.

After the hatch closed behind him, Link turned to Dholit. "What… what _exactly_ was all that?" he asked.

"Like I said," Dholit answered as she offered the sword's handle to him. "The best way to get a man to do what you want is to catch him off-guahd."

"Ooookay," Link said. He took the sword back. "What about that accent? What was _that_ all about?" Dholit's grin grew a little wider. Link turned to Cale, who pursed his lips and tried not to smile. Link then looked at Irleen, who just hovered near his head, silently watching him. "What?"

"It's considerably hahd to intimidate someone with a swohd and _leahned_ accent," Dholit said. "If you would only _act_ it, you would actually sound a little… _gruff_ with that pirate accent of youhs, Link."

"What?" Link asked, head recoiling in confusion. "What accent? What are you talking about?"

"That," Dholit replied with a giggle.

Link turned back to Cale. "Do I sound like a pirate?"

Cale jerked as he suppressed the urge to laugh. "It's a very… distinctive accent, Link," he said.

"I _don't_ have an accent," he told them. "I _don't_!"

"You do," Cale told him.

"Definitely," Dholit added.

"I've sounded like a pirate this whole time?" Irleen asked. "Wait, do I _still_ sound like a pirate?"

"Yeah," Cale said.

"The truth huhts," Dholit chimed.

"Link, give Cale your gem," Irleen said.

"I _don't_ have an accent!" Link shouted at her.


	61. Because I Couldn't Find a Two-By-Four

Chapter 61: Because I Couldn't Find a Two-By-Four

…

—3/27

—Had a meeting with the company. Discovered that our regular route isn't the only thing missing. The home office has sent out messengers to our branch offices to find other vessels and tell them to hold at port until a solution can be determined. Ordered the men some free time on the island. If we ship out, there's no telling when we'll next see leave.

—3/28

—Noticed a bunch of strange sounds last night. Woke up this morning and saw guns being mounted to a schooner docked near us. Seemed innocuous at first, but then I noticed later this afternoon that the schooner wasn't the only one. It looks like a number of non-combat ships are arming themselves. Two things about this concern me. First, all of those guns would cost a lot of money, so someone is either giving them the guns or someone has recently hit a big payoff that has drained half of the kingdom of its wealth. Second. I thought I was imagining it at first, but after I spoke with a couple of my airmen, I find it safe to conclude that the vessels being armed are all vessels of the Skyriders company. I can't be sure what's going on, but I think the executives at the Skyriders company have lost their minds.

—3/29

—Spoke with Captain Nolien of the Sky Trails, a Zephyr Sails cargo schooner. He told me that he noticed the Hyrulean Knights had taken an interest in the Skyriders; a number of them were seen guarding vessels all over the port. I can only imagine that the Royal Family might be involved somehow. It's not hard to connect them to the Skyriders since all of their highly-paid servants wear those green tunics. The Castle Island Police look like they've stepped up patrols, too. I can't be sure why, but it certainly feels like something bad is about to happen.

—3/30

—Airmen Samson and Jared were arrested by the police this afternoon, along with three airmen from another Airliners vessel. I've spoken with the bureau chief. Turns out they wandered into a "restricted" zone on the southeast side of the port. The chief told me that the area was deemed off-limits by the Hyrulean Knights, but he won't say why. All I know is no one has ever limited the port like that. I've told my crew to pass the word around to stay away from that area, but part of my problem is that the warehouses in that area used to hold some of the company's replacement parts and supplies. I doubt if the home office is happy about our warehouses being taken over by the knights.

—4/1

—Set sail for Turtle Island this afternoon, expecting arrival in the early evening. The company is ordering us out to Turtle Island, chasing rumors that the Skyriders have vessels on guard out there.

—4/1 Supplemental

—Ordered to heave-to and prepare to be boarded by the Skyrider vessel Dazzling Storm. Almost told them to stuff it until I heard the captain order his men to the guns. They boarded and searched for half an hour, then the captain apologized, saying that they believe someone dangerous has been wandering around and commenting that they lost a ship in the area. Told him that we were ordered here by the company; fortunately, I didn't have to explain why. I imagine he wouldn't have taken too kindly to knowing that the Airliners were spying on them. We set into port, and I told my men to keep their ears open for anything interesting.

—4/2

—Heard from a local that an old cargo schooner passed through here last month. He couldn't tell me what ship it was since the ship never docked. He thought it was strange that the ship was sailing towards the Undying Storm, but no one could set out in time to stop it. He thinks it was either a Skyrider or a Fair Traveler. If the attitude of some of the local Skyrider airmen is any indication, it was probably one of their vessels. It apparently wasn't a regular vessel; up until a week ago, all of the regular vessels were accounted for. I sent a message back to the home office, but I haven't quite figured out why the Skyriders are lurking about the island.

—4/3

—Had my ship vandalized. Evidentially, we've been mistaken for a Skyrider ship; someone painted "Skyriders are devils" on the stern. Considering the general consensus on the island, it might be justified. Three bar fights broke out last night between my crew and other Airliners and some of the Skyrider airmen from the local vessels. The island's sheriff explained that this has been happening since the Dazzling Storm, the Guns of Lightning, and the Nayru's Messenger started guarding the Dawn Line. The Skyriders are hiding something.

—4/4

—Had a meeting with the captains of the Clear Skies and the Golden Horizon. We're agreed that there's something suspicious going on with the Skyriders, and that we should have a look at what they're up to. Even my own airmen agree that the Skyriders aren't up to any good. We'll be coordinating our maneuvers tonight so that the Skyriders won't suspect us coming.

The following page was blank.

Having free time since the trip to Rosaline's Island would be about two hours, Link had decided to sit down with Captain Gale's logbook. As he figured dates in his head and compared them to his journal, he calculated that the _Cloud Moon_ had been sunk two nights before the _S.E.S. Goddess's Tides_ found them. It made him feel even sorrier for Airman Jared, who had probably been slowly dying long before he was rescued. It amazed him that the airman had survived for that long, especially when he did not appear to have had the same luck to be able to secure himself like Link and Irleen had.

He flipped through and reread some of the passages. Unfortunately, before the entry when Captain Gale described his regular route as "missing", everything looks like business as usual. In fact, it wasn't until that occurred when he had started making daily entries; before then, he only made entries every few days.

"Anything interesting?" Irleen asked.

Link looked up to find her, Dholit, Cale, and Linebeck hovering over him. They were below deck at the bow of Linebeck's boat. At the other end of the deck was the boat's engine, a boiler with pipes appearing to vanish into the hull. Against Link's expectations, the boat only had the one large deck between the weather deck and the bilge, able to access the weather deck or the bridge by ladders at either end. Link sat on an empty crate fore of the ladder to the weather deck, an area where Linebeck seemed to favor throwing supplies and whatever else he seemed to find.

"Yeah, kinda," Link replied. "The _Cloud Moon_ must have fallen about two days before we found it. It looks like they were trying to find out what the Skyriders were doing around Turtle Island."

"Tuhtle Island?" Cale asked. "Why Tuhtle Island?"

Link cast him an annoyed glare. "Because it looks like a turtle."

"N-no, I-I mean what weh the Skyridehs doing?"

"Oh. Well, it looks like some of our ships were guarding the Sky Line which leads to the Undying Storm."

"Is that normal?" Irleen asked.

Link shook his head. "Not really. No _sane_ captain or crew would go near the Undying Storm; placing airships on guard at that Sky Line is pointless."

"Suspicious is moah like it," Dholit said. "If you think about it, posting aihships around a location which no one goes to _anyway_ is much likeliah to attract attention. It's a wondeh why the _Cloud Moon_ is the only vessel we've discovehed."

"Is theah anything of value in the Undying Stohm?" Cale asked.

"Just my home, really," Irleen said. "Nothing of any real importance."

"Well…" Link said. "Considering that there's a new way to Forelight Island, I suppose it's possible that some kind of trade can develop. But, as far as _I_ know, the Skyriders have never tried to cut off any other company from business like this. And the fact that our ships are being armed seems to make me think something else is going on."

"A coup d'état, pehhaps?" Cale suggested.

"A _what_?" Irleen asked.

"A coup d'état. An uprising. Pehhaps youh company decided a… hos…" Cale trailed off at the glare Link was giving him. "Pehhaps not?"

"If you're talking about rebellion, the answer's no," Link told him. "Captains of the Skyrider Company are loyal to the kingdom; each captain is officially recognized—" He jerked on the front of his tunic to demonstrate. "—by a member of the royal family. If anything, the Skyriders are likely to rise up _against_ such a threat."

"Then maybe _that's_ the reason," Dholit said. "Maybe theah _is_ a threat to the kingdom, and shooting down the _Cloud Moon_ was just a disastrous misundehstanding."

"I suppose that _could_ be the case," Link said. Then he snapped his fingers. "No, that _has_ to be the case."

"You sound sure," Linebeck said.

Irleen, Cale, and Dholit turned their heads to stare at him. "Why don't you go pilot like you'h _suppose_ to?" Dholit told him. Linebeck scrunched his face in annoyance before walking away.

"No, it makes sense," Link continued. "Irleen, remember when I disappeared at the top of the Tower of Spirits?"

"I remember diving for the ground to make sure you hadn't slipped and killed yourself in some stupid way," she told him.

Link paused to give her an irritated look. "Right. Anyway, I met a spirit up there. One of the Lokomo, I think he said. He told me that 'evil' is emerging from the sky, and he pointed out the Undying Storm to me."

Irleen bobbed in the air as if she was nodding. "Cunimincus," she said. "But… I think that, if _he_ escaped, we would see ships dropping left and right."

"Sohry, who?" Cale asked.

"Cunimincus," Irleen said. "If it helps, he was once a general of Malladus."

Cale's eyes widened. "Oh, deah."

"Maybe the Skyriders _know_ he's trying to escape," Link suggested.

"Youh diary mentioned that youh friend… what was his name… Line?" Dholit said.

"Yeah."

"Youh diary said that you believe he's still alive. Could he have brought wohd back to the kingdom? Afteh all, you _weh_ carrying a princess who was kidnapped."

Link's face turned to a look of shock. "Yeah, that's right," he said. "She snuck out of the castle. And if her parents got back…"

"And youh friend brought news back to the kingdom…" Dholit said.

"The king and queen recruited the Skyriders!" Link shouted. "They're trying to get her _back_!"

"Which means the ships which shot down the _Cloud Moon_ might not have been guahding the Sky Line," Cale said.

"If Cunimincus still has a crew," Irleen said, "it's possible that _they_ came back on the _Horizon's Eye_ with Line."

"Which Line could've told others about," Link reasoned. "So the Skyriders were trying to _prevent_ Cunimincus' crew from returning."

Dholit nodded. "It doesn't mean much foh the crew of the _Cloud Moon_, but it at least explains a few things."

"Especially if no one explained to the otheh companies what was happening," Cale said.

There was a pause as they all took in the new information. Then Dholit said, "Wow. You'h right, Link. Things _ah_ insane up theah."

Link glared at her. "Have you been reading my journal again?"

"I read it this mohning while you weh eating breakfast."

"Wow," Irleen said. "Things just keep on getting more complicated, don't they?"

Dholit turned to her. "Ah you all right? You sound a little depressed."

"Yeah, yeah, I ju—… This is _crazy_." She looked around for a moment. "And this is all happening while we're down _here_. It's like—like reading a _novel_."

Cale shook his head. "I think I need some aih," he told them. "I'll be on the deck above."

"I think I'll join you," Irleen said.

"Do you want your gem?" Link asked, already reaching for his pocket.

"No, that's fine," she told him. "I just… I'll just—I just wanna collect my thoughts for a bit."

"Okay," Link said, watching her lead Cale up the ladder.

Dholit waited until they closed the hatch before saying, "Poah gihl. Whatevah must be happening up theah, it sounds as if heh home is right in the middle."

Link nodded. "Yeah."

She glanced down at him. "How about _you_? Ah you feeling bettah?"

"I suppose. It _still_ hurts that the _Cloud Moon_ was shot down and her entire crew died. Even knowing the reason… it just doesn't seem fair."

She sat down next to him. "I wish I could tell you it was justified, but I feel the same way. Pehhaps they weh, but theah was no way foh youh ships to know any bettah."

Link nodded. He closed the book and set it aside. "I guess something good _did_ come out of me losing my ship."

"What do you mean?"

"Captain Gale, the captain of the _Cloud Moon_, said that people on Turtle Island saw the _Island Sonata_ sailing towards the storm. It lends credibility if Line told anyone what happened to us."

"Oh. Oh, that's good. Although…" She giggled. "I can imagine what will happen to that credibility when you get back."

Link opened his mouth to correct the statement with the word "if", but he decided against it. Instead, he smiled and said, "Yeah." He sighed and stood up. He was not sure what he thought about this new information. The fact that the Skyriders had sunk the _Cloud Moon_ still disturbed him, but since it seemed that it might have been for a cause (albeit mistaken), the weight of Airman Jared's death as well as the death of the ship's crew felt a little lighter. At least it was not for malicious purposes.

Something caught Link's eye as he looked around the deck. He turned and started looking through a pile of junk as Linebeck descended from the bridge.

"'Scuse me," he said as he approached Dholit. "I jus' wanted to clear up a few thin's."

"Is that so, Mistah Linebeck?" Dholit asked, picking up her legs and leaning backwards a bit.

"Firs', it's 'Captain'," he told her. "Humble as it may be, this is still a sea vessel."

Dholit jerked a thumb at Link. "His is biggah."

_Bam!_ "Ow," Link grunted after hitting his hand on a nearby box.

Linebeck glanced between her and him. "Wha', the _runt_?"

"That 'runt' is fohmehly the captain of an _aihship_," Dholit said. "And I'm quite cehtain that whatevah the product of this ventuah, his vessel will be much moah impressive."

Linebeck gave her a disbelieving look. "Wha'ever. Secon'. _You_ four caugh' me off-guard. I'm holdin' _you_ responsible if I ge' in trouble for all this."

"If you'h wohried that theah will be repehcussions that will souh youh relationship with youh gihlfriend, I should tell you that I am quite adept at soothing men _and_ women. So I have absolutely _no_ qualms about taking responsibility if youh gihlfriend sees fit."

"Fine. Thir'. I should ge' somethin' in return for this. Bad 'nough tha' you're gonna play with my life like this."

"Yes, I believe I _did_ mention payment," Dholit said. "So how much do you expect to be paid?"

Linebeck's eyes wandered about as he seemed to figure out what should be paid for. "Hmm… well, it costs me 'bou' fifty rupees' worth of fuel for a round trip. How's sixty sound?"

"Link?"

Link paused from pulling a large piece of leather from underneath a pile of junk. "Huh?"

"Ouh wheelman, _Captain_ Linebeck, sees it fit to chahge us sixty rupees foh ouh hijacking of his vessel."

Link frowned at her. "Hijacking? Is _that_ what we're calling what you did?"

She gave him a smile before shrugging. "I suppose."

He shrugged and pulled his wallet from his pocket. "Sounds fine," he said as he tossed the wallet to her. Then he pointed down. "Hey, are you using these boots?"

"Hm? What boots?" Linebeck asked.

Link held up one of the boots he had retrieved. "These. You've got a pair here."

"Oh," Linebeck said, starting when Dholit tried to place rupees in his waiting hand. "Yeah, tha's fine. They don' fi' me anyway." He then turned to Dholit and indicated Link with a side-nod. "Why's he sound like a pirate, bu' you don'."

"We'h twins separated at bihth," she replied.

Linebeck frowned as he glanced between them. Then he gave them a dismissive shrug and walked away, counting the rupees in his hand.

…

~~We've (kinda) secured passage to one of the outlying islands in the Ocean Realm. Whoever this Rosaline girl is, I can only hope she is who we think she is.

…

Linebeck jumped from the deck onto the small, T-shaped pier with his single mooring line in hand. Link figured it was his mooring line since the loop at the end did not look like it had been untied from its knot for months. He did not even try tightening it after sliding it over the single bollard on the pier. Link was glad that the waters were calm; in any other condition, the boat would probably float away.

Linebeck spread out his arms and said, "We're here!"

Link, Dholit, Cale, and Irleen looked toward the island itself. Indeed, it was quite small. A single, white house sat in the middle of the island, simple and humble with only one window looking across the pier. Surrounding it were fresh rows of dug-up earth. Only about a quarter of the island's surface was still grass. All in all, Link found it an appealing idea. It made him wonder if he could achieve the same thing on an island in the sky.

"Nice place," Irleen said.

"Quaint," Cale agreed.

"I can see you in a house like this in a few yeahs," Dholit told Link.

"Really?" Link asked.

"With me."

Link shot her an annoyed look. "Right."

Cale was the first to turn to the pier. But he looked down to find Linebeck just standing there, looking over the damage to the hull. "Um… h-how do we get down?" he asked.

"Jus' jump," Linebeck told him.

Cale blinked at him. "Just… jump…" he repeated.

"It isn' hard," Linebeck told him.

"Yipe!" Cale suddenly hollered when Dholit grabbed his left buttock.

Irleen snorted. "Well," she said, trying to suppress her laughter, "he knows _how_ to jump."

"That wasn't funny," Cale said, his hands protecting his rear from Dholit even though he was turned toward her.

"No, but it was _fun_," she told him. She examined her hand, flexing it. "You don't appeah to eat well, but at least you have some cushioning down theah."

Cale's face turned scarlet. "Wha-wha-wha-wha-wha…"

Link sighed. "Can we just _go_?"

"Do you need some help oveh?" Dholit asked Cale.

Cale decided not to say anything else to her. Instead, he turned, stepped up to the edge of the deck, and jumped down to the pier. His landing was a little awkward, but he regained his composure and turned to face the boat again. He backed away as Dholit jumped down and made sure to keep his distance while she teased him by merely looking in his direction. Link and Irleen followed her down. Link was glad to have another pair of boots, scuffed as they may be; attempting to jump down with his old pair might have torn them even more.

They walked up the pier and through the garden, Cale strolling behind Dholit with his hands covering his butt. Linebeck led the way and, when they stopped in front of the house, gave the front door a gentle knock.

"C'mon in!" a voice called from beyond. It was a young woman's voice, and it had traces of the Kakucha Island accent the group had heard all day.

Linebeck shrugged. "So far, so good," he told the group. He grasped the doorknob and turned. Instead of walking in, he slowly pushed open the door as if checking for safety. "Rosaline?"

"I be in heah, Linebeck."

"Sounds pleasant enough," Cale commented.

_PANG-nnnnnnnnnn…_ The metallic slam caused the four of them to turn attention to Linebeck, who dropped to the floor like a broken puppet. Where his head had been was now occupied by a hovering, iron pan. The handle was hidden by a doorway, but Link and Dholit could see the tip of the holder's thumb.

Then a woman stepped into view and looked down at Linebeck. She had a soft, round figure which barely reached higher than Link's own stature. Her skin was only slightly tanned, and she wore a navy-blue shirt and black slacks, looking like a blend of casual and formal which Link had never encountered before. Her hair was just a shade lighter than black and sat on her shoulders in a comfortable manner. Link guessed her to be in her mid-twenties.

"Yeh don't be listenin' to nottin' I say, Linebeck," she told him in a calm voice, her tone sweet despite having just struck Linebeck. "Nottin' at _all_."

Dholit crossed her arms and clicked her tongue at Linebeck. "He doesn't appeah to have much luck with women, does he?" she asked Irleen.

"If he did, do you think he'd be sleeping in a boat back at the port?" Irleen replied.

"Dot be de only way to keep him busy," the young woman told them.

Link carefully stepped around Linebeck and started, "Hello. I'm—"

"I know who yeh be," the woman told him as she stepped into the room. But then she walked toward the back of the house.

"Y-you _do_?" Link asked.

"Poachahs."

Link had just planted his first step to follow her when he froze. "Wha?" he asked.

"What'd she say?" Irleen asked.

"Poachahs," Dholit offered.

"Yeah, that doesn't help," Irleen said.

"Poacha—Poachers? Poachers?" Link asked.

"That makes about as much sense," Irleen said.

"Poachers…" Link pondered. Then he called to the back of the house, "Poachers?"

"Dot's right," the young woman said as she entered the room again, carrying a basket of clothes in front of her. "Poachahs."

"What ah we supposed to be poaching?" Cale asked as he closed the front door.

"Yeh be tellin' me yeh don't be afteh me island?" she asked.

Link glanced around before saying, "No."

She set the basket down on a low table in the middle of the room and turned to them. "Salesmen, then?" she asked.

"Do we look like we'h cahrying any wahes?" Dholit asked, spreading out her arms to show that they were empty.

"Okay, so I didn't tink dot one t'rough." She pulled a sheet out of the basket and began to fold it. "So what do yeh be wantin'?"

"You're Rosaline, right?" Link asked. "Granddaughter of Ben and Lorie?"

She nodded. "Dey be de ones dot gave me dis island. Me faddah built dis house."

"What about you?" Link asked. "Do you do any building?"

"I help Linebeck fix his boat," she told them. "And I occasionally like to go to de odeh islands and build tings. Houses, boats, docks… Hey, yeh don't be from around dis place, do yeh?"

"Do we _look_ like it?" Irleen asked, flying a large circle around the group.

Rosaline gave them a smile. "No, I suppose yeh don't."

"Easy," Link told Irleen. "We have a project that we could use some help on."

"Sohry," Rosaline told them, placing the folded sheet on the armchair behind her. "I don't be travelin' out o' de realm."

"Why not?" Cale asked.

"I don't be interested in problems in de odeh realms," she said. "Too complicated. Dese people heah, dey be simple and fun. I grew up heah, and I don't want to go."

"That's a frightfully introvehted view," Dholit said. She stepped past Link. "Mind if I sit?"

"Please," Rosaline replied, indicating the armchair behind Dholit. "All of yeh, don't feel yeh _have_ to stand."

"What about Linebeck?" Cale asked as Link stepped past Dholit and settled on the edge of the couch in front of the low table.

Rosaline gave him a quick glance. "He be fine. He be pretendin'."

Cale pointed at him. "But… he's unconscious."

"Nah, I'm fine," Linebeck replied, his voice partially muffled by the floor. "I'm jus' nappin' off a headache."

"I spent yeahs bashin' him oveh de head," Rosaline said. "It usually be a boahd. Today, I just be havin' de pan to hit him wit. He has a thick skull."

Dholit grinned. "Noted."

"I don't understand," Link said. "_Why_ won't you leave? You're not afraid someone's gonna take your island, are you?"

"No," Rosaline answered. "I know dot Linebeck will be _sellin'_ me island de moment I leave."

"Oh, c'mon," Linebeck groaned. He lifted and turned his head to look at her. "Haven' I earned _any_ kinda trus'?"

"Oh, I _trust_ yeh to sell me island when I leave." Linebeck moaned in response as he turned his head back.

"There must be _some_ way to convince you," Irleen said.

"I built houses, bridges, docks, wahhouses, boats, ships…" Rosaline told them. She shook her head as she finished the second sheet she had started folding. "I built many tings. I don't be touchin' trains, t'ough. Dose tings change so much, and dey _still_ don't do deih job."

"I've noticed a touch of Hovela in youh accent," Dholit said. "Ah you _suah_ you've nevah traveled out of the realm?"

"Dot be from me grandmoddah. I liked de way she talked." Dholit nodded her understanding.

"I'm from Dockton," Linebeck offered.

"No one cares," Dholit, Rosaline, and Irleen all chimed together. Linebeck blew a short raspberry in response and starting feeling for wounds on his head with one hand.

"Please." All eyes, even Linebeck's, turned to Link. "We need your help."

Rosaline's eyebrows rose. "Yeh be tryin' to put me on de spot?" she asked.

Link shook his head. "No, I really mean it. Irleen and I—" He pointed to Irleen as she settled to a hover over his head. "—we're trying to get back home."

Rosaline paused folding the dress in her arms. For a moment, Link thought he had gotten through to her. She gave a sigh. And then she asked, "If I helped yeh, what good would it do _me_?"

"Are you _kidding_?" Irleen snapped.

"It's a valid question, Ihleen," Dholit said. "You've been lucky up to this point. Leynne seems to be in on this foh the challenge, Sello, well… I would imagine he would strip naked and let anyone use him to clean the inside of an engine foh some alcohol."

"Assuming the end result doesn't _kill_ you fihst," Cale added.

"Lidago doesn't seem to have any otheh engagements," Dholit continued. "And Dubbl, well…" She gave him a brief, irritated look. "You requested _heh_."

"What was _that_ look for?" Irleen asked. Dholit gave a shrug and suddenly took an interest in the ceiling.

"No, she's right, Irleen," Link said. "We really don't have anything to offer. I don't have much money left. And there's really nothing to my name down here."

Rosaline's face formed a confused scowl. "'Down heah'?"

"We fell out of the sky. We need help building an airship so Irleen and I can return."

Rosaline dropped the pants she was folding, a shocked look on her face. The look alarmed Link, who thought she might fall over or pass out in the next moment. Instead, she moved toward Link, causing him to quickly rise to his feet. He braced himself, wondering if he might get hit.

"Mahry me."

Silence filled the house for a moment.

"Oh, Link," Dholit said with a grin, shaking her head.

"Huh?" Link replied.

"_What_!?" Irleen and Linebeck shouted.

"Oh, deah," Cale replied, shuffling toward the empty space near the back of the room.

"Why you li'l—!" Linebeck started as he hauled himself up from the floor.

Link jerked in response, and Rosaline started when she realized what she had just said. She turned to Linebeck. "Linebeck, don't!" she cried.

But Linebeck's advance was halted by Dholit placing one leg on the edge of the low table and, pushing herself out of the chair, pivoting on that leg to swing her other leg in a kick that landed across Linebeck's nose. Linebeck reeled, but he did not go down as easily as when Rosaline had struck him with the pan. Dholit pushed herself towards him and wrapped her feet around one of his legs. Linebeck stumbled and fell onto his butt, striking his head against the wall behind him. Dholit was on her feet in the next moment and planted the bottom of one foot against his throat.

Dholit's breathing was the only sound for a moment. She gained control of her breaths and said, "I believe that you've misintehpreted Rosaline's intentions, Linebeck. I recommend listening befoah making any rash actions. Ah we cleah?"

"Yeah," Linebeck croaked out through Dholit's foot slowly crushing his windpipe. "Sure. O_ka_-hhk!"

"I a'most fohgot he was heah," Rosaline said, offering him a pitying look. Then she turned back to Link and offered an apologetic smile. "Sohry. I suppose yeh be wantin' an explanation."

"Yeah, that'd be nice," Irleen said, dropping until she was between her and Link.

"Well, yeh see… I nevah built an _aihship_ befoah." She offered a nervous giggle. "It be de only ting dot I would like to build."

"Well, this is… strangely convenient," Cale commented.

"Indeed," Dholit agreed.

"Damnes' thin'," Linebeck rasped.

"How come you haven't before?" Irleen asked.

Rosaline spread her arms wide. "Who heah be needin' an aihship?"

"Ah," Irleen replied, floating off to one side. "Point taken."

"How fah did yeh staht?" Rosaline asked.

"Oh, well…" Link responded. "I-I don't think we've started yet. Uh… well, last we knew, the other Architects were looking at sailing ships in Hovela. That was…" He turned to Dholit. "What, two days ago?" Dholit nodded. "I mean, there's not much chance they've even laid down a _keel_ yet."

"Oh!" Rosaline said, jumping. "We bettah get goin' then! Linebeck, yer boat."

Linebeck, now released from Dholit's foot, rubbed one hand on his neck. "You're serious? You've _never_ lef' the Ocean Realm."

"I don't be a recluse, Linebeck," she told him. She clapped her hands at him. "C'mon, c'mon." Linebeck hauled himself to his feet and started toward the door.

"And huhry!" Dholit declared, winding her arm.

"Yeouch!" Linebeck shouted, leaping forward after Dholit delivered a smack to his rear. "Okay, I'm goin'! Geez! Wha' is it with you an' _butts_!?"

"Just feeling a little frisky," she told his back. She cast a grin in Link's direction. "Lack of anything bettah to do."

"Why am I suddenly glad I don't have a butt?" Irleen asked.

"Probably the same reason I wanna strap a plate to _my_ butt," Link said.

"I be gettin' some o' me tings togeddah," Rosaline said. "Meet yeh at de boat."


	62. Chrysobari, Liquid Counter-Paradigm

Chapter 62: Chrysobari, Liquid Counter-Paradigm

…

~~We found Rosaline, and she's willing to come with us to the Forest Realm to help out the other… Architects. I guess that's the only thing to call them; I just can't think of anything else. Anyway, I guess Rosaline's been looking forward to this for some time. She just hasn't had an excuse. We're on our way back to Kakucha Island, where we're hoping to find a place to stay the night and a ride back to the Forest Realm in the morning.

…

_Thunk._ That was the sound Link's and Cale's heads made as they let their heads fall at the same time against the desk. Irleen also fell against the desk, but her tiny body hardly made a sound.

The dock secretary jumped in surprise, catching his glasses just as they slid off the end of his nose. "I'm sohry, boys, I really am. But most of the vessels in yestehday weh pohting people back to the Forest Realm. The rest went to the otheh islands eahlieh this mohning with mail and the daily groceries. Pehhaps the only vessel available is the _S.S. Rosaline_, but I heah the owneh is ratheh stingy and dull-witted."

"Well _dot_ be unfaih," Rosaline said. "Have yeh _met_ the owneh?"

The secretary looked worried. "W—… well, no…"

Rosaline crossed her arms. "Typical."

"Which one: him, oh Linebeck?" Dholit asked.

Rosaline nodded. "Right."

"Look, let's just get right to it," Irleen said as she lifted off the desk. "When can we expect another ship?"

"W-well… not foh days, I'm afraid," the secretary said.

"_Days_?" Link asked after raising his head.

Cale raised his head, too. "Why so long?"

"The lahgeh ships all went to the Forest Realm," the secretary said. "None of them ah scheduled to retahn foh fouh days; that's how long it will take including passage and at least _one_ ovehnight stay. I suppose you could talk to the otheh vessel mastehs when they retahn from theih regulah routes, but I'm afraid they won't be in until this evening. And… even then, I don't think any of them will be willing to poht you to the Forest Realm. They _do_ _have_ regulah schedules to keep heah; they would have to find a replacement vessel befoah giving you passage."

"What happened to all the ships taking people back and forth between the islands?" Link asked. "The Friendly Sailor has a whole _chart_ of them."

"Those weh some of the ships that set out foh the Forest Realm last night." He paused and glanced around at the group. "I wish I could do moah, but theah ah no otheh vessels left."

Cale, Link, and Irleen found themselves at a loss for words. So Dholit put a hand on Cale's and Link's shoulders. They took the hint and followed her and Rosaline. "Come on, Irleen," Link said over his shoulder.

Irleen started after them. Then she paused to think and decided to return to the secretary. She jumped in his face, causing him to start as she told him, "Xálpò katlānùlat tanì!"

Outside, Link glanced across the empty port. Even when no ships were docked, Link had been used to seeing airmen on shore duty wandering around Skyrider Port. He found it hard to believe that a port could be as empty as Kakucha Island, especially when it had appeared so busy the day before. He had not counted on the possibility of all the vessels leaving at once; no one would ever conceive it. In the sky, it was impractical. Actually, it was illegal; one law of the kingdom stated that at least one airship must be present at a major port at all times in case of emergency. Not that an airship of _any_ size could evacuate an island's entire population, but this was done so that there was a vessel to carry messages, and some islands hired a pair of cutters so that at least one could be used to carry urgent messages between islands. With the islands of the Ocean Realm isolated from the rest of the populated surface, it felt like the whole realm was tempting fate. Then Link spotted Linebeck's steamboat on the far side.

"So what do we do now?" Cale asked. "Without a ship—"

"Just give us some time to think," Dholit told him in a soft tone, one hand raised to calm him.

"What's there to think about?" Irleen asked. "We're stuck until another ship arrives."

"In de Ocean Realm, dey say dot deah don't be a way witout a will," Rosaline said. "We need a will."

"What about Linebeck?" Cale suggested.

"We're looking for a will, Cale," Irleen told him.

"Hey," Rosaline griped.

"We're not taking Linebeck's boat," Link spoke up, turning his attention back to the group. He caught the confusion coloring their faces and explained, "Until the other ships return, he's the only ship available to get word out in case something happens to this island. We _can't_ take his boat."

They silently contemplated Link for a moment. Then Dholit said, "Okay. We won't take Linebeck's boat. So what do we do?"

Link glanced down at his toes and grabbed at the back of his neck. "I—…I-I don't know."

"Yeh know…" Rosaline began. But her thoughts seemed to occupy her more as she neglected the rest of her statement.

"Uh… no we don't," Irleen said.

"Huh? Oh, sohry. I just be tinkin'. We know deah don't be boats _heah_. But did anyone tink about de odeh side of de island?"

"Should we have?" Cale asked. "Even if we could find a suitable vessel, the Spirit Tracks between heah and the Forest Realm will make it impossible to travel beyond a cehtain point."

"Ah," Rosaline said, holding a finger up. "Not if de boat is _light_ enough."

"You're talking about a cutter," Link said.

She smiled. "How do yeh feel about tryin' a _sea_ vessel, Captain?"

…

~~Day 28.

~~There's luck. And then there's Rosaline. I think the goddesses were having a laugh when they first considered her existence.

…

Not that Link was ungrateful. In fact, he was surprised to find out that Rosaline had connections on an island she had never set foot on before. Their first step was to find out _if_ there was anyone living on the other side of the mountains of Kakucha Island. It did not take long for them to find out about Anapua Village, accessible via a pass through the mountains that only the locals knew. Using Cale's money, they hired a man to take them to the village. For twenty rupees, they were standing on the outskirts of the village just before noon. Sixty more rupees bought them a local meal of fish and cabbage for lunch.

Rosaline's connection came in when the group visited the single pier which the village called a "port". They found out that some of the shipbuilders that Rosaline had helped before now lived in the village, servicing the village's small fishing fleet. One man in particular, who rented vessels out, greeting her by telling her that her boat was still untouched and waiting for her. He had set aside a cutter for her, which she accepted and tipped for using a blue rupee from Cale's wallet. The cutter, dubbed the _Realm's Treasure_, was quite sound and almost looked brand new. Its hull was closed at the front, and Link remarked that, with the proper conversions, it could conceivably be used on a larger vessel as a launch or a captain's gig. As it was, though, it was perfect for sailing, especially since it used a sail plan that Link was used to. After familiarizing himself with the cutter's rigging (which only took a few minutes), they used sixty more rupees from Cale to purchase supplies and spare lines. By about mid-afternoon, they shoved off from the village with a map and a telescope… which were also bought with Cale's money. Cale spent the first few minutes staring at the two green rupees he had left.

Link sat at the back with his compass dangling outside of his tunic, one hand on the tiller with the other hand free to check the compass. Dholit sat nearby, enjoying the journey with the occasional glance in Link's direction. Irleen rested in Link's hair just inside his hat so that she could see what he was doing. Rosaline sat on the port side near the block that was keeping the sail from moving too far starboard. Cale was resting in the small entryway to the forward compartment, nursing his seasick stomach with a ration pack. Link had to sail the cutter close hauled due to the wind coming from the northwest while they needed to travel west. The extra heeling was what had triggered Cale's seasickness just a few minutes out, when he was finished concerning himself with his lack of funds. Due to sailing towards the wind, the boat only moved at a modest amount of speed. Link was beginning to wonder if they would have to spend the night on the sea.

"About how fah would you say we ah from Kakucha Island?" Dholit asked him.

Link glanced over his shoulder. He could vaguely make out the mountains on the island in the distance. Since he was bad at guessing distances, he replied, "Probably about halfway between there and the first Spirit Track crossing our path. And I _still_ don't know how we're going to cross it."

"We don't seem to be moving very fast," she observed.

"We're sailing into the wind," Link said. "It's hard to gain speed like this. Most cutters do their best sailing perpendicular to the wind."

Dholit hummed as she appeared to consider something. "You know, this is quite the situation we'h in." She met Link's confused frown with a soft smile. "Afteh all, we _ah_ alone on the ocean."

"Rosaline and Cale are here, too," Link pointed out.

"So is Ihleen," Dholit added, pointing at the light under Link's hat. "Three gihls, two boys… don't you think that's ideal?"

"For what?"

Dholit slid closer to him, her knee almost touching his. "Sometimes I can't tell whetheh you'h playing oh just happen to be that naïve. Not that I have a problem with eitheh."

"Why don't you just go back to where you _weren't_ eying him?" Irleen spoke up.

Dholit shrugged. "I can't help that; I've been eying him evah since I met him."

"What is _wrong_ with you? It's like you flirt impulsively. Besides, a guy like Link isn't interested in a weirdo like you."

"Oh?" Dholit asked, her interest rising. "You have some insight that I don't?"

"Link's a nice guy who, yeah, may just be a little naïve," Irleen said.

Link sighed to himself. "Here we go again."

"He believes that there will only ever be one, _one_, girl for him," Irleen continued. "And until he finds her (and probably trips over her a few times), he'll be so devoted to her that _you_ will have to hypnotize him just to get him to say 'hi' to you."

"Does she really _need_ that kind of idea?" Link asked.

"Is that so?" Dholit replied, her voice oozing of challenge. "Then I suppose you've nevah read his diary, have you?"

"I don't have to in order to know about Link," Irleen said. "His head's always in the clouds. And that's just where his bride will be. Someone… mature. Not so love-crazed like _you_."

"Oh, deah, it does seem she has me at an advantage," Dholit told the sky. But her smile persisted as she continued, "But you can only evah judge Link by his _actions_, not his _thoughts_."

"Link wears his heart on his sleeve," Irleen said. "He doesn't have any thoughts."

"Excuse me?" Link asked, looking up at his brow.

"Oh, Ihleen, if only you knew how many gihls he's thought about evah since falling from the sky," Dholit said.

"Ah—… what?" Irleen replied. "What girls?"

"Theah ah at least _three_ on his mind at all times," Dholit said.

Irleen jumped out of Link's hat and hovered in front of his face, the dust from her wings causing Link to look away in surprise. "What girls is she talking about, Link?" she demanded. "You're supposed to be more transparent than that!"

"Wha—?" Link started. Then he said, "Why are you always talking about girls in front of me like this!? _Both_ of you!" Link then realized how loud his voice was and glanced over to find Rosaline and Cale staring at him in surprise. His face turned red, and he bowed his head to try to hide it.

"Link?" Irleen asked with a concerned voice.

"Just… just drop it, will you?" he asked with a shaky voice.

"Okay…"

A moment of silence passed. Link was trying not to be angry, but the banter between Dholit and Irleen was beginning to drive him crazy. Both of them seemed to just spontaneously start talking about him being with a girl as if he was not around, Irleen especially since they had first reunited in Whittleton. Was this just a female compulsion? He could not quite say; he had never spent time alone with any woman except Leeta, the owner of the Sail Tavern on Skyrider Port. Although affectionate, Leeta had never shown any interest in girls around Link or expressed her thoughts about him to another woman. At least, not in front of him. But now that he was away from his home, he was beginning to realize just how far out of his element he actually was. He was not naïve about love, he understood the concept. But the way Irleen talked made him sound stupid whenever the subject came up. And Dholit's advances just made him feel uncomfortable. In the middle of trying to get home, why would these two keep doing this to him?

Dholit asked, "What's that?"

"What?" Irleen asked. Link raised his head in response, his focus and anger broken by the sudden change in topic.

"I be seein' it, too," Rosaline said as she rose. "Smoke?"

"Cale," Link called. "Where's that telescope you bought?"

"Heah," Cale said as he held it up. Rosaline, standing closer, picked it up. "What is it?"

"Smoke on the horizon," Dholit replied. Link could see it, too, when he leaned aside to see past Dholit. It was a small plume of white smoke on the horizon, almost indistinguishable from the white clouds above if it had been anywhere else.

Rosaline crossed the boat and glanced out with the telescope to her face. "It be comin' from a single point. But I tink it be too fah away to see."

"Can you bring us closeh?" Dholit asked.

Link frowned at the sail. "I could try beating, but I don't know if we have enough speed to avoid being in irons."

"'In iahns'?" Dholit asked.

"Stopped," Link explained. "No boat can sail directly _into_ the wind, but it _is_ possible to move a boat in that direction. When the boat doesn't move, it's 'in irons', and that's a hazard when trying to move upwind. By changing tack, we can sail towards that smoke." Then he shrugged. "The problem is we'll be out here longer."

"Well, I be findin' meself curious now," Rosaline said. "Deah be a numbeh of islands out heah, but dey should all be undeh de wateh. So it has to be a boat."

"If the way Anapua Village builds boats is any indication," Link said, "smoke from a boat out here is a bad sign."

"I don't believe it's a boat," Dholit said. "A fiah would be _black_ smoke. That looks like steam; I've seen it _numbehs_ of times when trains stop at the camp's station."

"Steam? From a train?" Irleen asked. "How would a train be out _here_?"

Cale stood up, supporting himself on the top of the doorway. "Didn't Luggahd say something about trains missing when the Ocean Realm was deemed off-limits?"

Link nodded. "That's right, three of them didn't return to the Forest Realm."

"Since the watehs rose heah again," Cale continued, "it's conceivable that _this_ is wheah those trains disappeahed."

"We should go take a look," Rosaline said. "We might be able to help dem."

"Do what you have to, Link," Dholit said. "Let's have a look."

Link glanced between them for a moment. "Okay, but I'll need some help."

…

Just as Link said, they were out at sea for longer than expected. The wind shifted from northwest to north and back, which caused the boat to slow and even forced Link to steer to the northeast in order to keep the cutter moving north. The constant shifting triggered Cale's seasickness again, but he was doing better as the day went on. Rosaline helped Link by adjusting the sail at Link's request while he tried to maintain their indirect course. Dholit stood by on the bow with the telescope. About halfway through the trip, she hollered astern that they had found a train.

The sun was painting the western sky gold by the time they reached it. It was a maroon train bearing a silver "15" on the tender. Behind the locomotive were three passenger cars, two freight cars, and a single flatcar which appeared to be longer than the other cars. The water level rose over the wheels, which probably explained why the train was not moving. The rails underneath the train were almost invisible through the clear water. The windows of the passenger cars and the doors of the freight cars were all open, and the group could see a few fishing poles improvised with metal bars and what appeared to be thick strands of thread. They were being watched from these open doors and windows. After hearing from Dholit that the water at the bow was safe, Link and Cale took out oars to row the boat while Rosaline stowed the mainsail.

"Ahoy deah," Rosaline called to the engineer.

"A'oy yarself," the engineer called back. "I's beginnin' t' wonder if anyone'd seen us ou' 'ere."

"We just happen to be passin'," she said. "We weh goin' to de Forest Realm."

The engineer nodded and straightened the collar of his shirt. "We's goin' t' the Fire Realm, bu' the water 'ad other ideas."

Another man in the locomotive's cab stood up and stepped closer to the boat. "We've been eatin' the rations mean' for the miners," the older, well-built man said. "We ran ou' this mornin'."

"Where's we a'?" the engineer asked.

"From here, probably a few hours' boat ride back to Kakucha Island," Link answered as he stood up. "Is anyone hurt?"

"Jus' a few bumps when the train stopped," the older man said. "An' we stopped _hard_."

"Why?" Rosaline asked.

"There's somethin' wrong with the water 'ere," the engineer said as he opened the door to his cab. Then he said to the other man, "Will, ya wanna 'and me tha'…"

"Oh, sure," the other man, Will, replied.

The engineer accepted a thick glove from Will. Then he settled on the floor and leaned out the door of the cab. The way he was positioned placed his head fairly close to the water.

Which he knocked on with his gloved hand. _Khop, khop_. Rosaline, Dholit (who had moved to the port side to get a good look), and Link were amazed how the water maintained its steady, flowing motion despite being struck, as if it was solid.

"Ya see tha'?" the engineer asked. "Tha's why we stopped. The water 'ere locked up the wheels 'n nearly tore the whole train apar'."

"Well, _that_ cehtainly seems counteh-intuitive," Dholit remarked. Link settled against the edge of the boat and reached a hand out.

"No, don'!" the engineer shouted, startling Link.

He quickly retracted his hand. "What?"

"Ya don' wanna touch it with bare 'ands," the engineer explained. He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "Will 'ere did it, and it nearly cooked him." Link looked up as Will showed them his right hand, palm wrapped with a white bandage but still showing red and black splotches on his fingers. Link and Dholit grimaced at the sight.

Rosaline attempted to lean closer, one foot wrapped around the rigging to hold her to the boat. "Electrical buhns," she said.

"From wateh?" Dholit asked.

"I got some o' dem meself," Rosaline said as she set both feet back on the boat. She lifted the left sleeve of her shirt to expose her shoulder, revealing a red line across the outside muscle. "Touched a live wiah while fixin' me generatoh."

"Fascinating," Dholit told her, "but I think he has beaten you foh aesthetics."

"What should we do, Link?" Cale asked as he stepped out of the cabin. "Should we go back?"

"We'll have to," Dholit said. "We can't take on otheh passengahs, but we can see if the otheh boat ownehs back at Anapua would be willing to remove these men to shoah."

"Works for me," Will said. "We can wai' it ou'; fishin's no' too bad ou' 'ere."

"Hold on a moment," Link said. He pulled himself up and slid a hand around his belt. He found Sello's hammer tucked into the belt against his left hip and yanked it out. He could feel eyes on him and looked up at Dholit. "It works on unbreakable glass," he told her. "It might work on unbreakable water."

"What kind of logic is _that_?" Irleen, still waiting by the tiller, called out.

Link smiled, Irleen's words making him realize that his reasoning _did_ sound a little strange. Still, he reached for the water again with the hammer raised. When he struck, metal met water with a dull crack, and Link had to tug the hammer out of the water. He paused a second when he thought he saw the water pulse darker, but he dismissed it as just the water still moving. When he removed the hammer, he saw numerous white cracks on the surface, looking like broken glass. The water still continued to move, unperturbed by the new pit formed in its flowing surface. Link probed the pit with the blunt head of the hammer to make sure he was seeing it right.

"Oh," the engineer said with an impressed tone. "We been 'ittin' it with sledge'ammers 'n such."

Link pulled himself back into the boat and stared at the hammer for a moment. "Let's wait before we evacuate the train," he told them. "I wanna see if _this_ might get us anywhere."

"By yerself?" Will asked. "Ya gonna clear the 'ole track?"

Link glanced at the front of the engine. "What about that thing at the front of the locomotive?"

"The pilot?" the engineer asked. "Wha' 'bou' it?"

"What if we knock off all this… stuff and release the wheels?" Link asked. "If you can get up enough speed, do you think you could plow through it?"

The engineer exchanged looks with Will. "Don' sound like a bad idea," the engineer said.

"We only go' stuck 'cuz it snuck up on us," Will said. "Now tha' we know it's solid, it could 'appen."

"Train's heavy 'nough."

Link nodded. "Let me see what I can do." He turned around. "Can someone hand me that oar?"

Link used the oar to push the boat towards the front of the train. Then, while Rosaline used the oar to keep the cutter close to the tracks, he stepped off the boat. He found the surface solid as rock, although he could feel it flowing under the soles of his boots. He was not sure if he should touch the surface even if his clothes would protect him, so he squat down and started chipping away at the water near the arrow-shaped pilot. He found that, as he struck the water, it weakened and started forming cracks along its surface. He hoped that this would indicate that the train would be able to simply smash through, just as they hoped.

"H-hey," Cale spoke up. "D… did anyone else see that?" Link glanced up to see him standing near the tiller, facing south.

Dholit looked in the same direction. "What?"

"The… the ocean, it…" He held up a level hand and gestured. "It rose."

Dholit exchanged a look with Rosaline. "Maybe a sea creatuah," Rosaline told him. "Some of dese tings can get pretty big."

"No, I don't think it was anything like that," Cale said.

"Why?" Irleen asked.

Cale glanced around at them. Then he told Dholit, "Because I think it moved _through_ the Spirit Tracks."

Link looked back down at the water he stood on, pondering the idea.

That was when he saw the water pulse again. And it moved, moved enough that Link had to balance himself with his arms to keep from falling against the solid water. He stood still for a moment, wondering if anything else would happen.

"Uh… uh… L-Link!?" Irleen called out. Link turned his head at the same time Rosaline, Cale, and Dholit turned to him.

And he saw their gazes rise into the air. So he decided to look.

Towering above him was a column of water as high as an apartment building. Link stared up in horror, realizing that not only was it wobbling, but wobbling in his direction.

"Link!" Dholit snapped. "Run!"

Link did just that when he saw it moving closer. The column angled to try to catch him as he moved, but it just slammed against the water on the track. It missed the prow of the cutter, but the resulting wave shoved the boat hard, pushing it away as the three passengers fell against the deck (Irleen following it was a confused afterthought).

Link had run the length of two trains before the column hit. When he stopped and turned back, he was amazed at the distance that he had traveled. When did he become so fast?

He watched the column of water slide back under the surface. And he realized that there _was_ a difference in the water as waves slid across the tracks. While the water around the tracks was solid, the water disturbed by the column was choppy and sloshed against the solid water. He could see a solid strip of water traveling from the train all the way to where he stood and even spread outwards. The water beneath him turned out to be a large, dark circle, probably an island that had been overrun.

He spun, looking for any sign of more water striking for him, but the water had gone calm again. When he realized that he still had Sello's hammer in his hand, he squat down again and started chipping into the water's surface. The water pulsed twice this time, and he stood straight up and spun just in time to see another column rising. Link dashed back towards the train as it fell across the island.

This time, he realized that his feet were moving faster than ever before, and not from fear. He did not know how, but the boots he wore were clean and polished. They were rich leather all the way to the top. And at the ankles were pastel-blue, leather wings stitched to the sides. He could not understand when the boots had become so clean; he thought he would have seen the wing patches on the boots earlier.

He watched the new column of water as it rose some more. The section making contact with the island flattened itself, but the rest hung in the air and continued to lengthen towards the northeast. Then Link saw the end of the column, and what it was attached to. It was a large, dome-shaped creature sporting a cloudy, white, semi-translucent body. The fact that Link could see it from a distance told him that it was enormous. He could see a pair of slits forming a chevron in its body. These slits opened to reveal eyes that were completely red. Its whole body gave a regular pulse, and it seemed to be its means of keeping above the surface of the water while more tentacles wound about under its body.

The tentacle on the island stretched until it was taut. Then Link could see it was sliding across the island and into the water on the opposite side of the island from the creature's body. Link realized that the creature was coming closer. And if it came closer, it might put both the boat and the train in danger. He figured that, if the creature's tentacles were solid, its body might be as well.

So with Sello's hammer in hand, he dashed back at the tentacle. He felt chipping away at the tentacle might not be effective, so he jumped onto the tentacle and ran along its length towards the body. The creature froze in place, and Link glanced left and right to see it raising more tentacles from the surrounding water. But they were not rising fast enough, and the creature could not get them into Link's path before he passed by. It never occurred to him that the creature might simply submerged the tentacle, nor did he really think about the disastrous consequences of slipping off the tentacle into the waters this mass of contradictive madness called "home". All he saw was a creature threatening people, most definitely a first for Link who had only had to defend himself or his friends until now.

The creature's pulsing made it impossible to strike at its face. Not that he could stop in time anyway. He ducked under the large mass of body about to crush him and found himself underneath the body. The creature's mass was just above his head, and he could feel water falling from it as it pulsed. He had to swing at a different angle for power, so he held the hammer at arm's length with the pointed head aimed upward. Then he swung up and into the creature's stone-like flesh. And again. And again, chipping off a chunk the size of Link's fist. Link could see the creature's flesh change from the calm ripple he had seen the whole time to a quiver, causing the light reflecting through its body to obstruct his vision for a moment. But he continued until the creature contracted away from him. This caused the creature to jerk and expand itself again to keep itself up. Link glanced down through the tentacle he stood on to see the cavity formed by the rest of the creature's tentacles flooding.

The moment he realized that the creature was sinking, he bolted back outside. The sun was low enough that he was not blinded by it as he ran along the creature's tentacle. The creature's other tentacles had gone beneath the ocean again and never surfaced, probably because the creature was sinking. Link had the sensation of dropping as he ran, and the creature's tentacle was pulsing under his feet. He could see the tentacle ahead of him rise and fall, becoming more violent as he ran.

He reached the island and almost tripped stepping off the tentacle. Keeping his footing after stepping onto the now rougher terrain of the creature's tentacle on the island, he turned to watch the rest of the tentacle slide off the island and land in the water with a large splash. He saw the creature's body still floating in the distance, although it was only the dome-shaped head and eyes which were immediately visible. They stared at each other, wondering what the other was going to do next.

Link decided to act first. He got low and started chipping into the tentacle beneath him. He could see it pulsing in anger and felt the tentacle shiver. A splash nearby indicated another tentacle rising from the ocean. But it was nowhere near Link. He looked around until he noticed the tentacle to the north. But instead of trying to fall on him, the tentacle was rolling along the Spirit Track towards him!

Link ran towards the west, the ripples in the ocean water indicating a perpendicular Spirit Track covered with another tentacle. Another tentacle rose from the water, and he ran underneath it just as it was falling to the track. After ducking under another tentacle, Link pulled to a stop where the Spirit Track curved north. Safe from tentacles for the moment, he looked out at the creature's head again. And, in the fading daylight, Link could see a shadow on part of the creature's face, just above its left eye. Then he started running again when another tentacle rose from nearby. If he could get close enough, he might be able to see what that shadow was. A weakness would be useful at this point; he could feel the running beginning to wear out his leg muscles even faster than they had before he found the boots.

Link ran back toward the island he started at. When he reached it, he paused to taunt the creature by bashing into its tentacle again. But as he bent over to do so, he realized that the tentacle was pristine with absolutely no sign that he had been striking it before. He looked up at the creature. Its body was pulsing again, allowing it to rise from the ocean. The shadow on its head looked bigger, and Link saw that, with the setting sun on the creature's face, it created a dull spot on an otherwise shiny, smooth exterior. It occurred to Link that the creature was somehow healing itself while opening more wounds in a safe area that Link could not reach.

So he had to hurt it until it was done playing safe. Link started striking into the tentacle at his feet harder. The tentacle pulsed and shivered. Link put both hands on the handle and used it to wrench loose a large piece. He kicked the rock-like piece to the side and dug out another piece. A tentacle rose out of the ocean again, and Link dashed aside as it fell over the wound he was making. He watched the tentacle flatten and tighten and ran back to it, believing that the creature was dragging itself closer again. Instead of jumping on the tentacle, he started smashing it on the edge, which broke off fist-sized pieces with each strike. The tentacle under his feet jerked as if trying to throw him, but its movement was restricted by the tentacle on top of it. Link maintained his balance and continued striking. The creature could pull itself only so fast, and as Link continued to bash the tentacle as it slid past him, large cracks started forming in its skin. The size of the cracks nearly transected the tentacle. When one finally did, Link was startled by a metallic snap and jumped backwards. The tentacle had broken. The end pulling the creature forward flew into the water, while the other end sailed through the air and collapsed near the body. The creature wobbled, probably due to the weight of the tentacle and the sudden loss of tension.

And Link could see the dull spot on its head grow before his eyes. He glanced down at the ground to see a thick line of yellowish-white ooze where the severed tentacle had been. The creature's body must have been under serious pressure for that to occur.

A pair of tentacles rose at either Spirit Track to the north and west of Link's platform and latched onto the Spirit Tracks. The creature was moving again, probably using two tentacles to pull itself because another, singular tentacle would just be snapped again. Link's suspicion was confirmed when the tentacles tensed against the tracks and the body started moving forward again. Link dropped the hammer and reached around his back for the quiver. He yanked the bow out, spilling arrows onto the ground. One of the arrows which had not fallen, he pulled and nocked. Then he took aim and fired. Two things worked against Link's first arrow: wind and distance. But it was fine; he took note of where the arrow splashed and nocked a second arrow. He aimed a little into the wind and waited until the creature was closer. When he released, the arrow had the distance, but Link's aim was still off. The arrow bounced against the creature's hard shell and fell off its body into the water. Link already had a third arrow nocked and aimed, not even waiting to watch the second fail. But he panicked this time and let it loose without aiming properly. This fell short of the creature, which was beginning to remind him of just how large it was with its proximity.

Link scooped up an arrow from the ground and nocked it. This could very well be his last one; if he did not make this shot, he could not be sure he had the time to pick up another one and aim it. The creature was so close that he found it uncomfortable to aim so high. He loosed.

And as it arched back down, it was intercepted by the creature's movements and disappeared.

In spite of the fear he felt, his sense of loyalty was stronger. If he retreated, it would bring the creature's wrath down on the train and the cutter.

Then the creature stopped. Link saw its grabbing tentacles widen and roll to move to a better position. He snapped up one more arrow, nocked it, and aimed straight for the wound in its head. The creature's tentacles began to tighten.

Link loosed.

And the arrow struck its target.

Without changing the malice in its eyes, the creature suddenly bucked and fell against the Spirit Track to Link's right. White spray flew into the air at an incredible height. Its head collapsed, and its eyes seemed to simply burst and dye its whole body a disturbing shade of pink which joined the white spray. All of this occurred before the creature finally fell below the water's surface.

Then the tentacles under Link's feet shook violently. He glanced down to see his feet sinking into the clear flesh for the first time. He attempted to run, but the viscous nature of the skin made moving his feet hard. He fell from the struggling and caught himself before landing face-first into the tentacle. However, the skin did not electrocute Link as he expected, as it had done to Will's hand. Instead, his hands sank, leaving him unable to push himself upright. Up to his elbows, he tried his best to pull at least one arm free. He had to get loose, but even with his fist balled, the tentacle refused to release his left arm.

Up to the middle of his bicep, he started screaming. "Help! Somebody! Somebody _help_! HEEEEELP!" He tried to pull back using his legs, but it only made his body sink waist-deep into the tentacle. "HEEEEEELP!"

Then, up to his chest, his hands and feet found a solid mass under the tentacle. Getting his feet under him, he straightened up and ripped himself out up to his stomach. He saw the tentacle flowing in all directions off the island and grabbed the bow before it slipped out of his reach. He stood still as the tentacle ripped apart around him and disappeared over the edges of the island. In seconds, the only things on the islands were the intersection of the Spirit Tracks, Link, and Sello's hammer on the ground next to him. He picked up the hammer, whipped the snot-like remnants from the handle, and tucked it back into his belt. After giving the bow a quick brush, he slid it into the quiver. He looked back out at the red blotch marring the choppy orange-and-blue ocean and, feeling a greater sense of relief than ever before, pumped his fist in triumph, a proud look on his face.

A train whistle blew in the distance, and Link looked over his shoulder to see hands and hats waving to him from the train he had left behind. Rosaline's cutter was next to it, although not nearly as close as it had been before he left it. He could see Rosaline, Dholit, and Cale calling out to him from the bow, although he could hardly hear what they were saying over the sound of his own heartbeat in his ears. After a quick glance down at his slimy clothes, he waved his arms back to them to indicate he was okay.


	63. One Clear Morning

Chapter 63: One Clear Morning

…

At the end of the day, everyone had tired of the cheering done in response to not only watching Link destroy the massive creature which had stranded them in the realm, but watching as the creature's hold on the water faltered, returning the local waters to their original level. After the creature had sunk, its tentacles simply melted off everything it had covered, which included probably every Spirit Track and island north and west of Kakucha Island. This relief revealed that, before the creature had appeared, there was enough height between the water's surface and the Spirit Tracks that even a large steamship like the _S.E.S. Goddess's Tides_ would be able to navigate the rest of the realm without a problem. Even a taller craft like Rosaline's cutter would fit, but, in their gratuity, the miners and the train engineers offered to drag up and secure the cutter to the flatcar at the back of the train. The process had not gone quite according to plan, and the craft's mast snapped off when it had turned vertical for a moment, but it was still intact. Rosaline had not expressed any anger; she had said that she would fix it once it was ready to be used again. Rosaline, Dholit, and Irleen rode in the cab while Link settled in the rear freight car (despite the miners' insistence that Link have a seat in the passenger car; Link was just not interested) and Cale relaxed in a passenger car. Leaf, the engineer, had told them that he would be bringing the train around so that they could return to the Forest Realm as Link's group had planned. Rosaline had decided to share the rations they had bought and stowed on the cutter, much to the relief of the miners who had not wanted to eat any more fish. It had been well into the night when the train had started moving again. All but Link had passed out in the rear freight car. Link could not sleep due to something weighing on his mind.

Irleen was not talking to him, and he was afraid he knew why.

There had been a lot of excitement when both the train and the cutter had reached the island. But the passengers on the cutter had been unable to join in on the cheering due to the island being too high for the passengers to disembark. Irleen had brought this to Link's attention, and one of the miners had unloaded an emergency rope ladder so that the group could climb up (which had then been used to fit ropes around the cutter's hull so it could be hauled up). Rosaline and Cale had offered their congratulations to Link in the midst of the boisterous miners. But Dholit…

Dholit had kissed him.

Link had never been kissed before. So when Dholit had dragged him back to his feet after he had dropped to the ground in exhaustion, he had had no warning that it had been coming. It had been long, and it had been pure passion, or what Link had assumed was passion. He had fallen after she had released him, and the smile he had seen on her face had said that she was just playing with him again. Link had not thought anything about it, not that he had been in the state of mind to think at all. Running with the boots had left his legs sore, wobbly, and feeling like a loose sail. In fact, he had been concerned for a while that he had completely lost the ability to move around on his own. He had not been able to eat when Rosaline had passed out the rations for fear that he might vomit.

He had asked for Irleen later, as the whole group was boarding the train. Dholit had gone looking in Link's place since he had had to be dragged into the freight car. Dholit had found her, but she had told Link that Irleen had sounded like she had been crying; it had been difficult for Dholit to know exactly what Irleen had been saying due to Irleen's native Sorian.

Now, though, Link sat in one corner of the freight car pondering if Irleen might have been mad at him because of Dholit's kiss while being surrounded by ten, dirty, sleeping miners. It was not Link's ideal place to consider things, but he was in no mood to fight it or anything else. His small ration bag sat next to his leg, opened because he finally had the stomach to eat. His mind was less than involved in the process, leaving Link's hand to idly dig out whatever was in the bag and put it in his mouth. He did not know what to do. He had seen Irleen acting a little defensive of him lately, and he was beginning to wonder if all of the romance banter between her and Dholit might be an indication of something more personal than Link was giving credit for.

He kept thinking back to the kiss. And he thought he could find a way to spin the event in some kind of harmless way, like maybe Dholit had just been up to her usual antics. But Link just could not come to accept it himself. Every time he replayed Dholit's smile in his head, it became less playful and more sincere. He knew that Dholit had been responsible for romancing him back at the Gelto camp, but he never believed until now that she was still trying to do it even after he was no longer a prisoner. Not to mention that, up until now, she had never had such intimate contact with him. Or, at least, while he had been conscious; she _had_ confessed to taking his clothes off after his fight with the giant Malgyorg. It was a bad angle to work with. He thought about telling Irleen that it was her being caught up in the moment, that she would have kissed _any_ man who had just taken on a gigantic sea monster. But, to him, it just sounded dumb. He considered explaining that Dholit might have just been overwhelmed by the moment and had to do _something_. Unfortunately, the more he thought about it, the more it seemed to cheapen Dholit's feelings. In the end, he settled for wishing that she had not done it in the first place. In fact, he began hoping that it had not been the kiss that upset Irleen.

He did not want to believe that _any_ girl could be attracted to him. Even though he was not paying attention to it, he knew how bad his hand was shaking as he fed himself. It was shaking from fear, the fear that had overwhelmed him in those final moments before he was recovered from the island. It was only those final moments he could remember clearly; from the monster's first attack to his last arrow, it all seemed like a blur. But after it fell… Link had never experienced that before. It had been a fear based entirely on instinct, something he could not describe even to himself. The armored beetle in the Lost Woods, the armored worm under the mines, the homicidal machine Sello so whimsically called "Drumstik", the gargantuan Malgyorg traveling the desert… They had all been creatures he had come face-to-face with and defeated without so much as a thought. But this latest monster had brought him closer to fear than Link had ever faced.

Closer to death. And, for reasons unknown to Link, jumping into a pit with Wolfos or potentially dying of thirst in a desert had not been enough to spark this sudden notion that Link was mortal. No, this creature _had_. He tried to think and came to the realization that he had always been in control, been able to defend himself in those situations. When the ocean monster died, Link was left helpless as he sank into its dead clutches. There had been no way to save himself if those tentacles had been any thicker. It must have been the only time Link felt afraid of what was happening, which sounded completely insane to him. He could not even _step foot_ onto an airship if he was that afraid.

He was angry and embarrassed. He had faced his own mortality long before he even set foot on the surface. He should have _died_ when the _Island Sonata_ was shot down, and maybe dozens of other times before then! Why was this bothering him _now_? Just what kind of sick game was his head playing?

His fingers lost track of his food, and he attempted to pull more out of his ration bag. But it was empty; he had finished it. He let his hand fall on top of the bag to crush it.

Just what kind of captain was he shaping up to be, anyway?

…

Link had gone to sleep early in the morning, kept awake for a while by both the car's rattling and his own thoughts. A sharp bump jarred Link out of his sleep. Groggy, he looked around at all of the miners. They had already awakened and were chatting with each other. Link could hear a tumult of voices and accents, but he was far too drowsy to comprehend any of them. Sello's hammer hurt his thigh, and he tried to flip to his other side only to have his bow press against the floor and tighten the quiver's belt against his ribs. He gave up when he tried to flip back over and had the bow fall out of the quiver. So he sat up, exchanging greetings with the miners.

A few minutes later, the train's whistle blew. One of the miners opened up a door. It was still early in the morning, but Link could see the purple dawn outside. The brakes started squealing, and Link saw the edge of Hovela come into view.

Even with his mind clearing, he had not come up with what he would say to either Dholit or Irleen. By the time the station came into view, he decided to just talk to them. If anything, maybe one of _them_ would bring the subject up. In which case, he would appropriately stumble around an explanation.

His legs wobbled as he walked, and he hoped that it was just fatigue. After shaking a few hands, he carefully lowered himself out of the freight car. He saw a few of the miners disembark from other cars, and he followed them towards the walkways connecting the platforms to the station.

Cale nearly stumbled out of a passenger car. He took in a deep breath as if he had not in a long time. When he spotted Link, he said, "I would like to believe that theah ah _laws_ against these kinds of conditions."

Link stopped and asked, "What conditions?"

"The entiah cah smells of outhouse waste," Cale said. He paused to stick his tongue out as if trying to relieve himself of a bad taste. "It was _not_ pleasant."

"These men have been trapped on this train for days. They probably couldn't help it."

Cale kept in stride with Link as he started up the platform again. "Pehhaps. It was still disgusting."

"Well, at the rate we… were…" Link trailed off when he saw Dholit descending from the locomotive. He forgot what he was talking about as his memories of the previous evening returned.

Dholit turned around. Then she crossed her arms and gave him her usual smirk. "So," she said. "Have you finally realized that I'm a woman?"

Link's face turned into an angry glare. "Where's Irleen?"

Dholit's grin faded into confusion. "She's-she's still on the locomotive."

But Link already saw Irleen fluttering above the cab. He stepped to one side and called out, "Irleen!"

Irleen dropped to eye-level in front of Link. "Link," she told him, "hand the gem over to Dholit." Link was surprised; her voice sounded about as harsh as his words to Dholit. He fished the translator gem from his pocket and put it in Dholit's waiting hand.

Irleen then turned to Dholit. "Ha'alw wabin falix dhol?"

Both Link and Dholit were caught off-guard by the question, Link the venomous tone Irleen took and Dholit for the question itself. Dholit replied with a confused, "Dhol? Irliyn, waba naygothak Gilto 'Anik max?"

"Wabilunak dhol?" Irleen spat back. "Ha'alw wabilunak waliyxomot dhol? Wadoyfasitak zacuxt _'imayn siylwub_ max? Wadoyfasitak zajriyb Liynk 'immu min max?"

Dholit shook her head, her shock preventing her from speaking for a moment. "N-na'! Nadda na', Irliyn!"

"Nwaki dhol, Dholit!?"

"Dhol?"

"Nwiy cussib. Wacasbya'ak Liynk."

Dholit shrugged. "Taf dhol? 'Incasbya'ak zhal. 'Inu addu caysobak zhal 'idus. Nwaki nadkonafak nayfsik."

"Nwaki layxomak 'immu tic!" With that, Irleen turned and flew across the train platforms toward the station.

Link felt Dholit hastily put the gem back in his hand. He looked down at it, and then he gave her a questioning look. She rolled her eyes. "'Inakwint, yitayzkan 'inoy."

Then she delivered a smack to the side of Link's head, knocking his hat off. "What's wrong with you, you idiot!?" she snapped at him. "Go afteh heh!"

Link stumbled around, confused for a moment as he tried to understand what was happening. Before he knew it, he hopped from the platform onto the tracks. He was about to run for the station, but then he decided to zip down to the end of the next platform and run around it, his boots kicking up dirt in his accelerated wake. He found a ramp leading onto the platform directly connected to the station. From there, he transitioned from stone to slick marble.

Which he tripped on. Still traveling fast, his boots slipped, and he fell forward. His head hit the floor, and the floor burned the skin on his face as he slid, creating an undignified, high-pitched squeal that filled the quiet train station. All eyes turned to him, including Irleen.

And Irleen approached him. "Link!" she shouted. "Link, are you okay!?"

Link pushed himself to his knees and felt the tender skin on the left side of his face. When he looked up at her, he revealed a patch of red covering his cheek from his eye to his jaw. "Yeah," he said. "I'm okay."

"What were you _doing_!?" she snapped at him. "Are you trying to peel your _face_ off!?"

Link glanced down at the floor. "I just… wanted to know why you're mad," he told her in a quiet voice. "I… I didn't know I'd screwed up."

"Oh," she replied. "You don't think watching Dholit _kiss_ you would bother me? Here's news for you, Link; it _does_!"

He settled down with his rear on the floor. He watched his lap as he said, "I… I didn't know you felt that way…"

"Felt what way?" Irleen asked. Link was silent, unsure of how to articulate his meaning. But Irleen picked up on his unspoken words. "You mean… Ah—

"No! _No_, Link! That's not it at _all_!" She dropped so that she could at least see his face. "What is _wrong_ with you? You thought I was mad because I was in _love_ with you!? And that-that _kiss_ made me _jealous_ or something!?"

Link opened his mouth to respond, but his words jerked to a stop in his throat. He brought his hands up and scratched furiously at his scalp, tossing around his thick, messy hair. "I didn't know _what_ to think!" he cried out. "How am _I_ supposed to know what's gonna make you mad? You wouldn't say a _word_ to me after all that!"

"Geez, Link!" she said, bobbing in the air. "I was mad because you're letting yourself get distracted!"

Link finally looked up. "Huh?"

"Ever since we came down here, you've had girls all around you," she explained, her voice calming a bit. "I've been worried this whole time that you're just going to give up on going back because you fell in love with one or something stupid like that."

Link looked down at his lap, dropping his arms to his sides. "I never gave up… I promised…"

Irleen let out a sigh. "I know," she said. "I ju—… Between what Dholit said and watching her kiss you… I thought for _certain_ you'd give up."

They remained in silence for a moment. Then, for no particular reason, Irleen chuckled. Soft at first, and then it became a light laugh that Link found himself joining. "Wow, Link," she told him. "We must be a couple of idiots, huh?"

"Yeah," Link replied. He looked up again, his face serious but soft. "Irleen, I'd never—"

"I know," she interrupted him. "I mean… I should've known better. I'm sorry, Link."

"I'm sorry, too," he told her.

"I always enjoy when friends reconcile." Link looked over his shoulder and saw Rosaline, Cale, and Dholit standing nearby. Dholit was grinning again. "Especially when one of them is in such a… compromising position." She pointed to her left cheek. "The redness makes it look like she slapped you."

Irleen flew a circle around Link's head. "Okay, we're done being sappy," she said. "Back to business."

"Actually," Link said, "I could use a hand. I-I can't move my legs again."

"Heah," Cale said as he strode forward. He leaned over so Link could sling his right arm across his shoulders. Then Cale picked Link up. He stumbled when Link put all his weight on him. "Whoa…"

"Sorry," Link said.

"Excuse me," a man's voice said from nearby. "Captain Link?"

Link, Cale, and Irleen looked over to find a middle-aged man standing nearby. Judging from the rich, blue uniform he wore, he was one of the station's attendants. Link blinked at him for a moment. "Uh… _Lieutenant_ Link, actually."

The station attendant looked down at the envelope in his hands. "Yes, of coahse," he said. Then he looked back up at Link. "I have a message foh you from Masteh Leynne."

"Who?" Rosaline asked as she and Dholit stepped up behind Link and Cale.

"He's one of the designehs," Cale explained. "The fihst one we found."

"Where are they?" Link asked.

"Masteh Leynne sends his regrets, Lieutenant," the attendant said. "He left foh Fishington three days ago."

"That… would have been the day _afteh_ we encountehed the _Cloud Moon_," Cale said.

"Hard to believe that wasn't too long ago," Link commented. "Feels like a _month_ at least."

"He's made arrangements with the station, Lieutenant," the attendant said. "You have rooms available if you feel the need to stay the night; expenses for meals have already been paid. He has also arranged tickets to Fishington when you ah ready."

"Dis 'Leynne' guy sounds like he be havin' de money," Rosaline said in an impressed tone.

"I remember my ticket to Library Town costing quite a bit, though," Link said.

The attendant nodded. "Indeed, it does, saah. Howevah, Masteh Leynne provided cehtain sehvices foh both the station and the hotel, quite elaborate and… _inventive_… sehvices. The station owneh paid him quite handsomely foh these sehvices, howevah Masteh Leynne requested his payment be put on account so that you and youh fellow travelehs might use it to relax befoah joining them in Fishington."

"That must have been some service," Irleen remarked.

"And profitable foh the station in the long run," the attendant said.

"What do you think, Link?" Cale asked.

Link glanced at him for a moment. "When does the next train to Fishington arrive?" he asked the attendant.

"Not until lateh this mohning. The Twenty-Foah train out of Library Town."

Link nodded. "Yeah, I'd say we rest here for a bit. We'll take the Twenty-Four when it gets here."

"Undehstood, saah," the attendant said. He handed the envelope to Link. "If you'll follow, I'll take you to youh rooms."

…

"'—Link.

"'—By now, I assume that we have already moved on to Fishington. As I write this, it is only the fihst night afteh youh depahtuah.

"'—Afteh you left, we spent the day looking oveh a numbeh of vessels. I've also found drawings of different sail plans, so I have a faih idea of what youh fohmeh vessel, the _Island Sonata_, may have looked like. I've already spoken to Sello, Lidago, and Dubbl, and we'h in agreement that we can put togetheh a feasible plan foh construction. I undehstand that ouh choice of Fishington is an odd location foh the construction of a vessel, but I believe that ouh use of a dry dock in Fishington, as opposed to a moah appropriate venue such as Hovela or Aboda, will help us keep down whatevah costs we may incah foh the materials we will requiah. Having materials sent to Fishington is cheapah. Besides, it isn't as if it needs to be built close to the wateh anyway.' … 'Ha ha.

"'—Theah have been some recent developments outside of the realm which you might find interesting. Afteh you left, we found out that snow has retahned to ouh neighboh in the nohth. And just this evening, I had an encounteh heah in the train station with a conductoh who was seahching foh the trains that went missing afteh the Ocean Realm was deemed off-limits. Evidently, he had just gotten back from the Fiah Realm afteh the Snow Realm had retahned to nohmal. He said that, although the tracks in the Fiah Realm ah still icy, theah have been signs that the weatheh had been growing wahmeh. I shall neglect jumping to conclusions on these mattehs, but I _would_ point out that you, Ihleen, and Luggahd had visited those two places not long ago. Make of that what you will.

"'—We will be waiting in Fishington. With luck, we may have the framewohk set up by the time you retahn.'

"Signed 'Leynne'," Cale finished. He glanced up at the others in the room. Link lay on the closer of two beds with his feet toward Cale. Dholit sat at the foot of the other bed, listening to Cale read the letter left to them by the station attendant. Rosaline sat at the desk against the opposite wall from the beds, and Irleen hovered over her. The room itself was a brilliant shade of white which caused the room to brighten as the sun rose into the window. A small basket of candy and chocolates had been left on the desk, and Rosaline had already eaten three of them and left their paper wrappings on the desktop.

Dholit wrinkled her nose and asked, "Wait, is he implying that youh being in the Snow and Fiah Realms befoah has something to do with theih recent retahn to nohmal?"

"He said he wasn't jumping to any conclusions," Link answered, still feeling worn out from his run across the station.

"I wouldn't either," Irleen said, "but it's a pretty big coincidence."

"We can't say what he did in de Ocean Realm was a coincidence," Rosaline said. "De way de ocean be goin' back to normal afteh killin' dot ting?"

"And that made _five_," Irleen said. "We should celebrate."

"Five?" Dholit asked. "Five what?"

"Big bad things. Kind of like bosses in a book game."

"A book game?" Cale asked. "Like a role-playing game? Pencils and papeh?"

"You play, too?"

"I try," Cale answered with a shrug. "Really, I think my friends only let me play because my charactehs make good sacrifices."

"Can we retahn to the topic?" Dholit asked.

"Five bosses," Irleen said. "You know, the big things always holding a princess hostage or hiding treasure."

"Oh?" Rosaline asked. "And what have dese 'bosses' been hidin'?"

Irleen flew circles in the air above her. "Five Architects and a boomerang."

"A boomerang?" Dholit asked. Link rolled a bit to pull out the boomerang. He held it up and pushed to trigger it open. "Oh. Interesting."

"Ahchitects?" Rosaline asked as Link replaced the boomerang.

Cale nodded. "We found you through youh grandparents," he explained. "They helped build the fihs—"

"I know," Rosaline said. "I just… nevah be hearin' dot wohd befoah."

"What, Ahchitects?" Cale asked. Rosaline nodded.

"You haven't?" Irleen asked. "I thought _everyone_ down here knew who they were. _Meilont_ knew who they were."

Cale shrugged. "She seems to have been the only one. I hadn't heahd of them until Madame Seilon mentioned it. Not to mention none of the texts I've read evah call them by the name 'Ahchitect'. Afteh we found Ryain, I've mostly had to rely on his associations with the othehs. Not that it's been easy."

"No one said it _would_ be," Link groaned as Dholit moved to the edge of the bed he lay on.

"Don't be soundin' like it's been easy at _all_," Rosaline said. She stood up and stretched. "Ah, well. I be feelin' a need to walk. Who wants to come?"

"Sorry," Link said. "I kinda need the rest right now."

"I think I shall decline as well," Dholit answered.

"Ihleen?" Rosaline asked.

"Link?" Irleen said. Link dug into his pocket and produced Irleen's translator gem.

Rosaline reached over and took the gem from Link's outstretched hand. "Cale?" she asked.

"Actually, I, um… the-theah's anotheh matteh I would like to attend to befoah we depaht," Cale said as he set Leynne's letter on the desk. "Uh… I-I'll be back foh the train."

Link lifted his outstretched arm straight up in the air and waved his hand. "Have fun," he said.

Cale gave a small cringe. "Actually, I hahdly expect it to be fun, but I'll try."

Rosaline waited until Cale closed the door before asking, "What was _dot_ about?"

"I tink we _all_ be tiahd of all dis," Irleen replied, her new accent causing Link to give a silent chuckle. "Let's go."

"We shouldn't be gone long," Rosaline told Dholit and Link. Dholit responded with a wave as they stepped out of the room.

She set her hand down with a light slap against her thigh. "So the otheh three ah taken caah of," she told Link. "What about you?"

"What about me?" Link groaned in response.

"I thought youh mood would improve afteh you reconciled with Ihleen. Somehow, I feel like I was wrong."

Link rolled onto his side, facing away from her. "Just a lot on my mind right now."

The bed shook as Dholit shifted closer to him and lay down on her back. "You'h not upset that Ihleen wasn't in _love_ with you, ah you?"

Link frowned at the headboard. "No. I mean… I feel like an _idiot_ now, but I'm _glad_ she's not upset with me anymore."

"She's a gihl, Link," Dholit laughed. "She'll always be upset with you."

He glanced over his shoulder. "Do you think she's mad at me _still_?"

She sighed. "Oh, Link, you'h so hopeless. But at least you try."

He frowned at her and decided not to follow a conversation he had already lost track of. "It's… it's all that stuff Irleen was talking about. Those… 'bosses', or whatever she called them."

"What about them?"

"I was just thinking… it's-it's been weird for me. I _know_ I've fought with these… these _huge_ things, but it just doesn't feel _real_. It's kinda like how Irleen described things in the sky. It feels as if someone _else_ fought those creatures instead of me." He looked back over his shoulder. "Doesn't that sound strange?"

"Almost as if you know what the fight looked like, but it feels as if someone else weh in youh boots?"

Link nodded. "Yeah."

She sat up. "Well, _I_ cehtainly have cause to feel jealous."

"What do you mean?"

"Why Link. Ah you not awaah that you've developed a wahrioh's spirit?"

Link rolled onto his back so he did not have to look over his shoulder at her. "A what? A 'warrior's spirit'?"

She nodded. "That feeling you have when you realize that everything's open foh the taking and you need to protect it all. When you stop thinking and meahly staht _doing_. When all oppohtunities to foul up ah no longeh options you'h willing to live with. When even the most insane idea is preferable to the altehnative."

He considered it for a moment. He had not thought of it in those terms, but now that she had put them into words, it almost sounded like the kind of situations he had been in. "How… how does one get a warrior's spirit?"

"Every being, from the most humble plant to the greatest of gods, ah capable of having a wahrioh's spirit. As a Gilto, I believe that the wahrioh's spirit manifests itself when a being feels the most vulnerable."

Link gave a disbelieving shake of his head. "I don't feel like that."

"Not now, maybe. But think about it. All youh wohries, all youh feahs…

"You weh vulnerable when you and Ihleen fell out of the sky."

He felt stung by his memories of lying in Meilont's bed, unable to move or do anything. Being beaten by Gwait and his gang when he had tried to stop their bullying. Being sent with the children, wounded, and elderly when the Bulblins attacked the town. Dholit was right; those days spent living with Meilont and Talein had been the most vulnerable he had felt in his entire life, in spite of every horrible thing that had happened to him as an airman.

"What does it mean, though?" he asked her. "Am I… crazy?"

Dholit smiled at him, a warm smile far from the usual smirk she would give when she was playing with him. "Would you think any less of youhself if you had lost youh mind?"

He focused on the sky past the ceiling above him. "Maybe not, but that's not my problem. If I'm insane… I see my tour as an airship captain being short-lived."

"Oh? Is _that_ the root of youh dedication to youh image?" She leaned into his view, forcing his eyes to focus on her. "If _that's_ the attitude you intend to present, youh touh as an aihship captain may be even shohteh than you can imagine. The wahrioh's spirit is something to be _embraced_, Link. Besides, you probably would not be heah to discuss it if it had not _been_ foh the spirit."

Link chuckled and covered his eyes with a hand. "I-I believe you, I ju—…" He took his hand away and gave the ceiling a sigh. "I just wanted to go home."

"I feah foh whatevah creatuah that decides to stand in youh way next," Dholit told him with a laugh.


	64. The Twenty-Seven

Chapter 64: The Twenty-Seven

…

The number Twenty-Four train arrived two hours later. Link was rested enough that he walked out to the platform without any help from Dholit. Rosaline, Irleen, and Cale showed up a few minutes later, Cale carrying a couple paper sacks that Rosaline had shoved into his arms when they had met in front of the station. After boarding the train, they spent most of their time talking. Rosaline had visited a few of the markets around Hovela; the bags she had were some food for the ride and the rest of the group waiting at Fishington. She had wanted to know more about who she would be working with, so she had talked with Irleen about them. Link and Cale had to assure her that what Rosaline had called a "drunken monkey with a wrench that also functioned as a bottle opener" was actually quite capable despite his eccentricities, although they might have convinced themselves that it would be easier to try forcing Sello into sobriety. Cale chose to keep his destination a secret, but Link believed that he might have gone home to see his little sister. Rosaline talked about her experiences in putting together sailing ships and told Link that it could not be much of a difference between those and an airship. Link pointed out that this new ship would need a ballast system, which was something none of the others knew about. Rosaline pondered the issue for a moment, and then she came to the realization that the method she had been using to design and build ships always seemed to account for wasted space which other ship owners would use for spare cargo room or parts storage. When she asked if the spare areas she would leave at the front, sides, and rear of a ship might be used for a ballast system, Link's excitement built up so quickly that he crushed the piece of fruit in his hand and squirted himself in the face with juice. He despaired, however, when Rosaline told him that she did not know how to put together a ballast system.

It was well into the afternoon when the train blew its whistle to signal its approach to Fishington. Link lacked the enthusiasm of reuniting with the group trying to get him home, something which only Rosaline shared due to not knowing the rest of the group.

"Link," Cale called from the other side of the passenger car. "I think I see the Seventeen."

The passenger car carried only two other passengers, who sat undisturbed at the front of the car. Link stood up and crossed to the other side to look out the window. As the train pulled up to the platform, Link saw the newly-painted black of the Seventeen locomotive stopped on one of the parallel tracks. Link was impressed by the paint job; in spite of knowing what a train locomotive should look like by now, it was hard to tell that the extra pieces of the boiler had been awkward odds and ends slapped together with Sello's quirky methods. It even appeared that Sello had recently added more, namely a weather vane-like device attached to the top of the cab.

"It _looks_ better," Link commented, his mood lightening a bit. "Not completely _normal_, though."

Cale shrugged. "I think 'nohmal' left the moment you found Sello."

"And took 'sanity' with it," Irleen added as she hovered over Link's head. "Hey, it doesn't look bad, though. It actually looks like the worst train to get hit by."

"A ratheh _grim_ opinion," Cale commented.

"Yeah, I just realized that, too," Irleen said, sounding a little awkward. "I think I'll just stop talking for a moment."

"I see the platfohm," Dholit said to them. "I believe we'h about to stop."

Link and Cale settled into the nearby seats a second before the brakes squealed. After a few moments, they were disembarking. Link remembered the landscape from his first trip on the train from Whittleton to Library Town. He found that he liked the appearance of the town now that the miserable sky was gone. The lake sparkled, the rooftops added character, and, evidently, people had been inspired to decorate the sails of the boats currently out on the water. The quota was cheer, and Link could feel his mood brighten just listening to the soft chatter wafting along with the wind.

"'Scuse me." Link, Cale, and Dholit turned in response to a train engineer approaching them. "Where d'ya wan' yar boa'? We can' leave i' 'ere on this track."

"Right, uh…" Link said as he thought. He turned to look back at the flatcar still bearing Rosaline's cutter, the very same car that the crew of the Fourteen had left to them that morning. "Would it be too much trouble to put it on the track behind the Seventeen? A friend of ours runs the train."

"We can do tha'," he said. Then he spun and hollered across the platform, "Tim! Pu' 'er in reverse!"

"Oi, Link!" The group saw Luggard walk up onto the platform with his hand raised in salutation. He no longer wore his red waistcoat and had traded his grey shirt for a navy-blue button-down shirt. And he had recently cleaned himself up and trimmed his brown hair to an effortless length.

"Hey, Luggard," Link replied.

"Hello again," Dholit said.

"'Ow was the Ocean Realm?" Luggard asked.

"Nightmaah," Cale said.

"Disaster," Irleen added.

"Romantic," Dholit chimed in.

"Dot's me home," Rosaline told them in an irritated tone.

Link shrugged. "About as much trouble as we usually see."

"We encountahed a gigantic Bari," Cale said. "And we _definitely_ know it was the reason the tide watehs in the realm nevah receded."

"Do you remember telling Roland about the missing trains, back at the Dark Ore Station?" Link asked.

"Yeah?" Luggard replied. He pointed behind them as the Twenty-Four started reversing down the track. "They was stuck a' the edge o' the realm. They showed up the nigh' after we lef'; they 'ad t' abandon one o' their cars."

"We found the Fifteen northwest of Kakucha Island. They brought us back."

Luggard nodded and looked around Link. "Wha' is they doin'?"

Link glanced around. "Oh. I asked them to put Rosaline's boat on the track behind the Seventeen."

"Who?"

Link stepped aside and indicated Rosaline. "This is Rosaline, the granddaughter of the Architects you found."

"Oh, nice t' mee' ya," Luggard said, offering out a hand. "Name's Luggard."

"Nice meetin' yeh, too," Rosaline replied. She clasped hands with him, and Luggard visibly winced. She turned to Link. "So, wheah be dese odeh 'Ahchitects'?"

"Leynne found a small plo' on the southern ou'skirts," Luggard said, pointing in that direction while shaking the pain out of his other hand. "I can take ya there if ya wan'."

"Lead on," Dholit told him. "We'll tell you of ouh ventuahs on the way."

Contrary to what Link expected, Luggard took a few roads along the outside of town, showing off mainly some of the humble homes and the vast plains nearby. Dholit, Rosaline, and Irleen told Luggard about their trip to the Ocean Realm. Link filled in whenever he needed to and talked about their conclusion to the presence of the _Cloud Moon_. Cale was mostly quiet, and he seemed detached from the conversation. Luggard informed them that he had only recently returned to Fishington himself, having done a few chores for the group. He was mostly trying to see if there was a labor force in Library Town that would be open for hire to build the airship. He also checked on a few suppliers in Library Town, getting quotes for lumber and ship part pricing. It turned out to be mostly a waste (affording him some time to paint the Seventeen). No such labor force was available for hire. And (much to Luggard's and the group's shock), not one supplier in the Forest Realm had the lumber to construct a traditional sailing ship. Not to mention that most of the metal parts available were replacement parts for steamships, and those were in low supply due to the lapse in transportation to the Fire Realm in the past week. Link found himself depressed because of this news. So close to returning, but it would mean nothing if they could _only_ design an airship. And the lack of knowledge about constructing the all-important ballast tank was slowly making his endeavors look pointless.

Luggard brought them to a small house on the south side, far enough that the train platform was missing from view and the Lost Woods could be seen growing out of the horizon. The house was actually brick instead of wood, and it had a slanted roof of wooden shingles which looked to have been recently patched in places. Link noticed the beginnings of a construction area across the road from the house, although its current state of just being a patch of bare ground with a few piles of wood did not leave Link very confident. Luggard walked up to the door and entered without even knocking.

"Can't you knock!?" came Leynne's voice.

As Link and the others stepped in, they found that the house was mostly a large room. The only pieces of furniture in the room were a large table in the center and a leather couch which was missing one of its cushions. Drafting tools sat in a basket hanging on the opposite wall. The floor around the table sported a layer of eraser shavings; Link had only ever seen a comparable volume back when Line had tried his hand at poetry just to try impressing a girl, and Line had used all the erasers they had and still had not made such a mess.

Leynne had been leaning on the table, but he stood up when he saw Link, Cale, Irleen, Rosaline, and Dholit entering. He wore a black, button-down shirt which he had left half-buttoned, exposing part of his chest. "Oh," he uttered. "I hadn't known you'd retuhned. Did you get my letteh?"

"Yeah," Link said with a nod. He set his paper bag on the floor and offered an introduction. "This is Rosaline. She knows a lot about ship-building. I thought you'd like to show her what you had so far."

"So fah, huh?" Leynne replied with a slight grimace. "Well, about that…"

"Something wrong?" Irleen asked as Link stepped forward.

"It cehtainly is quiet around heah," Dholit noted.

Link saw that the large sheet of paper on the table sported a number of erased lines. The only thing that had not been erased was a doodle of a pilot boat with a face. A rather _expressive_ face. "Uh…" Link droned.

"Dubbl was in an unbearable mood this mohning," Leynne said. "Things soht of fell apaht when I tried to explain the lack of practicality in trying to fit spahs on the outside of the hull." For proof, he turned his face so that the light entering through the windows could shine on a blue ring of swelling around his right eye.

"Ouch," Link replied.

"She _punched_ you?" Cale asked.

"Good to see you'h as obsehvant as eveh, Cale," Leynne said. Cale silently stammered in response.

"Wheah is she now?" Dholit asked.

"I tied heh up and threw heh in the closet," Leynne said, indicating one of the doors behind him. "I told heh I'd let heh out if she promised not to do it again. That's… about when it descended into a Hylian-vehsus-Geltoan shouting match. I won by gagging heh with a sock."

Link placed a hand over his face. "Oh, no…"

"Wheah did Sello go?" Cale asked as he set his sack next to Link's.

"He went drinking last night," Leynne replied. "And the night befoh… And the night befoh that. He was sleeping off his lack of sobriety on the flooh, so Dubbl and I had placed him in that closet eahlieh." He indicated the door next to the closet he had pointed out as Dholit's jail.

"Agh!" Irleen squeaked, dropping from the air and onto Rosaline's head.

"Well, theah went _youh_ reason foh living," Dholit joked at her.

"Where'd Lidago go?" Luggard asked. "I though' 'e was the only one ya was gettin' 'lon' with."

Leynne turned and pointed to the door in the back corner of the room. "In that closet," he said. "Afteh I put Dubbl in the closet, I suppose he took it as a sign that he needed to go into a closet, too. He just… soht of put _himself_ in theh."

Luggard snorted, and Rosaline bit her lower lip to keep from laughing. Link sighed and groaned, "This is a disaster…"

"I was trying to be positive about the whole situation, really," Leynne said.

"Thanks for trying," Irleen said. "So _now_ what?"

"Just don't be groanin' and moanin'," Rosaline said as she stepped up to the table and dropped her paper sack on it. She stared Leynne in the eye for a moment. "When was the last time you ate?"

Leynne shrugged, looking a little uncomfortable. "Breakfast."

"It's aftehnoon," she said. "Take a break and go get somethin' to eat. I'll be gettin' you stahted."

Leynne sighed and looked down at the paper. Then he dropped the pencil he had been holding. "Yes, I suppose a late lunch would be in ohdeh," he admitted. "Shall we bring anything back?"

"Oh, whatevah you decide," Dholit said as she stretched. "I will likely be famished afteh placating Dubbl; she's been in quite the mood lately. But fihst, I believe a fresh change is in ohdeh. Wheah does Dubbl sleep?"

Leynne pointed at the open doorway between the closets. "Room at the very back."

"I think I should just like a sandwich," Cale said. "Nothing in pahticulah."

"Rosaline?" Leynne asked.

"A sandwich, please."

"I'll go with ya," Luggard said.

"Me, too," Link said. "Irleen?"

"I'll come with you," Irleen said, jumping off Rosaline's head and coming to a hover at Link's shoulder. "I think I've exposed myself to enough 'crazy' for now."

"The day's still young," Leynne said with a grin as he led Link and Luggard outside.

Link indicated the piles of wood on the other side of the road as Luggard shut the door. "Is this yours here?"

"Yes," Leynne said. "I'd hoped to have a basic framewohk ready by this aftehnoon. You can tell the progress we'd made."

"I thought you had enough idea to start construction," Irleen said.

"That was what I'd expected at the time," Leynne told her as they turned onto the main road. "But we haven't even agreed on the vessel's basic dimensions yet. My original idea was to put togetheh a schooneh, something similah to youh _Island Sonata_. Lidago suggested making it biggeh, and then Dubbl stahted ahguing foh structural reinfohcement because she wanted to experiment with spahs on the outeh hull."

"Arguing?" Link asked. "With who?"

Leynne shrugged. "I don't know; she was probably upset that none of us undehstand Geltoan. Then Sello retuhned advehtising the hole in the seat of his trousehs. Needless to say, that was about when things tuhned into a nightmah."

"Glad I was ou'," Luggard commented with a chuckle.

"Well, now that we have Rosaline, we might be able to pull something together," Link said.

"Yes, but without any soht of laborehs," Leynne said, "I anticipate _months_ befoh we can have a completed vessel."

"And we're still missing that 'ballast' thing," Irleen said. "Leynne, you're an Architect. Do you have any ideas?"

"I'm afraid the title of 'Ahchitect' has been a gross ovehstatement," Leynne said. "As much as I'd like to have that level of confidence, I find myself denying anything above the title 'inventoh'."

"I'm sure the other Architects had their own areas of expertise," Link said.

Leynne shrugged. "I suppose. I can't be cehtain. The tehm 'Ahchitect' makes me believe that my grandfatheh could have drafted a whole vessel in his sleep."

"I'd be makin' money if I 'ad tha' kinda talen'," Luggard said. "Don' need t' drive a train, jus' si' 'n sketch up a new one. Sell it t' a comp'ny."

"It's not necessarily that simple," Leynne told him. "But, suffice it to say that I've little idea about what an Ahchitect is supposed to be capable of. It might've helped if I'd heahd the tehm a little moh often in my life."

Link frowned as a thought occurred to him. "You know, Rosaline and Cale were saying something similar this morning."

"Rosaline, I can probably understand," Irleen said. "But _Cale_? He _breathes_ books."

"Yeah, and he said that _none_ of the books he read mention the Architects by that name." Link said. Then he suddenly stopped, causing Luggard, who had walking behind him and Leynne, to jump aside to dodge him. "Guys, I think we're missing something here."

"Wha's tha'?" Luggard asked as he and Leynne stopped.

"Well, _I_ know about the Architects because I grew up in the sky," Link told them. "Every airman knows about them. Captains even _swear_ by them sometimes."

"But nobody heh on the suhface knows about them," Leynne said. "This is a cause foh concehn? That was _yeahs_ ago."

"No, someone _did_ know about the Architects," Irleen said. "Meilont."

"Meilont?" Luggard asked. "Who's tha'?"

"One of the people I met in Whittleton," Link said. "She knew who they _were_. I never even _mentioned_ them."

Irleen flew a circle around Link's head. "We _have_ to get back to Whittleton."

"Uh, _after_ we eat," Link told her. "Luggard? Would you mind taking us?"

"He's on _my_ pay," Leynne said. "He'll take you."

"Ain' I a softy?" Luggard asked, grinning.

…

The pace that Link was moving was beginning to surprise him. After having a quick lunch with Luggard and Leynne, he boarded the Seventeen with Luggard and Irleen and departed for Whittleton. Nostalgia hit him as he rode in the locomotive again, and he had a stronger feeling once they arrived at the train platform south of Whittleton. Evening cast a gold light over the whole town, which had shown signs of growth since Link had last seen it. As with the rest of the realm, the grass had regained its color. The townspeople had planted saplings in the available spaces near the platform; there were even potted saplings set in the corners of the platform. Some of the dead groves Link had seen before were gone now, probably removed to make space for new trees. He was glad, but he reminded himself that it might be years before the town could resume producing lumber. Still, if the town had held out for this long, Link felt it could hold out until then.

Luggard was waiting at the station while Link visited. He attracted a bit of attention as he walked through town. Townspeople called him by name, and he replied politely despite not knowing many of them. When he arrived at Talein's house, he knocked on the inside of the doorframe.

"Yes?" Link's heart started pounding in his chest at the sound of Meilont's voice. He knew he was nervous, but he could not figure out why. Up until he had knocked, it had been a simple matter of approaching her and asking a few questions.

Now, he felt his voice catch in his throat as he tried to answer. "It-it's me," he responded. He took a step inside.

Meilont stood at the sink on the opposite side of the large table. She wore a yellow shirt and white trousers, both looking quite pristine. Her hair was tied at the end and swung as one when she turned to look at him. A smile came to her face. "Link!" she declared. She hurried around the table as Link took a second step inside. Then he became keenly aware that she was still approaching fast and braced himself as she wrapped her arms around him. "Oh, Link, it's so good ta see yeh again!"

"Y-yeah, y-you, too," he said, awkwardly returning the hug.

"An' Irleen?" she asked.

Irleen emerged from his hat as Meilont pulled away. "Still here," she said. "Still a fairy."

Meilont nodded and looked hard at Link. "Look a' yeh," she said. "Yeh look more like a mercenary. Wha' happened ta the sword I gave yeh?"

"I let a friend borrow it," Link said, now realizing that his first sword was still in Luggard's possession (he hoped). "A lot's happened since I left."

"Did yeh find any o' the Architects?"

Link hesitated a moment. Her asking that question had just confirmed what he had thought. She knew about the Architects, and she knew about them well enough that she did not have to think about what they were called. "Meilont… there's something I have to ask you."

"Did-did I do somethin' wrong?" she asked, concern replacing the joy on her face.

"Ah—no, no!" Link immediately said. "Uh… look, let's sit down."

But Meilont's face turned into a suspicious look. She crossed her arms and said, "Wha's goin' on, then?"

"Please," Irleen said. "It's important."

She glanced between Link and Irleen. "Okay," she said. She turned around and strode back to the table. Link followed her, and they both sat down. "So wha' is it?"

"When we first discussed the Architects," Link said, "you already knew about them, right? You were the one who brought them up."

Meilont nodded. "Yeah?"

"How do you know about them?"

At this, Meilont tilted her head in curiosity. "How'd I know 'bout the Architects? Doesn' _everyone_ know 'bout 'em?"

"No," Irleen said as she rested on the table next to Link. "And that's what we need to know."

"Everywhere we've gone," Link said, "no one has known about the Architects; we've had to explain it to most of the people we've talked to. But you know about them, and I'm _sure_ I didn't mention them to you before."

"Wha—" Meilont started to say. Then Link saw her thoughts begin to piece together their reasoning as her eyes shifted around. "It's a clue, isn' it? Ta finding an Architect?"

Link nodded. "It may be. Do you remember when you first heard about them?"

Meilont frowned as she thought. "It was the first le'er ma mother sent. She'd gotten ta Library Town, an' the next day she sent ta me. She told me 'bout this blind old man she talked ta on the train. I guess he asked her if she ever heard o' the Architects, an' he started tellin' her 'bout 'em."

Link's eyes became wide. "An old man?"

"A _blind_ old man!?" Irleen cried out, performing a spiral as she rose from the table. "On the _train_!?"

Meilont gave them a confused look. "Yeh… yeh know him?"

Link grabbed the sides of his head and leaned forward. "I completely _forgot_ about him!" he cried.

"He was _right in front of us_!" Irleen added. "_That's_ why we always thought people down here knew who the Architects were!"

Meilont could not help smiling. "Wow. I thought yeh two couldn' be any sillier."

"Yeah, but there went one of our leads," Irleen said.

"Wha' do yeh mean?" Meilont asked.

"He could be _anywhere_."

"The only time we saw him was between here and Fishington," Link said. "He probably got off there. And we didn't even get his _name_."

"Well, even if yeh don' know where he _goes_," Meilont said, "yeh know where he likes ta _be_."

"We do?" Irleen asked.

Meilont nodded. "Yeh took the number Twenty-Seven train ta Library Town in the mornin'. It's the same train ma mother took; tha's why I remember it."

"So you're saying we should catch the Twenty-Seven to Fishington again?" Irleen asked.

"We, uh… we don't have much money," Link said. "A ticket from here, even to _Fishington_, is pretty expensive."

Meilont sighed. "Yeh just don' ge' it, do yeh?" She stood up and grabbed Link's sleeve. Link stumbled as she started for the door. "Yeh don' think people won' do a favor fer the Hero o' Whittleton?"

"The _what_!?" Link and Irleen said at the same time.

…

~~Day 28.

~~I've been all over the Forest Realm, and now I'm right back where I started.

~~We started back in Hovela this morning. I think things might've gotten a little personal. I'm still embarrassed that I thought Irleen was angry at me because she loved me and didn't like Dholit kissing me. I was half-right, and that last statement looks stupid now that I know why she was upset. She's been more worried about getting back into the sky than I have. I don't know why she thought Dholit would be a distraction, though; I can't stand her.

~~Thanks to Leynne, we were able to take a train to Fishington to meet up with the rest of the group. I hope Rosaline's addition will help smooth out things; Leynne seems like he's at his wit's end with Sello and Dubbl. The fact that those two (and Lidago) were in closets when we showed up makes me worry.

~~Luggard brought Irleen and I back to Whittleton so we could ask Meilont how she knew about the Architects. It turns out that Meilont had heard about them from Madame Seilon, who heard about them from the old man Irleen and I met on the train to Library Town. We just got back from the platform. Apparently, I'm considered a hero due to what I did when the Bulblins attacked. Since we're taking the Twenty-Seven back to Fishington, we told Luggard to go ahead of us. We're staying the night in Meilont's room again. I feel kind of bad that we're using her room again, but she says that, since Talein is staying in Aboda while looking for good places for lumber, she can stay in his room.

~~I'm still a little frustrated that we didn't see all this before. If I had realized that that old man knew about the Architects, I would've tried to get more information out of him. The fact that he knew so much about them should've been a clue. How could I've been so stupid? I just hope Meilont's idea works. I'd hate to think I missed one because I wasn't paying attention.

…

~~Day 29.

~~Here we go again.

…

Morning came, and Link and Meilont had breakfast together while Irleen talked about some of their adventures and the people they had met. Meilont seemed to enjoy it and fell into a fit of laughter when they told her about Sello and his drunken antics. Link found himself enjoying visiting Meilont again and made a note in his head to stop by the next time he had a chance.

Meilont went with them to the platform, where the train waited as the platform workers filled its water tank using buckets. She was dressed in a green shirt and brown slacks, clothing which Link had not seen her wearing before. However, Link had realized earlier that she might have been making fun of his usual outfit.

"Well," she said, breaking the silence that had started after they had stepped onto the platform. "Here yeh are. Leavin' again."

"Are you _trying_ to make him feel guilty?" Irleen asked from the edge of Link's hat. "Do you _know_ how guilty he gets?"

"I know," Meilont told her. "It's motivation fer him ta come back an' visit."

"I will," Link argued. "I don't know when, but I'll visit again."

"It just depends on if we can get the airship off the ground," Irleen said. "And then _that_ depends on if we can get the wood to _build_ the ship."

"Yeh don' have lumber?" Meilont asked.

Link shrugged. "It's hard to get wood here because of what the haze did to the realm. According to Luggard, no one in the realm has enough lumber to build a ship."

Meilont scrunched her face. "Well, _tha'_ can' be right," she told him. "There should still be plen'y o' wood fer yeh ta use."

"If there is, no one wants to share it," Irleen said.

"Wha' a ro'en thin' ta do!" Meilont said.

Irleen jumped out of Link's hat. "I know! Luggard was just asking how much the lumber would be!"

"Half tha' lumber came from _here_!" Meilont said. "Maybe we should keep it fer _us_ instead!"

"I thought you were trading the lumber for supplies," Link said.

"Hey!" Irleen snapped at him. "Who's side are you supposed to be on?"

Link held his hands up in surrender, backing away when Irleen approached his face. "I-I'm just saying!"

The train gave a whistle blow. "All aboard for Fishington and Library Town!" one of the conductors hollered. Link gave a relieved sigh, thankful that the conversation was about to end.

Meilont had her arms crossed. "Well, I just might do somethin' 'bout it," she huffed at the train. Then she put on a friendlier face as she told them, "Yeh two be'er visit. I'd like ta see Irleen in her _real_ form someday."

"Of course," Link said with a grin while Irleen hid under his hat. He turned to board the train.

"Hey!" Meilont called out, grabbing his right sleeve. She pulled him sideways, causing him to lean to avoid falling over.

When he recovered, he felt something wet press against his right cheek. He froze immediately. When the feeling left, he turned to see Meilont's face pulling away. She smiled at him, her face growing scarlet. "Be careful, okay?"

Link's face also reddened. He did not know why, but he found himself liking Meilont's kiss more than Dholit's. "Y-yeah," Link said. "Yeah, I will." She gave his arm a playful slap, which he took as an indication to start moving. He offered a wave before turning and walking up to the train. He suppressed his grin as he offered his ticket to the large man standing at the door, but the moment he took a seat, he could not hold it back. He glanced out the window and waved at Meilont, who waved back.

"You've _gotta_ be kidding," Irleen groaned as she came out of his hat.

Link looked up at her in confusion. "What?" he asked.

"If anyone else kisses you, I'm gonna curse you when I get back to normal."

"I thought it wouldn't bother you as long as we're still working on getting back into the air."

"Well, _now_ it bothers me because you're just _letting_ it happen."

Link glanced out the window and noticed a concerned look on Meilont's face. He waved at her, and she returned it with a grin. "I can't _plan_ to have a girl kiss me," Link said, holding his smile as he talked.

"Try it, and it won't be so annoying."

The train jerked as it started moving, causing Link to hit his head against the back of his seat. "Ow."

"Serves you right."

"Sounds like quite the lovers' quarrel," an old voice cackled.

"Oh, _butt_ out!" Irleen shouted.

"Irleen!" Link snapped.

"What!?"

"Stop messing around," Link told her as he stood from his seat. "That's _him_."

Link swung around the end of the bench to see the bench behind him. Elderly, long-faced, bald. Gray rags over a scrawny frame. Thin, black band of iron across his face. "Oh?" the old man asked as he glanced in Link's direction (for all the good it would do). "It's ya two again? I almost couldn't tell, but the gal's got a pretty unique voice."

"Yeah, being the size of a _firefly_ doesn't help," Irleen commented.

"I'm glad we found you again, sir," Link said as he sat down. "I have a few more questions I wanna ask."

"'Bout them Architects, eh?" the old man asked. "Guess it shouldn't be a surprise. Let me guess. Ya wanna know how _I_ know 'bout 'em, huh?"

"Well, the fact that _you_ know who they were kinda got past us the last time," Link said. "No one else in this age knows about them unless they either fell from the sky or talked to _you_."

The old man's mouth wrinkled. "Well, I guess that's reason 'nough.

"I was one of 'em."

The statement almost made it past both Link and Irleen without reaction. If the old man had not paused, they would have completely forgotten that he had said it due to how brief the statement had been. Irleen's hovering motions stiffened, and she produced an inadvertent jingle which served to announce the surprise on Link's face. "Y—…you're _what_!?" they shouted simultaneously.

"Take it easy," the old man groaned, digging a finger into one ear. "I'm _blind_, not _deaf_."

"_How_ can you be an Architect?" Irleen said. "Most of them _died_ long ago."

The old man's voice became hostile as he said, "Ya think I didn't _know_ that? I _watched_ 'em die!"

"Take it easy," Link said, holding up a hand. "It's just that… How'd you survive for so long?"

The old man grunted, nodding at the logic of the question. "I can't really say. I just lost track o' time one day. Probably from ridin' this damn train so much."

"I guess it makes sense that someone old enough _would_ remember the Architects," Link said. "Look, I've found the descendents of other Architects, but we still need some help."

"Ya do, huh? I wish I could help ya, but I ain't in the best position."

"I just had some questions about making a ballast system," Link said. "We don't have any means of collecting _or_ storing _or_ controlling Loft Steam. Not to mention we don't even know _where_ to find some Loft Steam."

The old man chuckled. "Well then, this is the final irony," he told Link. "As it turns out, I built the _first_ ballast system."

"You did!?" Irleen asked.

He nodded. "Wasn't long 'fore we started puttin' together the first ships. I found a vent o' Loft Steam in the northwestern areas o' the Snow Realm; that's where ya'll wanna look. I left a workshop up there with most o' ma notes. Ideas I had after the airship'd all gone. I bet ya can still find 'em."

"But you don't want to come with us?" Irleen asked. "I mean, even if we carried you, it'd be—"

"No, I can't," the old man said. "Ya see, I've missed ma stop every time this train's been through here. I'm tryin' not t' do it again."

"Where's your stop?" Link asked.

"Fishington."

"We're stopping there, too," Irleen said. "Maybe you can come with us and take a look at the… sh… Sorry."

"That's okay," the old man said with a sigh. "I noticed it a long time ago, too." He perked up as if he just realized something. "Hey, mind if I asked ya a question?"

"Sure," Link said.

"I wasn't quite sure I understood last time we talked. Did ya say ya came from the _sky_?"

"The both of us did," Link said with a nod. "You see, the Sorians—"

"That's my people," Irleen interjected.

"They moved their land into the sky," Link continued. "They live on only one island now, and us Hylians, we've moved onto the other islands they aren't using."

The old man nodded his understanding. "I always wondered what it was 'bout that sky what made the Royal Family move 'emselves up there. Is it pretty?"

"You can look at the sky all day," Link said. "There are hundreds of airships in the kingdom, all made based on the plans of the original airships built on the surface."

"Do much modifyin' t' the ballast tanks?"

Link hesitated for a moment. "I'm not sure. As far as I've _read_, the technology hasn't changed much. Although we have to use different _materials_ for the tanks, I'm sure the design's just as you remember it." A thought occurred to him, so he added, "You know, I think they call the design the 'Alfred Tank', if that means anything to you."

Even though his eyes were covered, Link and Irleen could see the shock appear on his face. "R-really? They… they used _my_ name?"

"I guess, if your name's Alfred," Link said.

The old man sniffed, and a tear fell out from beneath his metal headwear. "They… they _remembered_. All this time, I… I thought they just _took_ it 'n _ran_…"

Link and Irleen exchanged looks. "You… had some _problems_ with the others?" Link asked.

Another tear fell as the old man nodded. "They didn't like ma design. Said it'd never get 'em off the ground. Nearly _killed_ people 'fore they let me have a go. 'N after all that, I thought they just took the design 'n called it their own…"

"I… I guess they _didn't_," Irleen told him.

"Ya don't know what it means t' me t' hear that," the old man, Alfred, said as more tears trailed down his face. "I lost _everythin'_ after that. Ma job. Ma wife. Ma son… that's the reason I been ridin' this train fer so damn long. I-I was out in Hovela workin' on the docks when I got a letter from his neighbor. He was sick, 'n he wanted t' see me. That was 'bout the time I started goin' blind, 'n I missed the Fishington platform twice 'cause I couldn't tell what damn town I was in. So the last time I stopped, I bought me some glasses. I had t' beg fer 'nough money t' take a train from Library Town back t' Fishington. Back then, I was just so exhausted that I just kept fallin' asleep every time I thought I was gonna make it t' Fishington. Lost the watch I had from ma Royal Engineer days. Then I lost the glasses. Then I lost the map I kept with me so I could find ma workshop again. Then, well… I guess the last thing t' go was ma sight. No one ever thought twice 'bout lookin' at me. I guess I just lost presence. Sometimes, I'd say somethin' just t' make sure I was still here. Didn't have t' be t' maself; I'd just chew on anyone's ear so long as they wanted t' listen." He paused and looked up at the ceiling. "Come t' think of it, I think this is the longest I've ever _talked_ t' anyone."

"You just went along with all of it?" Irleen asked, her voice a little choked. "Didn't you get hungry or anything?"

"I was. Fer a while. But, somewhere between the watch 'n the glasses, I guess I lost that, too. Heh. I guess ma life really _did_ get lousy after all that." Alfred leaned forward and put a bony hand on Link's knee. Link stiffened, keenly aware of how cold it felt through both his trousers and his bodysuit. "Thanks. I—" He choked up, and more tears fell from his visor. "I appreciate ya tellin' me all that."

"Y-yeah, uh…" Link responded, words failing him.

Alfred sat back and sighed. "Ya know somethin'? I don't feel tired anymore." He cocked his head to one side. "I wonder why. It's probably been the first time it's happened in…" He frowned. "I don't know."

"Maybe… you'll make it to Fishington this time," Irleen managed between sniffles and her resistance to sobbing aloud.

"What's with ya?" Alfred asked. "Ya both sympathy cryin' or somethin'?"

"Yeah-ah," Link replied as he wiped away a tear, his laugh dry and cracked. "It's… You sound like you've had it rough." Irleen bumped into Link's shoulder and motioned toward the windows on the other side of the car. The southern edge of Fishington had come into view. Link motioned for her to be quiet and said, "Do you remember where your son is?"

"I'd like t' think so," Alfred responded. "I guess I'll have t' ask someone when I get there." He smiled. "It'd be nice t' get off this train fer once in my—…" He froze.

And then he looked directly at Link. "Oh."

The train's whistle caused both Link and Irleen to start, and they glanced out as the platform entered view.

And when they looked back, Alfred was gone.


	65. Repayment

Chapter 65: Repayment

…

Link and Irleen could not believe it. Even with the gravestone before them, they just could not believe it was possible.

After the train had stopped, Link had hustled out of the passenger car and nearly thrown up on the platform. It had attracted a lot of attention, but Link had ignored it as he had called Irleen to follow him. With help from the locals, he had located the closest graveyard to the station. There, he had met a hunchbacked, pale man named Galm, who had directed him to the gravestone through his astounding memory of the names. He had left the two of them alone. Link had sunk to his knees at the sight of the gravestone, and then had read it aloud for Irleen to understand.

"'—Royal Engineer Alfred. Found dead aboard the number Twenty-Seven train as it pulled into this location. Believed to have died of heart failure. Estimated sixty-four years of age. No survivors.'"

Now, Irleen lay on the ground under Link's shadow as Link stared down at the bare earth before him. The man was a genius, yet he only received a gravestone and no cover stone to protect his remains. And with no survivors… Link, Irleen, and Madame Seilon were probably the only ones to remember him.

"What is _wrong_ with this place?" Irleen asked to break the silence, her voice weak and cracked. "What kind of world just… just _lets_ someone's soul wander around like this? Is this a _curse_ or something? Link?"

"I-I don't know," Link replied, his eyes no longer focused on the grave. "I ju—… I don't know. I've-I've never seen it _happen_ before."

There was a moment of silence between them. "Do you think he suffered?" Irleen asked.

"I don't know. I don't think he even _knew_ it was happening."

Another moment of silence passed. "Do you think the universe was punishing us for not paying attention?"

Link sighed. "He died _years_ ago, Irleen. We were probably lucky to have met him at all."

"Excuse me, sir." Link looked up to see that Galm, a ghastly man wearing a dirty and torn robe, had returned with a small, wooden box wrapped in his long, bony fingers. "I couldn't be sure if'n yeh knew, but we kept Mister Alfred's belongings in the office. If'n yeh'd like, yeh can take 'em. Otherwise, I need to bury 'em with the body. It's our policy."

Link stood up and accepted the box. He removed the thin lid and examined the contents. A gold pocketwatch with the symbol of the Royal Family of Hyrule emblazoned on the cover, a small pair of glasses with filthy lenses, half of a train ticket (a very old one; it did not even remotely look like the tickets Link had used), two green rupees, a pocket knife with a battered handle—

And a map. Link first thought it was just a piece of parchment used to line the bottom of the box. He took it out, tucked the box under his arm, and unfolded the map. He oriented it so that Library Town and the Tower of Spirits were correctly placed and realized that it was a railroad map of the eastern half of the Snow Realm. A black scribble formed a path from Library Town, through the mountains between the realms, and up to a distant corner of the Snow Realm surrounded by mountains.

"Irleen," he said, already feeling overwhelmed with relief. "We… we—oh, geez, Irleen. We have a way home."

"What?" Irleen asked as she flew up to eye-level with him. "What is it?"

"Remember what he told us? That he had a map so he could find his workshop again? He lost it?"

"Yeah? What, you mean… you mean this is _it_!?" She started flying circles around him. "We can go home!?"

"We can go home!" He folded the map again and slipped it into his pocket. Then he replaced the lid on the box and returned it to Galm. "Here. Let him have his things. He deserves it."

Galm accepted the box, confusion in his face as he watched Link's eyes tear up. "Yeh know a lot about a man who died so long ago," he remarked. "Who was he to yeh?"

Link struggled to hold in his desire to cry. "A hero," Link managed. "_Our_ hero." Link turned back to the gravestone, his body rigid as if he had just been snapped at by a superior. He quickly snatched his hat off his head. Then he snapped a salute with his left hand and addressed the grave. "Thank you, sir. I can't even _begin_ to tell you what this means to us. And no one will ever, _ever_, forget you."

"He was creepy," Irleen remarked, holding position near Link's head. "But I liked him. I hope you found your son, sir." There was a pause, and then she asked Link in a low whisper, "Can you tell I'm saluting, too?"

Link let out a burst of laughter and dropped his salute. "Sure, why not?" he told her. He replaced his hat. Then he turned to Galm. "Thank you for your help, too."

Galm shrugged. "I do what I can fer the dead," he said. "The livin's just a bonus."

Link turned to Irleen and pointed to his head. "Irleen, hop in."

"Right," she replied. She entered the hat, and Link sped away in less than a moment, traveling on his excitement and speed-altering boots.

Galm looked at the wake of dirt he had kicked up with bemusement. "Now _there's_ a kid what respects his elders," he said with a satisfied nod.

Link ran through the town, causing a wave of confusion as the townspeople tried to comprehend the green streak flying by. Even traveling so fast, Link could see obstacles coming and dodged past them with ease. A man trying to pick up the sack of apples he had dropped was only aware of a _whoosh_ sailing over him as Link leaped over. A boy found himself in the arms of his older sister when he saw Link approaching (and was subsequently dropped for an otherwise astounding evasion). A group of Cuccos went sprawling all over the road, only able to relate their collective confusion in all their clucking as they wondered what the hell had just run by and if they needed to call in the rest of the boys. From the market to the business offices around the station and then straight south past the houses, Link's excitement was shown through his desire to run even faster if it meant that he could get home sooner. He slid when he saw that he was about to pass by the group's house and had to backtrack. He jogged up to the door (so the boots would not trigger) and shoved it open as hard as he could.

_BAM!_ "Guys, we've got one!" he immediately shouted.

_Fwumph._ Confused by the sound, Link stepped around the door to look behind it. He found that he had hit Sello with the door, causing the engineer to fall flat on his back with a comically dumbfounded look on his face. He put on a nervous grin and showed it to the occupants of the table in the middle of the room. "Oops."

Irleen emerged from his hat to look at the incident. "Oh, yeah, that's gonna leave a mark," she said.

Leynne, who had been holding his head as he leaned on one edge of the table, gave him a dismissive wave. "Don't wohry about it," he said in a half-grumble. "We've been trying to wake him all mohning. We couldn't do a damn thing with him even _befoh_ you hit him."

"Wha'ever ya found," Luggard, standing on the opposite side of the table from Link, spoke up, also appearing to sport a headache, "could ya tell us in a quie' voice? Some o' us is still waitin' fer our 'eads t' solidify."

Rosaline, standing to Luggard's left, giggled at them. "Lightweights," she said. Then she asked Link, "What did yeh find?"

Link closed the door. Then he removed the map from his pocket and unfolded it as he spoke. "Okay, you guys know that we're still missing a way to put together a ballast tank, right?"

"I believe the issue's come up," Leynne said with a nod.

Link turned the map and pushed it to Luggard. "We know where to find it."

Leynne and Rosaline stepped to Luggard's side of the table to better see the map. "What ah we looking at?" Leynne asked.

"The Snow Realm," Luggard said as he traced the line. "Wha's 'ere?"

"The workshop of one of the _original_ Architects," Link said. "The workshop's been abandoned, but we might still find a lot of his original work there, maybe even a prototype we could test out."

"Can the Seventeen navigate this?" Leynne asked.

"Oh, yeah," Luggard answered. "And, since we go' it, we can use tha' flatbed car. We jus' go'a do somethin' with the boa'."

"I be havin' some ideas on that," Rosaline said. "If we get the tanks."

Link nodded. "I'm confident. That's where we need to go."

"Wheh's all this coming from?" Leynne asked.

"We met one," Link told him. "We met one of the original Architects."

"Well… his _ghost_, anyway," Irleen added.

Leynne, Rosaline, and Luggard exchanged strange looks with each other. Then they all stared at Link for a moment to gauge whether he was serious or not. "Wha' 'ave ya been doin' lately?" Luggard asked him.

"There was this old man on the number Twenty-Seven train," Link explained. "We didn't realize it, but he was the ghost of one of the original Architects."

"Although we _kinda_ accidentally made him disappear," Irleen said, her voice emphasizing an apology.

"Before he left," Link continued, "he told us about that map. When we checked back here in Fishington, we found out that the man tending the graveyard still had his possessions."

All three stared in silence for a moment. Then Leynne said, "Theh ah _fah_ too many questions to ask right now. I'll just go along with you finding a map in a graveyahd."

"Less creepy, moah adventuahsome," Rosaline added.

Link shrugged. "Okay."

"Wish we'd thought of that," Irleen muttered. Then, in a normal voice, she asked, "So how have you guys been doing?"

"Ya mean _other_ than the 'angovers?" Luggard asked.

"Hangovers?" Link asked. "You guys were out drinking?"

"It was a bonding event," Rosaline told him. She held up a hand. "I take full responsibility."

"You tried," Leynne said, "but youh coffee tasted like old socks."

"It was all I could find," Rosaline defended. Luggard gave her a grunt.

"But we _have_ been making progress," Leynne said. He indicated the room to Link and Irleen. That was when they realized that large sheets of paper, like what Leynne had been using the day before, had been posted to the walls using tacks. Link stepped over to one and recognized it as a diagram for a steering mechanism. "Rosaline and I finished that fihst thing this mohning. I want to try placing the ship's helm at the front. I know how tradition stands, but—"

"It's fine," Link said. "I'm willing to try something new."

He moved on to the next one, which looked like part of a sail plan. It reminded him of the outboard, triangular rigs that the _Grand Sails_ used. "That was the idea Dubbl punched me in the eye foh," Leynne told him. "We still have a few details to discuss, but I think we can make it wohk."

"Look at all this stuff," Irleen said. "Just yesterday, you'd thrown everyone else into the _closets_ because you couldn't agree on anything."

Link continued to examine the plans as Leynne replied, "Theih attitudes improved afteh you left. Dubbl especially, although theh was a massive amount of screaming involved thanks to Dholit. I think I might've had _nightmahs_ if it hadn't been foh the alcohol."

"What was she doing?" Link asked as he looked at what he believed to be a preliminary deck plan.

"Shall I demonstrate?"

"YIKES!" Link hollered, jumping aside when he realized that someone had placed their fingertips on his ribs.

Dholit stood up straight and laughed. "Oh, my captain, you ah such a tease," she told him. Her voice caused Leynne and Luggard to plant their heads on the table and cover them with their arms. Dholit saw the movement and told them, "Ah, yes, the festivities of last night have caught up with you now, haven't they?"

"Invariably," Leynne grunted into the table. Luggard also replied, but the curse he spoke was muffled by the table.

"I will try to keep my voice down then," she told them. She stepped over to the table. "So, gentlemen. And Rosaline." She paused to plant a kiss on Rosaline's cheek. Rosaline wave a hand between their faces to drive Dholit away, giving her an irritated look. Dholit waggled her eyebrows before continuing her statement. "What's on the agenda foh today? Any moah gihls in need of satisfaction? Oh pehhaps we shall travel to anotheh land and save them from crisis? An island that doesn't exist? A land wheah the heavens fall? A kingdom betrayed by what was once an ally?"

"Will you _please_ stop talking?" Leynne groaned, the first half of his sentence muffled because he could not turn his head in time to say it.

Irleen glanced around for a moment. "What happened to Lidago and Dubbl?" she asked.

"Ligado went to find some breakfast," Rosaline said.

"Dubbl is still asleep," Dholit said.

"What about Cale?" Link asked.

Luggard looked up so he could trade knowing glances with Rosaline and Leynne. "'E wen' 'ome," Luggard told him. "Said 'e 'ad t' turn in 'is journal 'n stuff."

"I bought him a ticket so he could retuhn to Library Town," Leynne said. "I suppose his assignment's oveh foh the time being."

"Well, crud," Irleen said. "I'm gonna miss him. You'd think he'd be here when the ship gets put together."

"Maybe he will," Dholit said with a shrug.

"So, wha' do we do 'bou' this?" Luggard asked, raising the map for everyone to see. "I know _I_'s goin'."

"Me, too," Link said.

"Yeah, me, too," Irleen said.

"You might need someone to look at the specifications," Leynne said. "I'll go along."

"We might need some muscle, too," Link said. "We might want to see if Lidago'll come with us."

"We can ask him when he retuhns," Leynne said. He looked at Rosaline. "Do you think you can manage Sello and Dubbl while we'h gone?"

She gave him a sly smile. "I'll be havin' them trained and groomed by the time yeh boys get back."

Dholit raised her eyebrows. "Ooh, I cannot pass up _this_ soht of oppohtunity," she said. "Pehhaps I can find the tact I need to make Link mine." Then she coyly covered her mouth with one hand. "Oh, did I say that aloud?"

"On purpose!" the rest of the room told her in annoyance, although Luggard's statement involved a vulgar adjective.

…

~~We've obtained the map to Alfred's workshop. I hope he does not mind, but I'm sure he would understand if we took some of his supplies so we could put together the ballast tanks we need to get the new ship off the ground. Assuming we have access to Loft Steam. I'm optimistic, and I'm trying to stay that way.

~~We've cleared the flatcar in case we need the space to haul materials back to the Forest Realm. Rosaline's cutter has been taken to the house for now while she determines what she would like to do with it. It's too late in the evening to go to the Snow Realm, so we've decided to head out in the morning.

~~I've taken a good look at the plans Rosaline and Leynne have drawn up. From what I can put together, this ship is going to be a little larger than the Island Sonata and, by far, more complicated. I've also noticed that they've been writing "Island Sonata 2" on their plans. I've found that I can't really accept the name. The Island Sonata was my first airship, and it just seems to cheapen those two days I had her if we decided to call the new ship the "Island Sonata 2". No vessel in the sky uses a number in a name like that. I don't know whether I should tell them or not, though; it seems petty to nitpick the ship's name after all they've gone through just to put the idea to paper. Maybe I'll just wait and see what happens.

~~Irleen and I have stayed behind at the house while the rest went out to a local tavern. Rosaline assured me that they would not drink as much this evening, although I can only imagine how she intends to limit Sello.

…

"Nevertheless, I hope you meant it."

"No, no, I—I mean…" The young captain trailed off, furiously scratching at a messy mat of blond hair. "Well, _yes_, I—I meant to say that, but… I—I didn't _want_ to say it!"

He gave the captain a curious stare. "Why would you not want to say such a thing?" he asked, carefully moving closer to the deck.

"No!" the captain cried out. "I mean I—I _might_ have wanted to say it, but—but that wasn't what I _needed_ to say." The captain closed his eyes and hung his head. For a moment, he thought he had embarrassed the captain, something which he had not intended. But then the captain growled and shouted at him, "I—I just want you off the bow!"

He was off the bow, standing on the small bit of deck above the safety net connected to the end of the bowsprit. One of his hands held a nearby stay to help him keep his balance. But he hesitated before saying anything. Somehow, this seemed familiar to him.

"But you _were_ off the bow," he murmured to himself.

He looked up to find the captain staring at him. She sighed and said, "Yes… yes, I was."

He blinked for a moment. Something seemed different from before. He stared at her for a moment before saying, "I was concerned about you."

She nodded, a bright smile coming across her reddening face. "Yes."

"I was trying to take your care seriously," he told her. "I… I never knew you were like that."

The last statement felt difficult to say. Link found himself opening his eyes into a dull room. He could not understand why, but he felt warmer than expected. He only had the one blanket; the night was not cold enough for more.

Then, when he found the reason for his warmth, the whole house (and maybe a neighbor or two) woke to him screaming, "DHOLIT, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU _DOING_ IN HERE!?"

…

~~Day 30.

~~I think I need to start sleeping where Dholit can't find me.

…

The morning was terrible for the whole house (except for Lidago, who seemed to have slept through Link's panicked scream). After they took some time to rally their senses, Link, Leynne, Luggard, Lidago, and Irleen boarded the Seventeen.

Link was amazed by the sight of the Snow Realm after they exited the tunnel west of Library Town. The rainclouds that once obscured the sky had been replaced by fluffy, white clouds. Although none had fallen on the ground ahead of them, the west was a large sheet of white due to the snowfall. It was hard looking to the west; fortunately, the bench in the locomotive's cab allowed Link to sit without having to stare at it all day. He could feel the colder air, which reminded him of home. The tracks under the train were wet, and, on a couple of occasions, the locomotive would dip into a large puddle and send a splash over the side of the cab.

Luggard directed the train toward the eastern border with the Fire Realm. Three times, Luggard had to stop and step out to change the switch in the tracks. The third switch took them into a wooded area with a steep cliff on the east side. A large mountain loomed ahead, likely the northern border of whatever piece of land Alfred had found. Luggard had the train running slower as they watched the trees for a sign of Alfred's workshop. They were far enough north that a blanket of snow covered the ground and formed coats on the nearby trees. Luggard continued on, telling Link that he was moving slow enough that the train should not be in any danger of sliding when he applied the brakes.

They found a spot in the woods where the trees had been cleared. Luggard spied a platform on his side of the train and slowed. Then Link saw the compound. The first thing in view was a crane. Unlike those Link usually saw at a port, this one sat on a set of railroad tracks, evidenced by the train-style wheels holding the rest of the crane above the snow. It had two larger wheels on either side, which Link took to be the wheels the users turned to raise and lower the hook at the end of a long rope. The main arm of the crane was a trussed, triangular, iron structure which appeared to be fixed in place. The first building Link saw was a long, wooden building with multiple doors on the front. Link guessed this to be quarters for whatever workers had been here. The flat layer of snow in front of them told Link that they had not been used in a long time. A small outhouse, identified by the air vents at the top, sat at the end, almost unnoticeable due to the train obstructing Link's view.

The workshop was a steel building towards the back of clearing. Link saw a large pipe protruding from the flat roof. The roof stretched out past the left side of the building, and Link could see a number of hanging implements underneath that area. A couple of piles sat in front of the building, and there was a cave leading underground on the right side of the building.

The train stopped, and Luggard released the steam in the boiler. Link turned to him and asked, "So, what do you think?"

Luggard let his eyes pass over the area for a moment. "If we tried 'arder, we'd find a warmer place t' look," he said. He turned to the back of the cab and retrieved a footlocker (which Link had never seen before) from under the bench. He opened the top and pulled out a thick, blue jacket. "Ain' ya cold?"

"A little," Link confessed. "It's probably a little colder than what I'm used to living in the sky."

Luggard stepped over to the door and opened it. "I'll be glad when we leave," he told Link as he started down. "If we don' _freeze_ firs'."

"Just take it easy, Luggard," Irleen said as she emerged from Link's hat. "Whoa. It _is_ kinda cold out here."

Link stepped off the train and rounded the locomotive to look over the area. He noticed a small shed near the workshop which did not have any apparent function. What caught Link's attention about it was the presence of a thick hose. So far, he had yet to see any evidence of a source of Loft Steam, so he hoped that the shed might be it.

Link turned to see Leynne clamber over the couplers between the passenger car and the locomotive. "How does it look?" he asked.

Leynne, huddled in a thick, wool coat, replied, "It looks like hell. It's probably been abandoned foh _yeahs_."

"At least since Alfred was last here," Link told him.

Leynne nodded at the crane. "We might have to find a way to thaw that. Eitheh that, oh we _cahry_ these tanks once we find them."

"_If_ we find them," Irleen said as she surveyed the area. "So far, I don't really have a lot of hopes."

"Well," Leynne said, "we have the aftehnoon. We should see what we have to wohk with." He pointed to the largest building, the workshop. "I'm willing to assume most of his materials ah in theh."

Link nodded. "Me, too." He turned and hollered at the train with his hands cupped around his mouth. "Hey, Luggard! We're gonna look at this large building here!"

"Go' it!" Luggard shouted back. "Be there in a momen'!"

As Link, Irleen, and Leynne started across the snow, Leynne told Link, "You realize theh doesn't appeah to be a souhce of this 'Loft Steam' we'll need to fill the tanks with."

Link pointed to the shed he had noticed. "I think that might be a supply," he said. "Some kind of structure would need to be built over it so the contents don't dissipate. There've been a couple wells of Loft Steam up in the sky which exhausted themselves that way; I remember seeing one of them on shore leave."

"The fact that the basic amenities of life so high in the sky only begs the question of how they appeah theh," Leynne said.

"That's the facilities underneath the islands," Irleen said. "They transport water from the surface so that the islands can support life. Although… I've gotta say, I couldn't really tell you whether the same applies to Loft Steam. It's not like we ever needed _that_."

"Actually," Link said, "since it's possible for wells to dry up, I think that maybe Loft Steam wells might've been part of the islands from the beginning."

"Hmm," Irleen said. "Yeah, I suppose that makes sense."

"Do you know how Loft Steam is supposed to behave?" Leynne asked.

Link frowned as he tried to remember some of his old airman training courses. "Well, it's a gas that doesn't exist as a liquid even if it's very cold," he said. "Even at some of the coldest temperatures, it's lighter than air, so it rises when it escapes. When it's hotter, it wants to rise faster. That's how we've been able to maintain airships. Usually, the ballast doesn't even need to be active with smaller ships and boats. A few islands have access to lower altitudes, and they just leave smaller vessels tethered there so they don't interfere with active ships. But larger ships have to be made and floated with active ballasts, or else they'll fall so low that they're difficult to recover."

"I would expect that a derelict vessel would not be difficult to float again."

"No, but they're a pain to _find_ if the wind decides to shift. One of the books I read a few years ago said there's probably about… what was it, fifty? Sixty, maybe? Something like that. There are at least fifty ships wandering the skies because the crews couldn't find them after they were built and left to sink on accident."

Leynne paused at the door to the workshop so he could give Link an impressed look. "I'm amazed at the amount of detail put into youh training, Link," he said. "These ah things that most aihmen ah expected to know?"

Link offered a shrug. "To tell you the truth, not really. We have training courses that teach us about how airships function and whatnot, but I doubt if most airmen were even _awake_ during those. And… well, I didn't have much of a social life, so I spent a lot of my free time reading from the company library."

"Sounds a lot like _my_ social life," Irleen said.

Leynne turned and attempted to push open the door. It took him some effort because the door was heavier than it looked, but he managed to shove it aside, and the three of them went in. Most of the light inside came from windows high on the ceiling. There were a couple of skylights, both blocked by a layer of snow. In the far corner from the door, there was a large furnace mounted on a slab of stone. In front of that was some kind of seesaw with a large bulb on one end and a set of clamps on the other. On the wall to their right, someone had piled up a supply of large, metal ingots, which Link guessed to be iron. Directly across from the door were a long desk and a table covered in tools. A metal shell covered one half of the table, and Leynne approached it to examine it. Link took an interest in the diagrams posted on the left wall adjacent to the door.

"Well?" Irleen asked.

"What?" Leynne asked.

"Are we in the right place?"

"I think so," Link said. He tapped the diagram in front of him. "This shows how they arranged the tanks in a hull; it's the same arrangement we still use."

Leynne put his hand on the lip of the shell and tried to lift it. He did not try hard, and the metal form did not budge. "Link? Is this roughly the shape of a ballast tank?"

Link offered a hesitant look and a shrug. "I'm not sure. It looks like it _should_ be, but it's too small."

Leynne nodded. "I thought so. This looks like a mold. And those ingots ah—" He suddenly froze, his eyes directed out the door. "Link, youh swohd. Huhry."

"Huh?" Link asked as Leynne started for the door. "What is it?"

"Trouble."

Link and Irleen exchanged looks before stepping to aside to look out the door.

Wolfos. Link had to squint to see them, but there were white-furred Wolfos surrounding the locomotive outside. Lidago stood at the side of the train, swinging at the pack that had him pinned back against it. Luggard was swinging Link's old sword around in the cab, swatting back at a pair that had climbed onto the tender. Link immediately drew his sword and followed Leynne.

"Gah!" Leynne suddenly disappeared from sight. Link immediately stepped outside to find him lying on his stomach, trying to wrestle his arm free from a Wolfos intent to drag him towards the cliff.

Link stepped within swinging range, causing the Wolfos to drop Leynne's arm and back away. The Wolfos had bitten through the sleeve of Leynne's jacket, evidenced by the blood on its teeth as it snarled at Link.

"Are you okay?" Link asked as he used his right hand to help Leynne to his feet.

"Fohtunately, the cold has made my ahm numb," Leynne said.

"Guys, look out behind you," Irleen called from her location high above their heads.

Leynne glanced over his shoulder. Then he immediately spun. "Three moh," he said. "It looks as if we've been ambushed. Have you anotheh weapon?"

"Boomerang on my belt," Link said. He felt Leynne grope his shoulder for a moment. "Lower, Leynne. I'm not _that_ tall."

"This is a bad time to be a smaht-ahse," Leynne said as he pulled open the pouch and drew the boomerang.

"Link!" Irleen hollered. "The bomb gem!"

"It's in the wrong pocket!" Link hollered back. "I can't reach it without dropping my sword!"

"Damn!" Leynne said after opening the boomerang. "What a time to be right-handed!"

Link dared a glance at the train. "We've gotta help them," he told Leynne.

"Any suggestions?" Leynne asked.

Link suddenly realized something and used his right hand to unfasten the Rope whip on his hip. Carefully watching the Wolfos, he adjusted his hold until he found the handle. It was awkward to hold with his right hand, but he unfurled it to one side and swung it. The Wolfos ducked it, and Link quickly lunged and aimed a strike at its skull. The Wolfos leaned to Link's left. Link only had a split second to realize that he had left his shoulder exposed before the Wolfos went for it. He tried to twist, and the Wolfos caught the sleeve of his bodysuit. It jerked hard, and Link dropped his sword in the snow as he tried to wrench his arm free. He dropped to a knee, and the Wolfos let him go. Because now, Link's face was in range. Link only had a moment to stare into a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth.

Then the Wolfos snapped in his face, only a hair's breadth from relieving Link of his nose. The Wolfos backed away. No, Link realized. Not backed away.

It had been _dragged_ away. By another Wolfos. Link saw a large, black Wolfos with its teeth firmly clamped to the white Wolfos' tail. Link was stunned at the sight of the black Wolfos. Ugly, pink scars marred its face across both eyes, yet the Wolfos seemed to see clearly. When the white Wolfos whipped around to snap at it, the black Wolfos leaped backwards and revealed a larger scar across its enormous shoulder.

"What the?" Irleen uttered, just barely audible to Link above the sound of the black and white Wolfos snarling at each other.

Link turned toward the train. Two more black Wolfos had just leaped from the top of the passenger car and landed on the white Wolfos still harassing Luggard. Luggard, in surprise, ducked out of sight, presumably out through the cab's door.

Then Link turned to Leynne, one hand already digging into his pocket. "Irleen!" he called out, yanking Leynne backwards. He produced the bomb gem from his pocket and lofted it at the three white Wolfos still holding Leynne at bay. "Now!"

"And the world goes _boom_!" she cried out as Link tripped Leynne to the ground.

_BOOOOOOM!_ The explosion kicked up a cloud of snow and sent all three Wolfos sprawling backwards in fright. Link could not hear over the ringing in his ears for a moment. When it cleared, he looked up from the snow to see that the black Wolfos from before had wrestled the white one to the ground and had one of the white one's forelegs in its mouth. Link's arms flailed forward until they found the handle of the Lokomo Sword. He ripped the sword out of the snow and got to his feet as quickly as possible. The three other Wolfos were still reeling from the explosion, so Link charged at them. They barely had time to see Link when his boots kicked up another cloud of dust, and Link had already used an upswing to relieve one surprised Wolfos of its right foreleg. The Wolfos collapsed into blood-stained snow. One of the other two seemed to come to its senses and, using its distance from Link, built up speed for a flying leap. Link, his mind flashing with the sight of a Malgyorg doing the exact same thing, spun aside. His sword arm swung with the spin and sliced open the Wolfos' belly. It landed in an unmoving heap on the ground nearby. The third Wolfos jumped backwards when it saw how Link had retaliated against its fellow. It seemed to stare at Link for a moment before deciding to flee into the nearby woods.

"Link!" Leynne called out. Link glanced at him before returning his attention to the train. Luggard was on the ground in front of the locomotive, moving to assist Lidago, who had already walloped a pair of the Wolfos into unconsciousness. The two black Wolfos in the cab were tearing apart one of the white ones. But the other white one had jumped on top of the cab's roof. Link could see that it was eying Lidago's back.

"Boomerang!" Link shouted, jabbing his sword into the bare ground. He caught the boomerang, found the bomb gem on the ground, and threw it towards the barracks at the front of the train. "Irleen, do it again!"

Irleen had to fly closer to the train so she could shout. "Àt Kowìnta _ħapūn_ táli!"

_BOOOOOOOM!_ The explosion caused yet another cloud of white dust. Luggard fell on his face, being the closest to the explosion but far enough that he was not harmed. The white Wolfos both surrounding Lidago and on top of the train hunched down against the sound, their ears clapped shut against their skulls. Lidago seemed unaffected, taking the opportunity to slam two more Wolfos in the head with his fists.

Link hurled the boomerang as hard as he could, putting his best spin into it to keep it on a straight path. The boomerang sailed across the open area and into Link's target. The Wolfos on top of the locomotive took the blow to the side of its face. It reeled, lost its footing over the edge, and fell on top of another Wolfos.

Link grabbed the sword out of the ground and raised it above his head. "YAAAAAAAH!" he screamed as he charged at the train. The three Wolfos who were still conscious glanced backwards at Link and immediately ran to the right, disappearing into the trees as swiftly as they had appeared. The Wolfos that had fallen as well as the comrade it had landed on cleared their heads in time to see Link rushing them and followed in their fellows' tracks. The four Wolfos that Lidago had laid out on the ground did not even stir. Link slowed his charge into a lofty jog so that the boots would not make him run into the broad side of the locomotive. He saw that the Wolfos on the ground had their heads caved in horribly, leading him to believe that Lidago had killed them.

"You guys all right?" Link asked as Luggard slowly rose.

"A'righ'," Luggard said.

"Goron," Lidago told him with an affirmative nod.

Then both of them leaped in surprise as the two black Wolfos jumped down from the locomotive's tender. Link raised his sword as Lidago backed toward Luggard, but the Wolfos only seemed interested in the white ones lying motionless on the ground. One barked, and the white Wolfos it barked at slowly rose and limped away with both black Wolfos watching it.

Link's eyes returned to the workshop when he realized that he had left Leynne there with the first black Wolfos fighting a white one. He saw that the black Wolfos had completely disregarded Leynne, who was leaning against the wall of the workshop with his right arm cradled in his left. The black Wolfos was standing in the first patch of bare earth caused by Irleen's bomb gem. And that was when Link first realized that he had seen that particular Wolfos before. He had caused all three of the creature's visible scars when he was trying to escape the pit Valley had fallen into when they had first come to the Snow Realm. Had that Wolfos followed them here? Or was it just a coincidence? If it was a coincidence, it was quite a big one considering that they had met much further west of here.

The scarred Wolfos gave a single bark, and its black brethren dashed over to its location. It locked eyes with Link for a moment, its glare telling Link that this situation would never happen again. Then it gave a grunt, and it and the other two dashed into the woods following the white Wolfos.

"Wha' was _tha'_ all 'bou'?" Luggard asked as he walked up beside Link.

"I can't be sure," Link replied as Leynne ambled toward them. "I _think_ I just had a favor returned."


	66. The Sum of Gratitude

Chapter 66: The Sum of Gratitude

…

~~So. Somehow, we survived an ambush by Wolfos, and I'm still confused why. It doesn't make any sense. Leynne and Luggard first said that the white Wolfos were hunting on the same grounds as the black Wolfos, and they didn't like it. And as much as they probably didn't like us, either, they were too beaten from killing the white Wolfos. When I told them that I think the black Wolfos with the scars was one of the Wolfos that I fought with weeks ago, they just kind of gave up. Irleen had her own theory. Apparently, there's some kind of "pack dynamic" with the Wolfos, where they're organized in a kind of hierarchy. She thinks that, when I killed a couple of the Wolfos weeks ago, I killed their leader and left the pack open to fighting. She remembered the same Wolfos as the one that would back off when I struck it and said that it must have been the weakest in the group. So when the leader died and the pack started fighting, the weakest one either gained control of the pack or broke away and formed a new pack. It still remembered me and showed its gratitude by defending us from the white Wolfos, but that was probably the only time it was going to do that. Luggard challenged her by asking how she knew so much about Wolfos, and she answered by telling him it all came from one of her "game books". So I guess the explanation is still up in the air. Personally, I had the impression that the black Wolfos knew who I was. It had its minions take out the white Wolfos because they were easy kills due to dealing with us. Then it recognized me and decided to avoid fighting us because it knew me. It doesn't really matter what explanation is true; I'm just glad we survived. The Wolfos had their reasons, and I'm grateful that those reasons haven't led to another attack. Yet.

~~We used the remaining daylight to figure out what we had to work with. We found that most of the materials for putting together tanks was still here. Fuel for the furnace, molds for making cast-iron tanks. And, most important, plans. Leynne says that we'll need to put together five tanks: four for the ship, and a large one for holding Loft Steam. And we did find Loft Steam. The well on the grounds is still active, so we have a source that we can take back with us. We've experimented with the materials we have available, and, unfortunately, we wound up wasting some of it trying to make a tank. But Leynne believes he has the general concept down. His experience with this equipment is paying off, and he actually seems to be enjoying it. Well, up until Lidago accidentally hit him in the head with one of the molds. Then he was a little cranky for the rest of the evening.

~~We found that the stoves in the barracks still worked, so we're staying the night in them instead of the train. I found that someone had left a usable pen and ink here, so I sat down to write. And I think I'm done writing now because I can't focus anymore.

…

~~Day 32.

~~We've finished the smaller tanks. They'll have to be assembled once we get back to Fishington since we don't have the smaller parts to put them together with. One thing I never realized was that all the tanks were connected together. I guess it makes sense because the only way to heat up the Loft Steam has always been a control stove in the back of a ship.

~~Tomorrow, we'll be working on a large storage tank to put Loft Steam in for transport back to the Forest Realm. Leynne's predicting problems, so we decided that we should make a tank we can fit into the freight car. It's gonna be tricky; we have to find a way to fit enough Loft Steam into a large, iron tank that we'll have to fit into a car that doesn't really have much of a door. Leynne thinks we'll have to use all of the iron we have left, so we need to pray we have this whole casting thing down. We found a mold for a much larger tank, large enough that we should be able to fill the small tanks we put together. We also found a hose, so we can fill and then seal the tanks from there.

…

"Leynne?"

"Yeah."

"This is a problem."

"Yeah. Yeah, I agree."

By the end of morning of the third day, they had completed a large, pill-shaped tank capable of holding more Loft Steam than the tanks to be used on the ship would need. After checking that the small shack next to the workshop did indeed sit above a Loft Steam well, they had connected the large tank and filled it. Using the hooks and ropes under the roof of the workshop, they had made sure the tank was secure while they filled it, which eventually caused it to float up until it touched the roof.

But when they had used the crane to extract the tank and move it to the Seventeen, they had encountered a problem. The tank had only been secured to the crane at one corner while Lidago, Leynne, and Luggard had held down the back corners with spare ropes. Their weight had hardly been enough to keep the tank from floating further once the roof was out of the way and even proved too light for the crane to hold and stay on the track. The tank's rear end had begun to rise, and all three of them in addition to Link tackled the crane just to keep it from getting away.

Now, Lidago and Luggard were holding onto the crane's frame while Link and Leynne each had hopped onto one of the large crank wheels.

"_Now_ wha'?" Luggard asked, hanging from the under the crane's arm with his arms and legs wrapped around a large, horizontal bar.

"Can't say," Leynne replied. "This is ratheh a fihst foh me. Link?"

"I don't know," Link said. "I've never had to worry about a ballast tank _floating_ away from me…"

"Dooh," Lidago whimpered.

"It'll be okay," Leynne told him. "Ouh main problem is figuring out how to weigh this down so we can get off."

"Yeah, well," Irleen said as she hovered near the arm of the crane, "I hate to point out the obvious, but all _four_ of you are stuck holding it down. If one of you gets off, the other three are gonna be waving bye-bye."

"Unfohtunately, Lidago weighs the most of us," Leynne said. "If we need to put moh weight on, it will have to be smalleh weights. Link, do you think you can use those boots to run back into the wohkshop and find something to weigh the crane down so we can move it?"

"I probably _could_," Link said, "but how are we going to put more weight on it? We don't have any rope, and I'm afraid, by the time I find something light enough for me to carry, you guys might already be gone."

"'E's go' a poin'," Luggard said. He looked to one side and asked, "Link. Wha' 'bou' those trees? Can ya reach 'em?"

Link glanced over his shoulder at the nearby woods. "Yeah, maybe," he said as he wrapped an arm around the frame of his wheel. He used his right hand to unbutton his whip and found the handle. "If I can, then what?"

"Draw us towahd the shop," Leynne said. "We should be able to get paht of the crane undeh that extended roof. If we can do that, then we can shift to one side and let someone off to find some weight. We may even be able to hook it to the building."

Link positioned his hand at the base of the handle so that he could grip the area of the whip which controlled the mouth. Then he swung his arm, trying to force the head into the trees with an underhanded throw. The first two times, he barely made it into the trees, knocking loose snow off the leaves. The next throw made it into the leaves, but when he pinched the whip's end between his thumb and forefinger, he discovered that the Rope's head had missed catching anything.

The next throw caught a branch, and Link tugged a few times to make sure. "I got something," he told the others.

"Can you pull us?" Leynne asked.

Link gave a tug and quickly stopped. He realized that he could not let go of his grip on the section of the whip he was holding, otherwise the Rope's head would release. "It's gonna be hard," he said. "I need my other hand."

"Link," Luggard grunted. Link glanced through the crane's structure at him. He kicked a vertical bar near his foot. "Ya see this bar? See if ya can fi' yar leg through 'n lock 'roun' it. Then you can use yar other 'and."

"Okay." Link put his left leg through the wheel and wrapped his leg around the bar. Then, he stretched and hooked his foot around an adjacent horizontal bar. He used his left hand to then grab the whip. "I got it. Thanks."

"Go slow, Link," Leynne warned. "It's hahd to say what youh whip is attached to."

"This 'as gotta be the stranges' position I ever been in," Luggard commented as Link started pulling.

"One thing's foh cehtain," Leynne said. "We'll have to secuh the aihship befoh we fill the ballast. Othehwise, we'll be adding anotheh aihship to all those lost somewheh above."

"Lidago not like high," Lidago said.

"You ain' 'lone," Luggard said. "Hey, Leynne? How's we s'pose t' pu' the tank on me train?"

"I've been considering that. If we had some spah rope, we might be able to tie this crane to paht of the train. The train's weight will supplant ouh weight so we won't have to ride it."

"Aren't you guys going in the wrong direction for that?" Irleen asked.

"We need materials to secuh the crane with fihst," Leynne told her. "How ah you doing, Link?"

Link released the whip from the tree. "Okay," he answered. "I need to catch another tree."

"Assumin' we _do_ ge' it on me train," Luggard said, "'ow's we s'pose t' ge' back t' the Forest Realm? We can' take the tunnel with the tank this _'igh_."

"I'm _thinking_," Leynne said. "Ihleen, can you fly about and find anymoh buildings?"

"Sure thing," Irleen said before fluttering away.

"Damn," Leynne growled, releasing his right hand from the frame.

"Ya okay?" Luggard asked.

"My ahm," Leynne groaned. "I could use some painkillehs; this cold is making it wohse."

"'Ow's the wrappin'?"

"It's holding."

Link released the whip again. "Just about there, Leynne," he said over his shoulder.

"Is theh anything you can grab with that whip?" Leynne asked.

Link's eyes wandered the network of ropes and hooks under the roof. He was at eye-level with the roof itself, so he underhanded the whip again. He closed the fangs around a knot where two ropes met and started pulling. He pulled until his proximity to the roof made it difficult to move anymore. "Okay, now what?" he asked.

"If we shifted weight, is theh any paht that would… that would _hook_ undeh the roof?" Leynne asked.

Link glanced down. "These handles I'm standing on might work; they're casted to this wheel."

"Just the same as these handles," Leynne said. "Luggahd, can you slide in my direction?"

"Yeah, bu' me arms is gettin' sore," Luggard said. The crane rocked as Luggard moved, and Link had to hunch low to avoid the roof.

"How does it look, Link?" Leynne asked.

"Maybe a little more," Link said.

"I can' move anymore," Luggard said.

"Lidago, place youh hand about heh," Leynne said, patting the outer frame of the wheel he held. Lidago reached a timid hand over and grabbed the wheel. "Now lean towahd me."

"Goron?" Lidago asked.

"What?"

"That's the Goron language," Link said. "I think he's confused."

"By sayin' 'Goron'?" Luggard asked.

"I guess."

Leynne shook his head. "Ligado, come heh," he said in a careful voice. Lidago, after taking a look at the ground, moved in Leynne's direction, causing Link's side of the crane to rise more. The handles above Link's head made contact with the steel beam under the roof's edge. "How about now?"

"Yeah," Link said.

"Okay, drop down," Leynne told him. "The roof should hold us."

"And if it don', I's bailin'," Luggard said.

Link slipped between the handles and slowly lowered himself. When he was hanging by just his hands, he dropped to find the ground much closer than he thought. He quickly looked up to find that the crane still hung above him, but well out of his reach. He gave a relieved sigh. "Well," he said. "It worked."

"Hey, Link!" Irleen hollered as she rounded the back corner of the workshop. "There's a small shed back here. I bet you can use something out of it."

"Huhry," Leynne said when Link looked up at them. "We'll be tihed soon."

"Come on, Link," Irleen urged as she started back around the corner.

Link jogged after her. When he rounded the corner, true to Irleen's word, there was a small, wooden shed with a corrugated metal roof sitting against the back of the workshop, its odd construction indicating that its addition to the workshop might have been an afterthought. He hustled to it, unbolted it, and opened the door. To his surprise, there were large coils of rope inside, in addition to a number of metal parts which were probably replacements for the small machines inside as well as for the crane. He even found a few extra blocks and hoses for the Loft Steam tanks.

"Hey, those'll come in handy," Link said, pointing at the hoses.

"Yeah, well, let's focus on getting them off the _crane_ first," Irleen told him.

Link reached for the nearest coil of rope and lifted. But it did not budge, and he could see why. The rope was not only frozen together in a large mass, but frozen to the floor, which appeared to be bare ground. Link tugged a couple more times before using a boot to try breaking the ice apart.

"Link, there's no time for this," Irleen said.

"I know, I know," Link said as he stepped into the shed. He tried a few more coils before finding one that was not frozen together. So he pulled some of the coils up onto his shoulder and started wrapping the rest of the rope.

"Do you have one?" Irleen asked from the door.

"Yeah, hang on," Link told her.

"Link." Link shook his head and ignored the voice. He was in a hurry. "Link!"

"What!?" he shouted, turning to look at Irleen.

Irleen jerked. "What?"

"What do you want?"

"Huh? Nothing."

"Then why do you keep saying my name?"

"I _wasn't_!"

Link used his right arm to scoop up the rest of the rope. "Yes you were," he accused her as he stepped out of the shed. "You said it twice."

"I just told you we don't have time, and that was _it_," Irleen argued.

"Whatever," Link groaned. "Come on."

He jogged back around the corner, finding that the crane was still there. The first word he heard came from Luggard. "And the conductor said, 'Sir, if ya don' ge' off this damn car, ya's gonna be singin' _'igher_ notes'."

Link stepped up under the crane just in time to hear Lidago said, "Lidago not get."

"He fohgot to mention that the passengeh the conductoh was shouting at was a singeh," Leynne said.

"Did I?"

"You guys doing all right?" Link asked.

"Tired," Luggard replied.

"Did you find anything?" Leynne asked.

"Yeah, I have some rope," Link said.

"Okay, good," Leynne said. "Tie it around the crane and then the roof. Preferably as many times as you can. And to any of the metal structuh; that should hold betteh."

Link started by throwing one end of the rope through part of the crane and tied a taut-line hitch, the only kind of hitch he could manage while on the ground. Then, using the vertical support closest to the crane, he wound the rope between the crane and the support eight times before tying a boom hitch around the support. Just when he was tightening the boom hitch—

_Fwump._ Luggard fell off the crane.

…

The rest of the fiasco involving the crane and the absurdly buoyant iron tank concluded with the group tying two lengths of rope between the Seventeen's coupler between the freight car and the flatcar and the crane and slowly moving the crane to the train by manipulating all three ropes (including the rope Link had used to tie it to the workshop) in stages. Leynne said that it _had_ to go around the coupler because the weight between the two cars would be more than enough to ensure that the tank could not lift the flatcar from the tracks or destroy the freight car. As soon as they were able, Leynne, on top of the freight car, threw ropes around the arm of the crane for further strengthening. They had to hope that the block and tackle of the crane's hook would be enough to hold the tank until they could find some way of hauling the tank closer. As they had it, though, they had managed to pull the tank close enough that the Seventeen had clearance for the tunnel they needed to take back to Fishington.

Not that they did not make sure of this before trying. Link and Leynne sat on top of the passenger car and freight car, respectively, and observed the tank as Luggard slowly pulled the train into the tunnel. After Leynne signaled that the tank was clear, they kept an eye on it just in case the top of the tunnel was lower at any point.

By the time they reached the Forest Realm, evening was setting in fast, so Link, Luggard, and Leynne agreed that they should stop at Library Town for the night. Lidago, having slept in the freight car, volunteered to watch the tank in case something happened to it. Because Leynne still had a lease on the studio he had been using, they decided to spend the night there. Unfortunately, since Leynne had moved all of his tools to Fishington, Link was disappointed that he could not write in his journal.

…

The next morning saw the group get up early. Leynne had to delay while he had the engine filled with water, but they left soon after breakfast. Link found himself in a bit of a mood as they traveled. Even though they now had a means of making the vessel float, there was still the trouble with their lack of resources. Little wood to build a hull, no kind of forge to build parts for an engine… he felt they would be lucky if they could use _bed sheets_ to make sails. Not only that, but it would take months to put together a vessel capable of tolerating the intense winds of the Sky Lines. He hoped that the plans Leynne, Dubble, Sello, Lidago, and Rosaline had produced already anticipated that (especially since Link had already made mention of it to Leynne), but the fear was already there.

Luggard was approaching the town from the north so Link, Lidago, and Leynne did not have to cross the tracks to the platform. He kept poking his head out over the side in his usual manner.

Then he said as most of the town was in sight, "Oy, Link. Wha' would ya say's the bigges' thin' south o' Fishington?"

"Are you kidding?" Irleen asked from her perch above the instrument panel.

"That's all just houses, isn't it?" Link said. He looked up from his lap to Luggard.

And he saw Luggard grinning from ear to ear. "No' anymore."

Link frowned at him and stood up. Luggard was slowing the train as he stepped to the opposite side and looked out at the town. His jaw dropped when his eyes locked on the large structure on the south side of town. Standing perhaps three stories high and much wider than it was tall, Link could felt his heart suddenly pound at the familiar sight of a ship's hull. He simply could not believe that so much progress had been made since they had left for the Snow Realm. He had never seen a vessel built so quickly, not even by a professional shipbuilding company. At first, he considered that they had taken a vessel from the nearby Fishington Lake, but a quick glance in that direction revealed that not even the biggest boats compared in size. The fact that masts had not been up and rigged indicated that the ship _had_ to have been built in-place.

His knees buckled, and he had to hold onto the cab's wall to keep from hitting the floor. "Link, ya all righ'?" Luggard asked, giving him a glance before braking for the platform ahead.

"I-I—" Link stammered. "Irleen, come on!"

"What?" Irleen asked as the train jerked to a stop.

"Hurry!" Link said, pulling on his hat.

"Okay, okay," she said, diving inside.

Link scrambled to open the door. Then he jogged to the edge of the platform, although every nerve in his body told him to run as fast as possible. His boots gave him the speed he wanted the moment he touched foot to the ground, and he sped away from the platform with Luggard's unanswered call failing to reach him.

He followed the road to the workshop/house they had been using. First, he slowed to a jog. He finally stopped in the grass. It was a towering structure, much larger and more imposing that the _Island Sonata_ had ever been. All over the hull, wandering a thin network of scaffolds along the ship's length, were a myriad of people he thought he would never see again. He recognized the men of Whittleton by their earthen-colored clothes, which consisted mostly of their trousers and thick belts weighed down with tools. On the ground, miners from the Fire Realm, revealed by the black ash and dirt which never seemed to wash off their muscular frames, worked a series of ovens and forges set on bare dirt. Bouncing between both groups were Gelto from the Sand Realm, having taken the act of weather-proofing the hull and passing planks up to the higher workers and turned it into an acrobatic exhibition as they flipped and cartwheeled about the scaffolds. A couple of Gorons were handling some of the larger furnaces under the bow, and a pair of Yook offered out drinks to workers who had sat to rest.

Irleen emerged from Link's hat and stared up in shock for a while before saying anything. "Oh, my… Link… wha… what are they doing?"

Link's eyes welled, and his knees finally gave out. The sound of hammers banging out steel forms and locking planks together… of water quenching hot metal… of voices shouting out a song to help them form some sort of rhythm… It completely overwhelmed him. Irleen had the right question: what were they _doing_? The Whittleton lumberjacks, they could not be working here. With the hardship their town was facing, all that lumber should have gone for supplies they could use to keep themselves on the map. And why were the miners there, ignoring their professions and working the materials they had harvested into useable parts? Would the mines be shut down without them? The Yook… Link _knew_ the Yook could not stand the higher temperature of this environment, so why would they chance coming here? And what brought the Gorons with them? Their regular food source was far too scarce around here; Lidago proved that by having to disappear looking for it. And what possible motivation could the Gelto have for showing up, having wanted to steal Hylian husbands from the miners? How could those two groups possibly be working together?

Link's throat choked. Tears started falling from his eyes. He could not understand it all. All of these people had faced so much hardship from their own homes and, most of the time, did not seem to have much to offer others just to put food on the table for their families. But here they all were, building an airship.

An airship to send him home. Even if none of them had said it, he could feel the sentiment in the determination they put into their work, the sweat glistening of their skin and making them look like some kind of divine beings. They wanted to help. They wanted to help so bad that they set aside their own troubles and brought themselves together to simply _will_ a ship into existence.

"Link!" He heard the familiar voice call out to him from behind, and he glanced over his shoulder. Valley, ever so energetic and wearing a set of brown overalls over a bright green shirt, was jogging up behind him from the town, Leynne and Luggard close behind her. He carefully got to his feet and watched her for a moment.

"Captain!"

"Link!"

"Hey, Link!"

Link spun back in surprise as the workers slowly put a hold to their work when they realized he was standing there. Then forges were abandoned, planks were dropped, and paintbrushes were left in the grass as they climbed off the scaffolds while those on the ground charged him. Link felt frightened and took a step back. But the miners encircled him first and drowned his hearing in words of praise and delight. The white sleeves of his bodysuit, already stained from working with the equipment they had found for the ballast tanks, were steel-grey by the time the Whittleton men broke them apart to offer their own appreciation. One Goron ploughed through the crowd and wrapped up Link in a hug which he caused his spine to snap. When the Goron dropped him, a large hand touched his back to keep him from falling over.

When he followed the large, white-furred arm to a yellow-toothed grin, his jaw dropped open again at the sight of that familiar face. "K-Kohg!?" he cried above the voices around him.

"Hello, Captain!" he bellowed. "Captain be well?"

"Holy _crap_!" Irleen shouted, flying circles above Link's head.

Link sniffled and placed a hand on Kohg's wrist. "Better than ever!"

Kohg nodded. "Kohg bring friends. Help Captain. Like Valley say."

"Wha—_Valley_!?" Link asked.

"Link!" Link turned next to find a strong hand on his shoulder. "Yeh look be'er than the _firs'_ time I saw yeh!"

"T-Talein!?" Link said. "Wha-what are _you_ doing here!?"

"Meilont told me 'bout yer prob'm!" Talein shouted over the crowd. "I go' some wood fer yeh, an', well… a bunch o' us felt like we still owed yeh fer wha' yeh did fer us back in Whittleton!"

"But—but all this _wood_!" Link said. "What about the _town_? Won't they need it!?"

Talein let out a bellowing laugh. "O' _course_ we do! Tha's wha' yeh _mean_ tae us!"

"Liiiiiiink~!" Link was unprepared for the tackle he received and was mowed over by the person calling his name, landing on his shoulder. "Did you miss me?"

Link glanced down at the bronze arms holding him and said in an irate tone, "Not. Really."

"Awwww," Dholit said as she released him. They both stood up, and Dholit indicated the hull behind him. "What do you think? Amazing, right?"

"Dholit, what are the _Gelto_ doing here?" he asked. "I thought your people had _other_ priorities!"

"Wohd reached the Queen back in the Realm," she answered. "She asked foh volunteehs to come _heh_ with the minehs and help build the ship."

"They came with the _miners_? Why were the _miners_ coming here?"

"The same reason the Gilto came! Youh friend Valley!"

"Hey, Link!" Dholit stepped aside as Valley emerged from the crowd. "Is you all right? You fall?"

"Valley?" Link asked. "Why are _you_ here?"

"I came with da miners and da Gelto," she said. "I followed where _you_ went to get information. Dey asks about you? I tells dem you's still building an airship. Da miners wanted to help. Dey wanted to dank you for bringing Sello and fixing deir digging machine. And da Gorons said da same ding!"

"And-and you brought the _Yook_, too?"

"Dey was already here!"

"And some of dem be comin' from dot train we found in de Ocean Realm," Rosaline said as she emerged from the crowd to Link's left. Then she nodded at Dholit.

Dholit produced a large, short-barreled pistol from behind her waist. For a moment, Link thought she was going to shoot someone. But she pointed it in the air and fired. A burst of flame whistled high into the air, startling the people around them into silence. "Okay, yeh bunch!" Rosaline declared as the whistle died out. "He be heah, so it's time to show him just _what_ he be meanin' to yeh!"

"Can ah ge' a 'hoo-rah'!" Talein shouted.

"_HOO-RAH!"_ the crowd bellowed with such force that Link was sure people as far as Hovela could hear.

"Le's go!" Talein shouted. And, just as suddenly as they had surrounded him, the workers ran back to the ship and simply returned to their jobs.

…

"I really can't say _when_ dey started showing up," Rosaline said as she handed Link a cup of hot tea. "It must have been about noon de day yeh guys left."

Link settled his back against the couch and looked down into the tea cup. "I-I never thought…"

"It was quite a suhprise to _us_ as well," Dholit said as she lay an arm across the couch behind him. "I knew how well-traveled you weh, Link, but no amount of reading prepahed us foh the sudden sight of fifty lumbahjacks on the horizon."

"O-on the…" Link started.

"She be imbellishin'," Rosaline said. "Dey came by train."

"Afteh the minehs appeahed," Dholit continued, "we stahted passing around papeh so we could get all of theih names."

"Which be _much_ easieh when dey went to sleep," Rosaline said with a giggle.

"I can't _believe_ the progress you've made," Leynne said as he looked at the plans on the table. "And afteh only… three days?"

Rosaline turned to him and crossed her arms. "_Well_, I _do_ be havin' de experience with building ships," she told him.

"Even so, when did we even agree on the _scale_?" Leynne asked. "I had guessed these measuhments from a schooneh I'd seen in Hovela. You've built a craft almost fifty pehcent _lahgeh_."

"Room to spah," Rosaline said with a shrug.

"And various miscommunications," Dholit added with a grin.

"De big question be if yeh found ballast tanks," Rosaline told him.

"Found 'em, nah," Luggard, leaning in the open doorway with a mug of coffee in his hand, spoke up. "We 'ad t' _make_ 'em."

"We found blueprints and layout plans at Alfred's wohkshop," Leynne said. "We left them on the train. We weh fohtunate enough to have the materials on-hand, but I suspect that we may need moh Loft Steam to float this ship. Right, Link?"

"Probably," Link said with a nod. "But now that we know what kind of trouble we can expect from it, we should be better prepared for it."

"We'll need some pipes to connect the tanks togetheh," Leynne continued. "We found out that all of the tanks ah _connected_ so that heat used to help a vessel rise can distribute to the rest of the tanks. It eliminates the need to install individual heatehs, like we expected."

"I like it," Rosaline said. "Dubbl an' I talked. I got some friends bringin' some o' de _best_ sails on de suhface. _An'_ dey be bringin' de ropes, too."

Leynne nodded. "Good. You know, I almost regret missing this."

"'Ow's we gonna put in the ballas' tanks?" Luggard asked. "It's floatin' _in_ the air. And attached t' a _crane_. Tha' we 'ad t' tie t' me _train_."

"Huh?" Rosaline asked, looking to Leynne for an answer.

"We had a small incident with the Loft Steam itself," he told her. "It's so buoyant that it tried to float off with the crane we weh supposed to use to load the tank onto the train. We had to use the train cahs to anchoh it down."

"We can look at it in de mornin'," Rosaline said. "Between de Yook an' all de men, I be bettin' we can do somethin' about dot."

"Sounds like a plan," Luggard said. "Soon as we ge' the tank off, we 'ead back 'n ge' more."

"As soon as we have an _empty_ tank," Leynne corrected him. "And if we can find more hoses like what we found at the wohkshop, we can leave the tank strapped to the flatcah. We shouldn't have to fill it up too much. Which reminds me. When we _do_ install the ballast tanks, we need to make suh the whole vessel is secuh. Othehwise, it'll staht floating without a crew."

"Got it," Rosaline said. "Actually, if we can wait until Sello finishes de engine, we might be able to use de big tank to put it in de ship."

"Where _is_ Sello?" Link asked.

"You probably didn't see him," Dholit said. "He's on the otheh side of the ship, assembling an engine."

"_Witout_ plans," Rosaline added. "I just told him what we needed it to do, an' he went on his way."

"Sobeh?" Leynne asked.

"I t'ought about it," Rosaline said. "But it would be easieh if he be drunk."

"He's been drinking foh so long," Dholit said, "we weh concehned that he would have a debilitating hangovah. This wouldn't do, not at the present."

Leynne frowned. "You know, I hadn't considehed that possibility. Afteh what happened in Hovela, I was detehmined to sobeh him up."

"What happened in Hovela?" Link asked.

"We lost track of him," Leynne said. "When we found him again, we discovehed that he had been modifying the steam engine aboahd a wooden ship. It depahted and tuhned on its engine, and the entih crew decided to abandon it when smoke stahted billowing from the reah."

"He-he _blew up_ an engine!?"

"No, it wohked fine," Leynne said. "And then it went behsehk. A lot of people on the dock watched the ship teah itself apaht befoh disappearing on the horizon. If one had been so inclined, it was possible to follow the ship's path by following the line of debris."

Disturbed faces passed between the people in the room. "I guess it's good 'e don' modify me locomotive anymore," Luggard said.

"I bettah be havin' a talk wit him," Rosaline said before she left through the front door in a hurry.

The room was quiet for a moment. Then Dholit asked, "Wheah's Ihleen?"

"She wanted to look at the ship some more," Link said. "She's excited that we're finally seeing one built."

"And you?" Leynne asked.

"O-of course," Link said. "I just… It was just such a surprise to see it. But… what am I going to do once it's _done_?"

"Whacha mean?" Luggard asked.

"Well…" Link said. "All of these people here… do you know how _scarce_ some of this stuff is? All the wood and metal? How can I repay _any_ of that?"

"By taking command," Leynne said.

Link opened his mouth to speak, but Dholit said, "He's right, Link. And if you don't like that, allow me to break it down foh you." She stood up and gestured to herself. "We Gilto ah grateful to you foh the slaying of the giant Malgyohg. And we have respect foh a wahrioh. If you do not accept ouh contribution to this vessel, we will enslave you and use you until you die." All three men audibly gulped. "If we decide not to slay you on the spot, of couhse."

"I think you've solved the problem right theh," Leynne said.

"I know, but I'd ratheh not leave him with the impression that ouh kindness is the only thing keeping him alive," she replied. "As that man Talein explained it, the people of Whittleton ah still grateful foh youh contribution to the defense of theih town. From my undehstanding, you weh sevehely injuahed at the time."

Link nodded. "It was just after I landed. My body was spent for _days_. I couldn't even _move_."

"And it's the same story foh the minehs we found on the train in the Ocean Realm. Without ouh arrival, who _knows_ if they would have retahned home oh not. And youh slaying of that giant creatuah went a long way to youh integrity. Afteh all, you could have just as easily run away."

Link lowered his head. "I didn't even _think_ about running away…"

"The Yook just happen to _like_ you," Leynne spoke up. "Especially Kohg. I think he thought quite high of you when you went and lamented the loss of youh aihman."

"But he's the only one that showed up," Link pointed out.

"He brought a few moah men from the Yook settlement," Dholit said. "They've been at wohk on the _inside_ of the vessel, in the shade as they put the decks togetheh."

"Oh."

"And we know those _miners_ like ya for showin' up with Sello," Luggard added. "I even mentioned t' Roland a couple times tha' if it 'adn't been for ya, they'd still be starvin'."

"You see, Link," Dholit said, "what it comes down to is you've helped out the people down heah in what have been the _wohst_ yeahs this realm has faced. These people weh miserable, lonely, and slowly _dying_. If you would tell them to leave and use theih 'scahce' resouhces foh themselves, they would see you as nothing but an ungrateful brat."

Link sat in shamed silence for a moment, his eyes on his cold tea. "S-sorry…"

"It's a point you can't ahgue, Link," Leynne said. Then he chuckled. "You'll be commanding this ship whetheh you like it oh not."

"Maybe," Link said. "But that depends on what kind of crew I can _find_."

"We'll concehn ouhselves with that lateh," Leynne said. Then something occurred to him as he looked at the couch Link sat on. So he looked up at Dholit and asked, "Wheh'd that couch come from?"

Dholit just turned and grinned at him.


	67. Link's First Crew (At 5 Rupees a Head)

Chapter 67: Link's First Crew (At 5 Rupees a Head)

…

~~Day 34.

~~I still can't believe the amount of progress made on the new airship. We were only gone for three days, but thanks to the people I've met down here, Irleen and I have taken a dramatic leap toward our goal to return to the sky. I've shaken so many hands today, it feels like I've dislocated my shoulder again.

~~But now, I have a new problem. The ship's too big. Whereas I've been expecting a schooner similar to the Island Sonata, the plans for the final vessel show that it's going to be much larger and much more complicated. This includes whatever experimental contraptions that Leynne, Rosaline, and Dubbl have come up with, and possibly whatever Sello has planned. I'll need more than general airmen. I'll definitely need an engineering group. I'm still missing some of the key details for the ship's sail plan, so I might need Dubbl to teach me how it's supposed to work. I thought it was going to be a three-masted schooner, but I can't seem to get a straight answer out of her. Probably because I'm relying on Dholit to translate for me.

~~Tomorrow morning, Leynne wants all of us to meet to discuss the progression of the ship. They're still referring to it as the "Island Sonata 2", and I'm hoping I can deter them from continuing with that name. The problem is I can't seem to come up with a better one.

…

The next morning, Link and Irleen met with Leynne, Dubbl, Dholit (who was there mostly to translate for Dubbl when necessary), Lidago, Rosaline, Sello, Talein, Kohg, Kalvin (who helped organize the miners coming directly from the Fire Realm), and Louis (who organized the miner group who had been stranded in the Ocean Realm). Link and Leynne stood at the head of the table (unofficially; the head was just the side of the table which also allowed a view of the couch) with Irleen hovering overhead. On their right stood Talein, Kalvin, and Rosaline. To the left, Louis, Dubbl, and Dholit stood with Kohg and Lidago behind them. Since Sello had been rendered incapable of standing due to another bout of intoxication, he had been left on the couch.

"Thank you all foh ahriving this eahly," Leynne began. "I wanted to staht this off befoh the rest of the volunteehs awoke so that we can be suh that construction is proceeding in the right direction. So, ah theh any concehns that we need to address fihst?" Kalvin, a bearded man wearing a blue shirt and worn work trousers, raised his hand. "Yes?"

Kalvin glanced around the table as he asked, "Anyone 'sides me see wha' the drunk's been buildin' b'hind the ship?"

Leynne raised his hand to calm the man's tone. "We all know and ah appropriately afraid of Sello's machinations," he said. "I suspect that, as long as no one is anywheh in close proximity to it, no one will die. Hopefully."

"Tha's fine 'n all," Louis, the gentleman with a thin moustache and wearing just a pair of dirty overalls, spoke up, "bu' _'ow_ do ya plan t' pu' _tha'_ in the ship?"

"Wit de ballast tank," Rosaline said. "We'll be seein' if we can move it today. Talein, Kalvin, an' Louis, I may be needin' to bohrow some of youh men."

"How many?" Talein asked.

"Let's make a safe bet and just assume _all_ of them," Leynne said. "The tank is incredibly buoyant, and we will need all the weight we can provide in ohdeh to move it to this location. Othehwise, we'll lose a tank that has aspirations of becoming a balloon."

"And that would look pretty stupid," Irleen said.

"D'ya wan' the Gorons?" Kalvin asked.

"All the weight we can," Leynne said. "Lidago, we will need you as well."

"Doh," Lidago said with a strong nod.

"Captain friend want Yook?" Kohg asked.

Leynne frowned. "I'm ratheh uncehtain if that's a wise idea, Kohg. While I don't doubt youh people's strength, I'm moh concehned with the effects of the wahmeh climate on them. The train station is a very long distance from heh."

Kohg bashed his chest with one hand. "Yook strong. Yook stand heat."

Leynne looked hesitant for a moment, but then gave a nod. "Very well. But if youh people staht feeling ill, please have them switch with someone else. It won't do much good if they wohk themselves to illness."

Kohg nodded. "Kohg understand."

"Any otheh items?" Leynne asked. No one raised their hand, and Link thought about putting his up. But before he could make the decision, Leynne continued, "All right. I believe we've already covehed the fihst item I had concehning the ballast tanks."

"Ooh!" Rosaline spoke up. "I just t'ought o' someting. If de ballast tank be up in de air, how do we get it?"

"Yes, of couhse," Leynne said. "I meant to address this, too. Dholit, do you think some of the Gelto can reach a height well above the top of a train? And, well, quite likely a very _dangerous_ height?"

Dholit rubbed her hands together. "Just watch us," she said with a devilish grin.

"Easy, Dholit," Rosaline said. "Yeh don't be needin' to _kill_ de tank."

"On to the next matteh," Leynne said. "It's occuhed to us that, with the size of this vessel, a crew needs to be assembled and trained as soon as possible. We'll have a tent set aside the grounds foh Link to use. If anyone you know would like to sign up, feel free to send them to Link."

"Uh… a few things before that," Link spoke up. "First, until I can register the ship with the company, no one will be getting paid. It's quite likely that most of the crew will be living off whatever ration packs we bring aboard, but I'll try to fix it up as soon as I can."

"I will be providing a signing bonus of five rupees foh each pehson who signs up," Leynne said. "Howeveh, most funds, including any fohm of donation, will be going towahd provisions."

"It will take us… maybe a day or two to raise the ship to the sky kingdom," Link said. "And it could be another day before we can dock at a nearby island for replacement supplies, so it'll be rough.

"Second…" Link hesitated for a moment while he chose his wording. "I know it might be a little ridiculous to say this, but anyone sailing with me _must_ follow all of my orders."

"Ya make it sound like a threat," Kalvin said.

Link shook his head. "I don't mean to. But you have to understand something about airships. Being so far above the surface, crews don't have the luxury of making a mistake. If you fall, there's nothing but luck to catch you. If even the slightest problem occurs, it could cost the whole crew their lives. I know I'm young and don't look very experienced… but if anyone is going to serve on my crew, I need them to follow my orders to their very _spirit_. That's all I ask."

"You'll want to listen to him," Irleen said, flying circles above Link's head. "I didn't follow orders, and look what happened to _me_!"

Link pressed a hand to his face. "Irleen…"

"Yes!" Irleen cried out, bouncing around the surface of the table. "Behold! The wrath of Link! It _compels_ you to follow orders!"

She stopped in front of Link and Leynne. Leynne had his arms crossed as he stared at her. "Ah you finished?" he asked.

"Yeah," Irleen said. "Sorry, I had to get that out of my system." She cleared her throat and continued, "All joking aside, Link is the only one here who knows how to run a ship. It's him or nothing."

"I can vouch foh him as well," Leynne said. "Link is much wiseh to the wohkings of an aihship than the five of us _combined_. Without him, this entih project would neveh have made it to the stage it's in now."

"Thank you, Leynne," Link said. Then he addressed the others again. "Third. I know that some people may want to pursue other forms of employment once we get to the sky. All I ask is that _everyone_ on the ship take up a job whenever necessary. I can't have passengers on this ship. Everyone _has_ to do their part."

"We'll pass the word," Louis said, "bu'… some o' me boys ain' sure 'bou' all this. They'll build it, bu' I don' think they wanna ride it."

Link nodded. "That's fine. The last thing I need is an unwilling crew."

"Is that all?" Leynne asked.

"Yeah, I think so," Link said.

"Okay. If the group you represent wasn't mentioned, feel free to continue wohk from yestehday. Meeting is adjouhned."

"I'll be comin' to get de men foh de tank in a moment," Rosaline called out to Talein, Kohg, Louis, and Kalvin as they left.

"Does anyone want to wake up Sello and get him back to wohk?" Leynne asked.

"Not willingly," Dholit said.

"C'mon, Lidago," Rosaline said. "Let's get Ding-Dong back to wohk."

"Goron," Lidago replied with a nod.

Leynne turned to Dholit. "Seriously. Wheh'd the couch come from?"

Dholit just shrugged, her face showing him an amused grin.

…

Leynne set up a tent with a table and chair inside for Link to use while he was recruiting. He was a little excited at first, but he found himself admitting to Irleen after a few hours that he was beginning to think that no one was interested in joining the crew, especially with the standards that he had set during the meeting. Leynne brought him lunch and pointed out that they had been keeping everyone busy, especially since handling the ballast tanks was a very delicate process.

It was not until after Leynne left that someone appeared to sign up. And he was a little disappointed with the first of his new crew.

"Hi," Dholit said when she poked her head into the tent. "Is this the line foh the 'Be My Captain' club?"

"Get out!" Irleen hollered at her, flying circles around Link's head.

Dholit frowned. "Oh, come on now, Ihleen," she said, "you know I'm only joking."

"I'm not!"

"Irleen, come on," Link pleaded. "Did you need something, Dholit?"

"Yes," Dholit said as she shoved the curtain aside. "I brought some volunteehs."

Dubbl stepped in first, and then four more Gelto filed into the tent. Link began to feel uncomfortable; the looks on their faces were stern, as if Link had done something to wrong them. They each wore work trousers and shirts that were tight against their bodies. Two had their hair tied into short pigtails, the third a long ponytail like Dholit, and the fourth had her hair cropped, making her look more like a boy.

Link raised an eyebrow at Dholit. "Volunteers?"

"Actually, Dubbl being on youh crew is moah of a given," Dholit explained. "The otheh fouh ah the winnahs."

"The… winners?" Link asked.

"The winners of _what_?" Irleen asked.

"Oh, just a little game we played," Dholit said with a small, dismissive wave. "Theah ah some Gilto who would like to sehve directly _undeh_ the Hylian who slew the giant Malgyohg, and these fouh weh the most detehmined."

"Wait a minute, wait a minute," Irleen said. "Do any of them _speak_ Hylian?"

"I speak," Dubbl said.

"Yep," Dholit said.

"That's just _one_!" Irleen hollered.

"Dholit, Dubbl, I can't give orders to anyone who doesn't speak Hylian," Link told them gently. "And I'm not sure if I can learn enough Geltoan to provide translations for my orders."

"Ah, but we already had a way around that," Dholit told him. "While it's true that they'll take time to get use to taking ohdehs in Hylian, you'll have _Dubbl_ around to translate foh you. She already knows some Hylian, so I'm quite suah that she's capable of leahning moah wohds foh the job."

Link eyed their unresponsive faces for a moment. "Have you already explained the situation to them? My terms?" Dholit nodded. Link stood up and directly addressed the Gelto, which he realized all stood a head taller than him. "Are you willing to sail under a captain younger than yourselves?" he asked.

Only Dubbl's stern face broke as she gave Dholit a questioning look. So Dholit offered, "Wabun nayx lwikinak zatciyb 'an 'atuno thib 'an Xili'anan ziyn botaykwya 'anw hida'tawalw dhugra max?"

"Ay'a, Amda!" Dubbl and the four Gelto replied in unison.

This startled Link for a moment, causing him to cast a surprised look in Dholit's direction. "Is… is that normal?" he asked.

"They ah quite devoted," Dholit replied.

Link turned back to them. "I should warn you that there aren't many female airmen. Can you handle yourselves if trouble starts?"

"'Ak sunway nayx gusjak 'an 'ilthan ca," Dholit said, giving her arm an affirmative pump. "Wabun nayx yayxwokak 'anw sunway max?"

"Ay'a, Amda!" the four Gelto replied.

"Dhol?" Dubbl asked, her face indicating confusion.

"'_Aydhom_!" Dholit quickly said. "'Inkanifya'ak zangiyth _'aydhom_."

"Waba _socikwotak_ max?" Dubbl asked, appearing annoyed.

"'Inu yabbid," Dholit told her, her hands held up in polite defense. "'Ak lwabbil ciyff 'imayn 'anik 'a."

Dubbl eyed her for a moment before asking Link, "What do we call you?"

"Call me?" Link asked.

"How do you want to be addressed in Hylian?" Dholit asked. "We'h not exactly up-to-date with Hylian titles."

"Oh, uh… just… just call me 'Captain'," Link said.

"Kyabtin," Dubbl repeated. Then she told the other Gelto, "Zhi 'kyabtin'."

"Ay'a, Kyabtin!" they, including Dubbl, said.

"That's… barely close enough," Irleen said. "I can't even _speak_ Hylian, but it sounds a little off."

Link shrugged. "It'll work." Then he turned and addressed the Gelto, "Being airme—uh…"

"It's okay," Dholit said. "I'll translate it in a way that should make sense."

"Okay," Link said with a nod. "Being airmen is serious business. I need you to work hard to ensure that we _all_ survive. Can you do that?"

"Wabun addu taynolak zhamin 'atuno naday," Dholit said with a stronger tone than Link had intended, arms folded behind her back. "Taris sulwayb! Wabun nayx taynolak zhamin 'atuno naday max!? Wabun lwaytaycibak 'anw 'atoyn zabaytkw wabnik kwilis wabin giltun max!?"

The Gelto stood stunned for a moment, and Link thought he could see awe glittering in their golden eyes. Then all five of them turned to Link and bowed their heads. "Amda Kyabtin!" they said in unison. "'Inu nayx tayrosak 'imayn tinnayl 'ulwis!"

Dholit turned to Link. "They said yes," she told them with a grin.

"The _hell_ they did!" Irleen shouted at her. "What have you been telling them!?"

Dholit showed her a fake look of shock. "Ihleen, I cannot simply _translate_ what Link says," she said. "I have no choice but to round a very sophisticated cultural bahrieh so that his meaning comes across in the correct manneh."

Link looked up at Irleen and gave a shrug. "It sounds all right to _me_."

Irleen was silent for a moment. "Maybe, but I'm _still_ watching you," she told Dholit. "I'm pretty sure there's something wrong with your head."

Link indicated the lined parchment sitting in the middle of the desk. "Tell them to sign their names," he said. "And… well, I kinda need to _know_ their names, too."

Dholit nodded and turned to them. "Cayzholan wabin dhalbin."

Dubbl stepped up, picked up the quill on the table, and scribbled a strange set of shapes on the parchment. Link looked up and told her, "Dubbl, since you know the most Hylian, I'm going to make you a chief airman. These other four will be directly under your command."

"I unde'stand," Dubbl nodded.

Link saluted her with his right hand. "Welcome aboard, Chief Dubbl."

Dubbl returned the salute with her right hand. "Thank you, Kyabtin." Link dismissed the salute, and she stepped aside.

The next to step forward was one of the girls with pigtails. Link tried to make a mental note that she was wearing a blue shirt and had a mole under her left eye. "This is Twali," Dholit said. "She's a very swift runnah, something which I suspect you can use?"

"Possibly," Link said. He gave her a salute. "Welcome aboard, Airman Twali."

Twali gave Dholit a confused look, so Dholit leaned forward and whispered in her ear. "'Imtowu, Kyabtin," Twali replied, returning the salute with a shaky hand.

The next to step forward was the Gelto with the cropped hair. Link noticed a large scar on her left arm starting from the inside of her wrist, wrapping around her forearm, and terminating at the elbow. Link asked, "Where'd the scar come from?"

"Lwamm stahted a fight with a Malgyohg hohde using only a knife," Dholit said. "And she decided to win."

Link nodded, having had the experience of fighting a horde of Malgyorg. He saluted her and said, "Welcome aboard, Airman Lwamm."

"'Imtowu, Kyabtin," she responded with a more graveled voice than Link had ever encountered from a woman. She returned the salute, and Link dismissed it.

The other Gelto with pigtails stepped forward and began writing her name. "This is Biluf," Dholit said. "She has very swift reflexes and once caught an ahrow with heh baah hand."

"Hopefully, something like that won't come up very often," Irleen said.

"Welcome aboard, Airman Biluf," Link said with a salute.

"'Imtowu, Kyabtin," she said while returning the salute. Link dismissed it.

The last one, the one with the ponytail, appeared to hesitate before picking up the quill. "And this one is Layna," Dholit said. "Of these fouh, she's the best fightah."

"How do you know?" Irleen asked.

"The three oldeh opponents nuhsing broken ahms," Dholit replied with a grin.

Link and Irleen exchanged a look. "What… kind of contest did you put them through, again?" Irleen asked.

Dholit shrugged. "Just a little spahring. Oh, but be kind to heh. She's a little shy."

"Welcome aboard, Airman Layna," Link said, saluting.

He saw her start and form a fist. But she quickly saluted in response. "'I-'imtowu, K-Kyabtin."

"I don't know when we'll be able to train," Link told Dubbl, "but make sure they're available."

"Yes, Kyabtin," she replied.

"Link," Irleen whispered to him. "Money."

"Oh, right," Link muttered as he leaned over and put his hand into a small box of blue rupees Leynne had left next to his chair. He pulled out five and handed them out. "Dholit probably already told you, but I'll try to get us a company payroll as soon as I can." Then he noticed that each of them were giving their rupees a curious look. "Is something wrong?" he asked Dholit.

"Gelto don't regulahly use money," Dholit told him. "Don't wohry, I'll cleah it up." She said a few hushed words in Geltoan and ushered them outside. "Thank you!"

"Well," Link said as he sat down. "That's five."

"So you noticed that Dholit didn't sign up, too, huh?" Irleen said. "With all the attention she shows you, that's a pretty unexpected move."

Link shrugged. "Maybe she's debating it."

…

A half-hour later, Sello wandered in and stepped up to the table. Link was a little concerned by his appearance. Sello's orange bodysuit was covered in black smudges, and his waistcoat looked like it was slowly turning green. He swayed as he stood, and Link could see the mouthpiece of a flask protruding from a breast pocket.

"Uh… did you need something, Sello?" Link asked.

Sello took a moment to focus on Link. "Oh, hi," he greeted.

"Hi, Sello," Link replied. "Did you want something?"

"Iz dere spiridz in the sky?" he asked.

"You've gotta be joking…" Irleen groaned.

"Uh… y-yeah?" Link replied.

"Cool smoke," Sello said with a nod. Then Link watched as Sello picked up the quill and took up part of the page by marking it with a large X. "By ma spleen, I fly."

Link looked down at the parchment. "You… wanna go with us?"

"Heh-yeah."

"O-okay, then," Link said as he stood. He saluted and said, "Welcome aboard, Chief Sello."

"Yeah!" Sello said as he brought up his non-writing hand. He revealed the presence of a bottle in it by saluting with it. _Pang_! Sello suddenly reeled and fell into a heap on the floor in front of the table.

"Oh, boy…" Irleen said as she fluttered over Sello. "Are you _sure_ you wanna make him a chief?"

"Do you think anyone _else_ knows what he's building?" Link replied. "If we just leave him in the engine room, how much trouble could he be?"

"And a heard of liver!" Sello declared.

"Point taken," Irleen said. "If anything, he'll kill himself where no one else will find him."

"That's… not what I meant," Link said.

Sello put a hand on the edge of the table and pulled himself up. "I think I saw a duck," he told Link.

"That wouldn't surprise _me_," Irleen commented.

Link sat back down and retrieved a rupee. "Here you go," he told Sello as he handed over the rupee. "Oh." He pulled Sello's hammer from his belt and offered it to him. "I've been meaning to give this back to you."

Sello shook his head. "Nah. Keep it. I got ten more."

"Where?" Link asked as he set the hammer down.

"Back home."

"In the volcano?" Link asked. Sello nodded. "In the rooms at the top of the volcano." Sello nodded again. "In the area that was attacked by Drumstik." He nodded again. "That was flooded with lava."

"Heh-yeah," Sello said.

Link could see that he had failed to explain why Sello might want the hammer back, so he surrendered. "Okay then," he said as he replaced the hammer. "Is that all?"

"Heh-yep," Sello said.

_BAM!_ Without warning, Sello bent forward and slammed his forehead into the table. The sound caused both Link and Irleen to cry out in surprise, and Link pressed his back against the chair. When Sello stood back up, the parchment had adhered to his forehead, and he turned and stepped out of the tent without a word.

Link quickly rose from his chair and followed him. "Sello! Sello, wait up!"

…

Leynne stepped into the tent after an hour of waiting. "How ah you doing?" he asked.

"Five Gelto and a _drunk_," Irleen said. "I've been thinking of a way to turn it into a joke."

"That's… probably about as much as I expected, really," Link said. "I've only ever seen Captain Alfonzo recruiting once, and it turned into a disaster because a bunch of drunk airmen from another company decided to attack us. It was the first time I'd seen the captain use a chair to discipline another captain's men."

"You mean he doesn't nohmally use a chaih?" Leynne asked.

"No, it's usually a board."

The smile left Leynne's face. "Oh. Well, I thought I would stop by to offeh my own sehvices."

Link watched him pick up the quill and scribble his name on the list. "Leynne, are you sure?" he asked.

"If my suspicion is cohrect, you'll need a navigatoh," he said.

"I'll also need maps," Link said as he stood up. "But you're just as good. Welcome aboard, Chief Leynne."

Leynne glanced up to find Link saluting. "Is that what ouh relationship has come to?" he asked with a smile.

"He's doing it to everyone else," Irleen said while Link gave a concerned look.

"I'm joking," Leynne said as he returned the salute. "Thank you foh having me, Captain."

…

"S'cuse us, sir."

Link started awake when he heard a man's voice address him. He looked up at two men standing in front of the table while Lidago and another Goron stood holding open the tent flaps. He took a moment to shake the sleepiness out of his head. "Yes?"

"I'm Harley," the larger of the two men, sporting short red hair and a thick beard, said as he offered out a hand. Link took it. "This is me bud Lawrence."

"'Ello," Lawrence, a man with a thick gut on top of muscles and a completely hairless head and chest, said as he shook hands with Link.

"We 'eard ya's lookin' fer a crew," Harley said. "We was miners on the Twen'y-Four, an' we wa'a 'elp."

Link nodded. "Well… we could use some more engineering crew," he told them. "So far, we only have Sello."

"The drunk building the engine," Irleen added.

Link bit his lip for a moment. "Thank you, Irleen," he said. "Anyway, most of your duties will be maintaining machinery. And… well, you'll have to work with the drunk; he'll _technically_ be your boss. Do you think you can do that?"

Harley and Lawrence exchanged looks. "'Ow 'ard can it be?" Lawrence asked.

"Are you also willing to take orders from someone younger than you?" Link asked.

Both men shrugged. "Ya ain' much older 'an our _old_ boss," Lawrence said.

"I'd take orders from a _baby_ s'long as 'e knew wha' 'e's doin'," Harley said.

Link indicated the parchment as he leaned over to pull out their advance. "Just sign your names."

Lawrence picked up the quill. "'Ow'd this _mess_ ge' 'ere?" he asked.

"Your boss," Irleen answered. "He hit it with his head."

"Oh."

Link waited for each man to sign his name before handing them their blue rupee. Then he saluted. "Airman Lawrence, Airman Harley, welcome aboard."

"Thank you, Cap'n," Harley said with a salute. Lawrence took a moment longer to salute, unaware of the procedure at first. After Link dismissed it, Harley asked, "One o' our Goron buddies also wanted t' join, bu' 'e can' wri'e 'is name."

"If it is okay, sir," the Goron behind them said. "I would like to work with them."

Link nodded. "Yeah, I suppose we can do that," he said. "Would you leave a mark for me? I-I don't want someone else to do it; it has to be _you_." The Goron accepted the quill from Lawrence and stretched past him to put a large dab of ink on the parchment. "What's your name?"

"Helo, Captain," the Goron answered, using his other hand to scratch at the bushy hair on top of his head.

Link saluted him. "Welcome aboard, Airman Helo."

"Thank you, Captain," Helo replied with a salute.

"Goron," Lidago spoke up.

Helo nodded at him. "Goron," he said. Then he told Link, "Lidago asks to be on the crew, too. Will that be okay?"

Link hesitated. "He understands that we'll be high in the air, right?"

Helo nodded. "Yes, sir. He wants to get over his fear."

"I suppose we could use someone in case we have large jobs," Link said. "And having Lidago around means we'll have someone to appraise hull damage. Do you think you can do that, Lidago?"

"Goron?" Helo asked, gesturing with his hands in a manner that Link could not quite understand.

"Goron," Lidago replied with a sharp nod.

"He can," Helo said.

"I _still_ can't get over how that language works…" Irleen groaned.

"Let him make a mark then," Link said.

"Goron," Helo told Lidago, giving him the quill. Then he gestured to the parchment. "Goron."

Harley stepped aside, allowing Lidago to place a dot underneath Helo's. Link grinned as he saluted. "Goron," he told Lidago.

Lidago gave Helo a confused look before returning the salute. "Goron."

…

Evening was just starting when the next person entered the tent.

And Link was surprised to see who it was. "S-seaman _Gold_?" he asked.

"_Mister_ Gold for the moment," Gold replied, tugging on the plain, white shirt he wore.

"You left the _Goddess's Tides_?" Irleen asked.

Gold nodded. "Rumors and all. Caught me attention, especially the part 'bout the young cap'n puttin' t'gether a ship in _Fishington_ o' all places. I knew it 'ad tae be yeh. So I told me cap'n I wanted tae leave. And I came 'ere." He looked down at the crew list. "What the…?"

"Five Gelto and two Gorons," Link said, anticipating the comment about the strange writing.

"And this mess?" Gold asked, pointing at the parchment.

"A drunk," Irleen said.

Gold made a sound, although it was hard for Link to tell if he was impressed or disappointed. He picked up the quill. "I think I'll add one more."

Link quickly put his hand over the paper to block Gold. He took a moment before answering Gold's questioning look. "You should know," he said. "Captain Albel, he… he didn't believe I was a captain. Let alone a _competent_ one."

"Aye," Gold said. "'E told me. 'E also told me that yeh got more potential in yeh than most cap'ns _twice_ yer age. 'E said yeh'd make a great cap'n one o' these days. And I wanna brag that I was there when yeh did." At the final sentence, he gave Link a large smile.

"Can you take orders from me?" Link asked.

Gold sighed. "Cap'n, I look down at this list, and I see a bunch o' people that don't know where they're goin'. Yeh'r the _only_ one seein' tae their survival. I ain't seen yeh in command, but I've seen yeh act on yer trainin'. Yeh take death 'ard. I know yeh won't let us down. Sir. So, yeah, I can take orders from yeh."

Link slowly removed his hand. "It might take time before I can get a company payroll for us," Link told him.

"If I wanted the pay, I'd stay with me other job," Gold said as he signed his name. Link leaned over and picked up a blue rupee. He set it on the table, drawing a confused look from Gold. "What's that?"

"Signing bonus," Link said. Then he shrugged as he stood up. "At least you guys have _some_ kind of pay for now." He saluted. "Welcome aboard, Airman Gold."

Gold took a moment to study Link's salute before mirroring it. "Glad to serve with you, Cap'n Link."

Link dismissed the salute and asked, "Do you have a place to stay?"

"Actually," Gold said, "yer Gelto friend offered tae find me a place on the yard."

Link nodded. "Okay then."

…

Link spent the next hour writing in names of the people who had not written in Hylian. It was difficult with the Gelto crew since he and Irleen had to struggle for a moment to remember their names. The approaching darkness made it hard to see, so Link had just about decided to close things up when the last member of his new crew stepped in. His and Irleen's backs were turned as Link stood on the other side of the table, looking down at the list as he tried to determine what it must feel like to sign on to an airship.

"I hope I'm not intehrupting anything."

Link glanced over his shoulder. To his surprise, Cale stood inside. He wore a faded blue shirt and black trousers. On the floor next to him was a battered suitcase.

"Oh, Cale," Irleen said, fluttering to a stop in front of his face. "It's good to see you again."

"It's good to see you, too," he said with a smile.

"We were wondering what happened to you," Link told him. "It kinda surprised us when you went back to Library Town. I thought you were still following us."

"Well, technically, my assignment ended when you found Rosaline," Cale said. "I was fohtunate enough that Leynne bought my ticket foh me; afteh Kakucha Island, you… well, I was broke."

Link scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, sorry about that," he said. "I'm afraid you were the only source of money at the time."

Cale held up a hand. "It's quite all right." He took in a breath and let it out in a sigh. "I wanted to infohm you myself; I left the Library."

"Huh?" Link asked.

"Why!?" Irleen asked.

"Well… I was finished theah," he said. "I… I believe I mentioned my motivation foh joining the Library."

"Something about your mother, wasn't it?" Irleen asked.

He nodded. "I found out who she was. I found out… everything…" He sniffed and paused for a moment. "I'm sohry. Anyway, I've just retahned from Hovela. I-I wanted to tell my sisteh what I'd found befoah…

"Befoah I went up."

"Went up?" Irleen asked.

Cale nodded. "I've… fulfilled what I _had_ to do. Now… I can't quite undehstand it, but… I want to do something _mad_. Something that _means_ moah. I-I don't know if that makes sense to you, but…"

Link and Irleen exchanged a sly look. "Cale." Cale looked up. Link folded his arms behind his back and began speaking. "Can you, under duress, take orders from your superiors, including me?"

Cale blinked, surprised at the change in tone. "Y-yes."

"Will you perform any duty given to you, knowing that it could be your last?"

"I-I'd like to believe I've already done that," Cale said. "Madame Seilon's assignments could have killed me fouh different times."

"Five if you count the Gelto attack on the mining settlement," Irleen said.

Cale cringed and grabbed at his left shoulder. "Indeed…"

Link nodded and indicated the list. "If you think you can take it, sign your name." He watched Cale pick up the quill before stepping to the side of the table to pick up a blue rupee. When Cale looked up from reading the names on the list, Link handed him the rupee. "Your signing bonus. You'll get paid when we make contact with the company."

"I undehstand."

Link saluted him. "Welcome aboard, Airman Cale."

Cale stood stunned for a moment. Then he held up his hand in a salute. "Thank you, Captain Link."

…

~~Day 35.

~~Fifteen. Including myself and Irleen, this new ship has fifteen crew members for its first voyage. I don't really know whether to call it a "maiden voyage" or not; once we get up there, there's no telling what we'll do. I was really kind of surprised that thirteen people signed up. That was thirteen more than I expected, twelve more than I hoped for. I suppose the biggest surprises were Gold and Cale showing up. Cale—I don't know what's gotten into him. He seems different somehow. I guess between this adventure we've had on the surface and him finding out what he wanted about his mother did it. And Gold—He seems to think that sailing under me will be some kinda historical occasion or something. I don't know. But I'm glad to have him aboard.

~~I didn't get the chance to see it, but Rosaline told me that they put Sello's engine in the ship. Tomorrow, they're going to install the ballast tanks. Then we get to see if the ship takes off without us. Meanwhile, I'll be talking with my new crew, laying out how I want to run the ship. I see myself running it similarly to the way Captain Alfonzo ran the Grand Sails, but I don't know if I can duplicate his brand of discipline. They're not just my crew; they're my friends. Without a finished ship to practice on, I think I'll have to give the crew a crash course in modern sailing while we raise the ship. But I'm confident in this crew. I know who they are. They'll sail with me.

…

"So I am allowed to serve, then?"

The captain realized her mistake and smacked herself in the head. "Please? I… I really don't want this to become any more problematic…"

He was about to say more when he stopped. Just like before, he felt that something was different. He realized where he was, but he was a little confused as to _who_ he was. He looked hard at the captain, trying to determine where she fit in this awkward world. Nothing seemed clear enough. Time was already destroyed. It had been changed, and nothing could be the same again.

"I… I wanted to stop you," he told the captain. "It just… I think I was frustrated."

The captain smiled at him. "You were more than a little 'frustrated'," she told him. "You were _furious_."

He shook his head. "I don't think I was _that_ mad," he told her. "You were… it was like you were just _playing_ with me."

Her eyes softened. "I know. And I am sorry that I did that."

He rubbed the back of his head. "I felt like… like I must have been some kind of idiot."

"I did not mean to. And, in truth…

"I just wanted to be part of your crew."

Link's eyes opened up, and he found himself facing a wall. His mind was fuzzy, but unlike the last dreams that had awoken him like this, his reaction was much calmer.

He did not know why, but he told the wall, "You are."


	68. The Island Symphony

Chapter 68: The _Island Symphony_

…

~~Day 36.

~~Something's going on with my dreams. I keep seeing myself talking with someone, but I'm not myself, I'm the person I'm talking to. I can't quite tell who I'm talking to, but I know it's a gir—I think I was talking to Princess Zelda dressed as me. Now that I'm thinking about it, it feels like I'm talking to her as her while she is me. (For as much sense as that makes.) But the conversations don't go the way I remember them. Instead, it's like I'm talking to her about what happened before. I don't know what's going on, and I feel like I've lost a lot of sleep again. I know Irleen says that, even if the princess had the gem Irleen gave to Captain Koroul, I can't be seeing what the princess saw because that isn't how the gem was supposed to work. I don't want to say she's wrong, but I can't think of any other explanation.

…

After falling back to sleep, Link awoke later that morning and wandered into the main room. He felt eyes on him, and he imagined it was because he only wore his bodysuit and his trousers. He was not very wide awake as he turned to sit on the couch.

Which is probably why he did not realize that the couch was missing. He dropped straight to the floor and hit his head on the wall behind him. The action caused someone in the room to snort, and, after confirming that the couch was gone, he glanced up at the room's other occupants. Leynne, Rosaline, Dubbl, and Cale stood around the table, and Kalvin leaned in the doorway with a metal cup in his hand. Irleen was hovering over Cale with what looked like a quill.

"Leynne," he asked, "what happened to the couch?"

Leynne immediately looked at Rosaline and said, "I told you people would notice."

Rosaline shrugged. "Okay, someone noticed."

"We don't know _wheh_ the couch went," Leynne told Link. "I was the fihst in heh this mohning, and I saw it missing."

"I think I just failed to notice it," Cale admitted.

"Too bad," Link said, rubbing his hand on the stone floor. "It was a very nice couch."

"Link, may we have a wohd?" Leynne asked as Dholit entered the room from outside.

"Oh, yeah," Link said as he stood up again. "Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing wrong," Leynne said. He moved so that his body was blocking part of the table. "We wanted youh opinion concehning a ratheh… delicate matteh."

Link's eyes flickered in Dholit's direction before he asked, "What is it?"

Leynne clasped his hands together, giving him a formal air. "Well, this whole time, we've been referring to this vessel as the 'Island Sonata Two'," he explained. "But Dholit's recently infohmed us that you haven't quite taken to the name."

Link looked at Dholit, but he was too tired to form the glare he felt he should have been wearing. "You've been reading my journal again."

Dholit's face did not show her usual jocularity as she answered, "How else ah we to know when something bothehs you?"

"I wish we'd known befoh," Leynne said.

But Link shook his head. "It doesn't matter. I can't think of a better name. I was gonna worry about it later."

"Link," Rosaline said. "Go look outside." Link gave her a confused frown and stepped over to the door, prompting Kalvin to move into the room.

At first, he was surprised. Then he was awed and impressed. From the keel to the weather deck must have been four decks high. With the forecastle and aftcastle and an additional cabin at the rear, it was the largest schooner he had ever seen. It was also the most unique. Instead of three masts, they had erected six masts arranged in two parallel rows. He could see that they were all gaff-rigged, maintaining the premise that they had set before. Additional spars had been mounted amidships on the second deck below the weather deck, a thick, central spar bearing stowed sails with their control lines routed through smaller spars on the top and bottom. From the angle these additional spars were mounted, they made Link think of the set of pectoral fins on a fish. The hull was a fresh, chestnut color with the bulwark painted bright red. A three-bladed propeller, its diameter two-thirds the height of the ship's hull, shone white with the late morning sun.

In a way, the ship was mad. It was a feat of insanity that, without the Architects' descendents, would probably have never come into existence. He slowly stepped toward it, wondering how the airship had not existed before now. How did something so large come into existence in such a short amount of time? Link wanted to sail it. He wanted to cut the lines and take it into the sky at that exact moment.

"You should know," Link spun around when Leynne spoke up, surprised by how close his voice sounded, "Dholit told us about this yestehday when we wanted to see about having a flag made; I recall you mentioning that aihships identify each otheh by individual bannehs. It wasn't easy. What do you think?"

He stepped aside as Rosaline and Dholit pulled a large, white cloth off the table. They let it unfurl to show Link a picture of an island in the middle of a ring of instruments. From the top-right of the island, the flag bore a lyre, an ocarina, a conductor's baton, a violin, a pan flute, a set of drums, a harmonica, and the silhouetted profile of what appeared to be a woman singing. The semblance to the _Island Sonata_'s emblem was uncanny, as if they had discovered it beforehand.

"The _Island Symphony_." Link glanced at Leynne, who seemed to be beaming with pride. "Not a replacement, but a sisteh."

"Well, Link?" Rosaline asked as he stepped back into the house.

He smiled at her and Dholit, his eyes beginning to water. "It's perfect," he said. "Thank you. All of you. I… never expected so much…" He covered his eyes with a hand.

"I want to hug him," Dholit told Rosaline.

Link immediately held his hands up. "No, don't," he said. "I-I'm okay, I just…" He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Sorry."

He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to find Leynne still grinning at him. "Would you like to meet heh?" he asked.

…

Link had never had the opportunity to smell a new airship before, so he was amazed by the scent of fresh wood as he stepped onto the weather deck. He ran his hand on the smooth, sanded surface of the bulwark. His eyes followed the curve of the bulwark towards the bow, and then they traced one of the stays to the port-side fore-mast.

And he opened his mouth with the most obvious question he could think of. "Why six masts?"

"Why not?" Rosaline replied.

"An idea Dubbl and I had," Leynne said as he looked up at the boom of the port-side main-mast. "Gaff-rigged sails ah the heaht of schoonehs, but I believe theh _is_ merit behind what we've done."

"And what's that?" Irleen asked as she hovered over his and Cale's heads.

"Just this," Leynne said as he stepped between the masts. He pointed to both fore-masts and spoke in a louder voice. "These two masts can be physically disconnected from the helm and positioned pehpendiculah to the ship's line of travel. And then the main masts heh can be positioned at about fouhty-five degrees from the stehn. The result is a paih of sails that act much like squahe-rigged sails, making this vessel much fasteh than it would be with just three oh fouh." He pointed to the aft-masts and spoke in a normal voice since Link was walking toward him. "These two masts ah pehmanently connected to the helm and sehve as ouh means of tuhning. It was tricky planning out a system which we could use to effectively connect all six masts to the same wheel but then connect them to anotheh tuhning mechanism."

"So how does it work?" Link asked.

"I'm glad you asked," Leynne said as he moved over to a capstan sitting between the fore- and main masts in the middle of the deck. "Dubbl, if you please."

Dubbl cupped her hands around her mouth and called up to the Gelto examining the rigging on the aft-masts. "Twali, Lwamm, Biluf, Layna! 'An xaynathaciys xwal!"

All four Gelto looked up from what they were doing. Then, in the next instant, they each used the standing rigging to control their falls to the deck. Link cringed; he would have to tell them not to do that while they were up in the air. They ran for the stairs in front of the aftcastle and pulled out one board each from storage cabinets under the stairs. Leynne stepped back as they ran toward him and planted the boards into the sides of the capstan.

Leynne rounded the capstan and stopped in front of a pair of levers sitting afore the capstan. "The system is designed so that it won't unlock unless the helm is pehfectly straight." He grabbed one lever and pushed it forward. "This unlocks the mechanisms and keeps the helm in place while the masts can be released." He pushed the second lever forward, this time having to use effort to move it. Link heard a clatter from the deck below. "That switches control of these masts to the capstan." He nodded at the Gelto, and they started cranking the capstan. Link watched as the whole masts turned outward from the ship, the fore-masts moving a greater degree than the main masts. When the girls finished, the fore-masts were open perpendicular to the ship, looking like a giant, square-rigged sail with a sizable gap in the middle. The main masts had open at half that angle, just as Leynne had described. Leynne threw the first lever back. "The system is locked again, the front fouh masts will remain in place, and the helm will now only steeh the aft-masts."

"That's just… _amazing_," Link said. "I mean… you've probably maximized the amount of running speed with just this _alone_! And this sort of plan is _perfect_ for the Sky Lines; it would definitely guarantee efficient trips. How did you guys even _conceive_ this?"

"It wasn't difficult between my knowledge of mechanics and Dubbl's hobby of expressing ideas with heh fists," Leynne said with a grin.

"Waba zalahakw ba' nayx xilutak," Dubbl told Leynne in what Link was sure to be a threatening tone. Her pointing a finger at him while scowling seemed to make her words a little clearer. "'Imayn 'ilway zathkiyc wabnik wabin tayssab naday ya'lu fizhibak."

Leynne raised an eyebrow at Dubbl before asking Dholit, "What did she say?"

Dholit shrugged. "Oh, something about an offah to kill you with youh own spine," she told him with an innocent grin.

Leynne nodded. "I assumed as much." He pointed to the shroud holding down the port aft-mast. "We've anchohed the masts as best as we can; I know we'll be sailing into some heavy winds."

"Yeah, pretty heavy," Link said. He pointed to a pair of capstans between the aft-masts. "What are those for?"

"Ah," Leynne replied. "Those control the spahs we mounted to the outside of the hull. Unfohtunately, we can't demonstrate theih use while we'h grounded."

"That's fine; I was just curious."

"Link?" Irleen asked. "I was wondering… how do you intend to ohganize youh command?"

"Something I've been curious about as well," Leynne said.

"I had it mostly planned out as people were signing up," Link said. "I've already designated three Chiefs of the Deck: you, Leynne; Dubbl; and Sello."

"What?" Rosaline and Cale asked.

"Sello!?" Leynne asked.

Link held up his hands. "Before you say anything else, I've thought about it. Sello's likely to do his own thing, so I'll probably be assigning one of the other engineers to run things. But when it comes to engine trouble, I'd trust Sello to fix the problem above anyone else." He paused to shrug. "Mostly because there's a good chance that no one else will know what he's doing."

"You want to trust command of the ship's engine to a man who once repaihed and _sicced_ a homicidal mining engine on us?" Cale asked, his face growing pale.

"Wait, he did _what_?" Leynne asked.

"He fixed Crunchy just fine," Link argued. "It just… you know, got a little out of hand."

"It _chased_ you, Link," Irleen said.

"Look, unless Sello plans on putting the engine on a pair of tracks, I don't think we'll have anything to worry about," Link said. "Anyway, as long as no one tells Sello to do anything, he'll probably just be drunk the whole time." He waited to see if anyone would respond, but Rosaline, Leynne, Cale, Irleen, Dholit, and Dubbl staring at him made him reflect on his previous statement a little more. "Okay, I guess I didn't think that through. But as long as we keep an eye on him, we shouldn't have to worry."

"Why did Sello sign up in the fihst place?" Dholit asked.

Link put on a nervous look. "He, uh… he asked me if there was alcohol in the sky. I-I told him yes."

"Why else," Leynne moaned.

"Look, there's going to be four others keeping an eye on him," Link said. "And until the Gelto learn Hylian or otherwise leave, Dubbl will be in charge of them. Leynne, as our navigator, you'll be responsible for directing things up here while we're at sail. It mostly means you'll be ordering around Dubbl, Gold, and Cale."

"I take _his_ o'de's?" Dubbl asked, pointing a finger at Leynne.

"They'll probably just be orders to relay to the other Gelto," Link told her. "And that's only if I'm not on the deck." Dubbl pursed her lips and shrugged. "We might have to live with each other for a while, at least until we can get a payroll. After that, we'll be able to hire more airmen. So, until then, I'm hoping you all will stick around."

"We won't have anywheh else to go once we'h up theh," Leynne pointed out.

Link nodded. "How much longer do you guys need?"

"Well, foh da ship, we be ready tomorrow," Rosaline said. "Just gotta be finishin' da riggin'."

"Howeveh, I should point out that we haven't _exactly_ had the time to train," Leynne said.

"I know," Link said. "It'll take us some time to reach the islands. We'll have to move the ship so we don't wind up inside the Undying Storm, so we'll use those days to get everyone ready for their jobs."

"Theh will be a lot to train foh," Leynne pointed out.

"I'm pretty confident," Link said. "Schooners are easy to sail. It'll mostly be following my directions anyway."

"What kind of supplies should we puhchase?"

"Dry rations, water, a few spare parts… we might need some grog."

"Grog?" Cale asked.

"Remember?" Link said. "They gave us some on the _Goddess's Tides_."

"The alcohol?" Dholit asked. "The stuff that made him pass out?"

"I know it sounds like a bad idea," Link said, "but grog is actually essential. It helps prevent scurvy. And, according to Captain Alfonzo, it's a good way to keep the crew calm. It's easy to get on each other's nerves, being on a ship without seeing a port for days. We might also want to get a small stock for Sello; we can't have him drink the grog, or else he'll want to drink it all."

"Luggahd should be back with the Loft Steam I requested soon," Leynne said. "If theh's enough time, I'll ask him to see if we can find a supplieh in Hovela."

"We should have at least a week's worth," Link said. "We shouldn't be that long before finding Autumn Island."

"Autumn Island?" Cale asked.

Link nodded. "It was the first island to the south of the storm; the closest Sky Line will take us right to it. We can resupply there, and there should be a Skyrider office I can visit. We'll also be going to Castle Island. I… I still need to tell them what happened when we took Princess Zelda into the storm."

"That sounds like a faih enough plan," Leynne said.

…

~~This whole thing is becoming a reality. I don't know how, but I have another ship! I feel a little guilty about all the people giving up what they need to put it together, but I don't want to say anymore. I think my moping about it is beginning to make people wish I would just go away.

~~They called her the Island Symphony.

…

~~Day 37.

~~It's time to go home.

…

As amazing as the _Island Symphony_ looked when Link first saw her, she looked even better with all sails open. The scaffolds had been removed along with the boards which were used to keep the hull upright. Instead, the ship had been tethered to the ground by about twenty ropes, some of them secured by one of the Gorons pounding a stake a good distance into the ground. Even then, the stakes had to be supplemented by large rocks which, if the large bite marks were an indication, were probably conveniently-placed snacks. His glance spun from the sails above him to the view over Fishington, taking in the sight of the terrestrial town once more. In the deep purple of dawn, it appeared that part of the town was still asleep. Although, that may have been simply the houses on this side of town blocking his view of the people walking about.

Then his eyes shifted to the line of men, women, and fairy standing in the middle of the weather deck. It was far from a professional line of airmen, but it was the best he could expect from a place that had never seen the sky as he had. Gold was the only one standing in a dignified position, legs apart and arms folded behind his back. The Gelto stood with their feet together and their arms down to their sides. Helo and Lidago stood around looking confused. Lawrence and Harley had their hands in their pockets. Leynne appeared a little annoyed, standing with his arms crossed while Sello's half-conscious form leaned on him. Cale looked nervous, grinding the strap of his messenger bag in one hand and trying to find something to do with his other hand.

Link took in a deep breath. "I know you're probably tired of waiting," he addressed his crew, "but we're about to take a large step off the ground. And I want to make sure you all understand that, once we're up there, as long as you're on this ship, you all follow my orders. I don't tell you this to intimidate you; I just want you all to understand that I don't want anyone to be put in danger just because they didn't want to listen to me. I want to hear from all of you individually, so as I say your name, I just want a simple 'aye'. And, if you choose not to answer, I will not hold it against you as you return to the ground." Link stepped to the end of the line and started with the first man there. "Gold?"

Gold nodded. "Aye, sir."

Link walked before the line as he continued to ask. "Lawrence?"

"Aye," Lawrence replied, folding his arms.

"Harley?"

"Aye, Cap'n."

"Helo?"

Helo stiffened and said, "Aye, Boss."

"Lidago?"

Lidago exchanged a look with Helo, forcing Link to stop in front of him. Helo nodded, and Lidago said, "Aye."

Link flashed a smile at him before continuing down the line. "Dubbl?"

Dubbl gave a stiff nod. "Aye, Kyabtin."

Link stepped to the next Gelto and paused his step for a moment as he recalled her name. "Biluf?"

Biluf gave the same nod as Dubbl. "Ay'a, Kyabtin."

Link nodded, although it occurred to him that she and the other Gelto might not understand him. So he looked back at Dubbl. "They know what I'm asking, right?"

"It not matte'," Dubbl said. "We will follow the Kyabtin."

Link frowned and continued down the line. "… Lwamm?"

"Ay'a, Kyabtin," she replied in a strong voice.

Strong enough that Link did not want to explain that he was simply just trying to confirm what her name was. "Twali?"

"Ay'a, Kaybtin."

"Layna?"

Layna started as if she had been daydreaming. "Ay'a, Kyabtin!"

Her high-pitched voice prompted Link to press on his ear a moment before asking the next in line. "Leynne?"

Leynne gave a soft nod. "Aye."

Link stopped and craned his neck. "Sello?"

Sello belched, prompting a disgusted look from Leynne. "Heh-yeah, man," he grunted. "Aye—p!"

Link gave Leynne a shrug before moving on. "Cale?"

"Aye, saah," Cale replied, appearing a little more relaxed.

"Irleen?"

"You'd bettah believe it," she answered in Cale's accent.

Link gave her a nod and a smile before returning to the front of the formation. "Very well," he told them. "We will disembark in a few moments." Then he turned to Talein, Rosaline, and Luggard, who stood behind him near the bulwark where the ladder to the ground had been placed. "Thank you again for all you've done for me."

"Yeh know, I gotta admit… I wasn' sure if I believed yeh when yeh firs' showed up," Talein told him.

"Yeah, me, either," Luggard said, scratching the back of his head.

Link nodded. "Yeah, I know. And I don't blame you; that was kinda the reaction I was receiving since my promotion."

"I think I's gonna miss ya," Luggard told him. "Ain' every month I ge' chased through the Sand Realm by a huge Malgyorg." He chuckled with his next statement. "Or ge' invited t' spend a nigh' with the Gelto."

"It was all a first for me, too, you know," Link said.

Luggard nodded. Then he said, "Oh, yeah." He slid off a belt he had been carrying on his shoulder and handed it to Link. "Ya lef' this in me train."

Link accepted the belt, finding it to be the sword Meilont had given him. "Oh, yeah, I'd almost forgotten about it."

"Yeh have yerself a new sword, though," Talein pointed out, indicating the Lokomo Sword on Link's back.

"I'm just borrowing it," Link said. "I'll be bringing it back when I'm done."

"Just make suah yeh visit de next time yeh come," Rosaline said.

Talein tapped the back of his hand against Link's shoulder. "Yeah," he said. "Meilont wants to see yeh again, yeh know."

Link nodded. "I know. And I will. It might take some time, but I _definitely_ will."

"Good," Rosaline said. Then she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him in a quick hug. "Good luck, Captain."

"Thanks, Rosaline," Link answered as she pulled away.

"Link?" Luggard said, offering out a hand covered in soot. "It's been fun. Le's never do it 'gain."

"I can't make any promises," Link answered as he clasped Luggard's hand. "Take care."

"Ya, too."

"Link, it was nice to meet yeh," Talein said, placing a hand on Link's shoulder. "Take care o' yerself, boy."

"You, too," Link said as they clasped hands. "And make sure you tell Meilont I'll visit someday."

"Will do."

Then Link watched as Talein followed Rosaline and Luggard down the rope. His eyes started to water at the thought of leaving, knowing how many friends he had made in his month of exile to the surface. He quickly suppressed the urge to cry and waited until Talein stepped foot on the ground. When Talein was standing on the ground, Link picked up the board holding the rope ladder to the bulwark and threw it over the side. "Look out below!" he shouted.

Then he turned to his crew. "Lwamm and Biluf, start removing the lines at the stern," he ordered. Dubbl translated the order as Link continued, "Lawrence and Gold, remove the lines starting at the bow. Toss them overboard; we've got all the rope we'll need. Leynne, on the wheel."

Lwamm and Biluf, after having Dubbl explain to them, chanted "Ay'a, Kyabtin" at the same time Lawrence and Gold replied "Aye, Captain". Leynne gave a delayed "Got it" before hustling for the forecastle. Link signaled the rest toward him before turning to close the bulwark. Cheers and chants immediately called up from the ground as they looked over the edge at all the faces that had helped build the ship. Link stepped over to a shroud connected to the port main mast and pulled himself onto the bulwark to get a better look as his crew slowly released his ship from the ground. He passed his sword off to Cale and watched. This would be the final test. If the ballast system was working (and there was no reason to believe otherwise), the ship would start to rise soon.

The _Island Symphony_ rocked underneath him after about a minute. Some of the tethers were beginning to pull out of the ground. The cheers grew louder, and the crew nearby started calling down. Link watched the ropes for a moment until he decided to retreat back behind the bulwark. The ship was rising, just as expected. The airmen removing ropes had barely reached the weather deck when the ship pulled the rest of its tethers out of the ground and began floating of its free will.

Up. Up. Up. Up. The _Island Symphony_ was on her way to the sky as fast as she could. Link could see the treetops of the Lost Woods in just seconds. The cheering faded out, and the crew settled into silence. He looked around at the emotionally-charged group around him. Well, except for Sello, who had fallen to the deck when Leynne disappeared.

"Well," Harley said. "We's on our way, Cap'n. Whacha go' for us?"

"Ohdahs?" Cale asked.

Link looked around at them. Then he waited until Lawrence, Gold, Lwamm, and Biluf returned to the group. "Everyone, go to your berths below and make sure your belongings are secure. Then I want you all back on deck as soon as possible." Link turned to Gold as the crew began to separate and Dubbl translated his directions. "Airman Gold, when you're finished below, I want you to relieve Leynne at the helm. Standing orders are steady as she goes: straight up."

"Aye aye, sir," Gold replied before following the rest of the crew to the hatch forward of their position.

"Li—uh, Captain." Link turned around to see Cale lingering. He offered out a hand holding Irleen's translator gem. "She wanted to talk to you. Oh, and youh swohd."

Link took both items. "Thanks, Cale," he said. Cale nodded and stepped past him. He looked up at Irleen and smiled. "So. We did it."

"I know," Irleen said. "I-I can hardly _believe_ it."

"Ready to go home yet?"

Irleen hesitated. "I don't know.

"How am I supposed to explain this to my _parents_?"

Link laughed in response.

…

**End Arc 1 of 3.**


	69. Crash Course in Future Sailing

Chapter 69: Crash Course In Future Sailing

**Arc 2 of 3**

…

"Okay, everyone," Link said to the crew gathered on the deck. "We've maybe got a day to make sure everyone knows their job, so we're getting started now. I've probably already told you your assignments, but I just want to make sure everyone else gets it. Dubbl, Cale, Leynne… Twali… Lwamm, Layna… and Biluf, I want you standing on the starboard side." Cale was the only one to move; Dubbl's translation had stopped mid-sentence, and Leynne just frowned. Link rolled his eyes. "On the right side." As they moved, he continued, "Sello, Lawrence, Harley, Lidago, Helo, on the left side. Oh, Helo, could you pick up Sello?" Link waited until they had moved before stepping in between them with Irleen hovering over his shoulder. "Take a look around. For the next few days, these people will be the people you work with. As much as they are keeping your butts in the air, you're also working to keep them in the air as well. I'm going to need every one of you to get used to speaking my language, so listen the best you can. By the time we reach the sky kingdom, I want to be able to get this ship moving the way I need it to move. You—" Link pointed to Cale, Leynne, and the Gelto. "—will have most of your duties focusing on piloting, rigging sails, and navigation. The rest of you—" Link indicated Sello, Lawrence, Harley, and the Gorons. "—will be seeing to the ship's engine and ballast mechanics. Now, I have no idea what Sello's done to the engine, so I'll be coming down to inspect it with you guys later. In the meantime, go down below and take some time to get familiar with the ship's layout. I want to be able to tell you where to go without having to tell you how to get there."

He turned to the starboard group as the others walked to the hatch. "I'm going to make this as easy as possible," he told them. "First, the Gelto. I don't want any of you climbing up and jumping off the masts anymore."

Dubbl interrupted her translation to ask, "What? Why?"

"It's too easy to fall off an airship rocking side to side with the wind," Link said. "Plus, it scares me. Find a safer way to climb down."

Dubbl glanced at her companions before striding forward. She stood face to face with Link (for someone who stood half a head taller than him) and spoke in a low voice, "I not can tell zem zat. It zei' job."

Link sighed. "I know," he said. "But it won't be their job if they fall over the side. That's a long time to think about mistakes."

"Zey no fools, Kyabtin," she replied. "Zey can take ca' of zemself."

Link glanced past her, and then he gave the starboard main mast a quick look. "Okay," he relented, "but not in the Sky Lines. Those winds are very intense, and I'd hate to lose one of them like that."

Dubbl appeared to think for a moment. Then she nodded. "Zey can do zat."

"Thank you." He waited for her to return to the group before continuing. "Second, because we don't have a very large crew, we'll have to set up shifts so that everyone gets an equal amount of sleep between work. I'll figure out the shifts later, but it'll be a little tricky since half the deck crew doesn't speak Hylian. Third. Everyone will need to learn most of the jobs on the deck, again because we don't have a large crew. It's not hard; lookout, helm and navigation, and manipulating the sails will be the majority of your duties. At night, we'll need someone to set up lanterns so that other ships can see us. Since the sails… wou…" Link trailed off as he looked at the mast to his left, the starboard fore-mast. He sighed and said, "Dubbl, Leynne. Seeing as how you two probably designed the rigging, would you'd like to demonstrate how to raise and lower the sails?"

"You make it sound as if you can't," Leynne commented.

"Yeah, that's mostly because I don't know what _that_ is," Link said, pointing to the side of the mast.

"The winch?" Leynne asked. "It seemed ratheh straight fohwahd to me."

"Good, you can demonstrate," Link told him.

Leynne traded a shrug with Dubbl. "Well," he said as he stepped up to the winch. "Once we detehmined how we would ohganize the sails, we had to figuh out a method of raising and lowering the sails on a mast that was no longeh stationary." He gave the outer wheel of the winch a tug and flipped a handle into existence. He kept a hand pressed down on the handle as he talked. "The exterioh spool locks into place wheneveh the handle is folded. Unlocked, it has to be handled cahfully." He used his free hand to point up at the sail. "In addition to the weight of the sail, the boom had been fitted with an exterioh sheath and five spiraled, coiled springs each on the inside. The springs tighten when the sail is raised, and they want to release when the sail is lowehed. This causes the sheath to rotate, and the sail wraps around it. Obsehve." Leynne slowly turned the winch, and it was clear from his movements that he was trying to do it carefully. Link looked up and watched as the sail lowered and rolled itself around the boom, just as Leynne had said. The sail wound until just a small part of the peak stood. Leynne then folded the handle back into place. "We had to do it this way because theh was no way to attach the halyahds to the deck oh the mast if the booms and gaffs weh to be mobile. Having to manipulate lines foh all of these pahts would be too much."

Link nodded. "Yeah, I suppose it takes out the need to coordinate with crewmates. But is it as easy to _hoist_?"

"Of couhse," Leynne said, pulling the handle out again. Link observed, with a small air of humor, that Leynne had to put more effort into pulling the sail back into place. When Leynne finished, he was huffing as he slapped the handle back into the lock. "Uh… evidently… it's…_ ha_, not _quite_ as easy."

"In an emergency," Link told him, "another airman can always jump the halyards. With those two ropes exposed like that, it would be easy to haul down on them. Just as long as the other airman doesn't wrap his hands into one of your winches."

"Cehtainly," Leynne agreed, resting his hands on his knees. "I… I might… also see to… _whew_, uh… finding a way to… maybe…" He started gesturing at the halyards. "Uh… weigh those lines down. Oh… oh something."

"Well, fortunately, we won't have to do it often," Link said. "Square rigs have to be raised and lowered depending on whether you're running on wind or an engine. Gaff rigs can be left up in either situation since most ships use them to steer in either condition. The only time we'll ever have to lower them is when we dock."

"How come?" Cale asked.

"Crosswinds," Link said. "No one knows why, but prevailing winds push away from the larger islands. Most docks are built so ships can approach parallel to the island's edge. It's not usually a problem for square-rigged sails, but an airship with gaff-rigged sails has to either turn the sails and force the ship to go into irons or lower the sails. Either way, those are the best ways to keep a ship from capsizing."

"I see," Leynne said, wiping off his brow. "Noted."

"Cale, give the other sail a try," Link said, jerking a thumb at the port fore sail.

"Okay," Cale said with a nod.

"Dubbl," Link continued, "have the rest of the Gelto lower and raise one sail each. Make sure they understand how the sails work."

"Aye, Kyabtin," Dubbl replied. She turned to the Gelto and waved them along. "Tayrosani!"

Link glanced at Cale before he turned to speak to Leynne. "It looks like some of my experience isn't quite useful now, huh?" he asked.

Leynne shook his head. "I've been trying _not_ to think like that," he said. "While we've constructed a vessel that may have a few unohthodox items, we'll still need _you_ to command us. But…" He hesitated a moment before giving an agreeing nod. "It appeahs that you _might_ not be the best candidate to teach Cale and the Gelto about the ship's functions. I've doubts about Aihman Gold knowing about them as well."

"Yeah," Link agreed with a nod. "Would you and Dubbl make sure the girls know what they need to do?"

"Actually, as the gihls ah the ones who rigged the sails in the fihst place," Leynne said, "I would imagine that the only people who need to wohry about training on the sails would be Cale and Gold. It's the same situation with the controls foh the fohwahd sails and the outeh spahs."

"So, they just need to know the helm and navigation and how to post lanterns."

"I would imagine so. I actually ratheh expected theh to be moh to the job."

Link nodded. "Arranging cargo and… _probably_ managing supplies and spare parts. _That_, I'll probably have to do myself; I've been doing that for most of my time as an airman."

"Okay," Leynne said with a nod.

"Soooo… go ahead and double-check that they know the sails, then show them the helm. It'll probably be about noon by the time you're done, sooo… maybe see what you can do about lunch. And, when you get the chance, have someone relieve Gold so you can go over everything with him, too."

"Okay," Leynne said. "What will you be doing?"

"I'll be below looking at the engine with the rest of the crew. I just hope Sello didn't take _too many_ creative liberties."

"I imagine that he could write a _book_ on creative libehties," Leynne said as Link walked away.

Uncommon to most vessels Link knew, the stairways to the decks below had been built on either side of the ship. They had been built forward of the fore-masts just on the inside of the bulwark. Link descended into the starboard hatch down a tall set of stairs, probably designed to accommodate the Goron crewmembers. The first deck he came to was the cargo hold, which received an approving nod. To his immediate right was a wall with a pair of doors. He stepped off the stairs and glanced inside to find that the berth deck was right where he would expect it. Someone had nailed a sign to the aisle divider right in front of the doors with an arrow pointing to starboard. Link took this to be meant for the male crewmembers since the sign was written in Geltoan. And looked more like a lengthy warning than a sign saying "Gelto over here". He would have to ask Dubbl to translate the sign later.

The deck below brought Link to a small galley. Forward of this, he discovered a short hallway leading to six small, private quarters, each furnished with a bunk, a desk, and a chair. He peeked in on all of them and decided that he would have to tell Leynne and Dubbl that they can claim one since they were his chiefs. He would make mention of it to Sello as well, although he wondered if Sello would remember it later.

He stepped back out into the galley to find Lawrence reading text on the outside of a ration package. Lawrence looked up. "Oi, Cap'n."

Link nodded at him. "Lawrence. Have you found your way around yet?"

Lawrence shrugged. "I figured the four places I go'a know is the engine room, the galley, the shi'er, 'n me bunk."

"Yeah, that's about the size of it as an engineer," Link told him. "So, did you find the engine room?"

"Jus' back o' 'ere," Lawrence said, pointing to a door behind him. "Quick question, if ya don' mind."

"No, I don't mind."

Lawrence showed Link the package. "Dry rations?" he asked.

"Yeah," Link said with a nod. "Makes dry poop. We have a head at the front of the ship and a sick closet somewhere aft. We don't want feces sticking to the insides of either, or else it'll start stinking up the ship."

"So the solution's t'… wha', give us all constipation?"

"Well, it's-it's not literally 'dry'. Not as much… stuff that makes your poop moist. If I wanted to make you guys constipated, it would be easier to feed you something more appropriate for Gorons."

Lawrence sniffed and put the package back in the crate next to him. "Go' it."

Link indicated the door behind him. "Let's have a look at that engine room."

Lawrence nodded and led Link through the door. He found that the engine room was actually a lot larger than expected. Probably occupying two decks in height, the engine itself looked like someone had taken a number of metal blocks and welded them together. Link saw that a pair of large tanks had been mounted to the bulkheads on either side of the engine, each containing water if the crudely-painted label on the side was to be believed. Wooden bins set in front of the tanks were full of coal and open on one side for easy access. A single pipe led from the top of the engine into the deckhead above (and, likely, to whatever was meant to provide heat to the ballast system) while four others went through the bulkheads on either side, which Link took to be exhaust pipes and probably purge pipes like on a steam train. No sort of visible conveyor system told Link that the engine was meant to be fed by manual labor, but wherever that function was intended to be carried out was not apparent from the engine's exterior design. The floor Link stood on was a wooden walkway spanning the width of the room. Most of the walkway kept crates and boulders (probably the Gorons' food supply) on top with a waist-high wall. Two spots on the wall had been left open so that crew had access to ladders on either side of the door.

"It doesn't sound like it's on," Link told Lawrence.

"Nah, Cap'n, I don' think it is. Prob'ly 'cause our chief's unconscious."

"Where is he?"

Lawrence held up a hand with his thumb pointed down. "Go' 'imself a li'l nook righ' under us."

Link shook his head and stepped to the portside ladder. "Well, let's see if he'll start it up. We're gonna need it to start heating up the ballast tanks so we can gain more height."

"Question," Lawrence said as Link started down. "Is we jus' gonna work down 'ere this w'ole time?"

"In shifts," Link said with a nod as he climbed down. "Almost every station on a ship has to be manned at all times. The only time a station can be left alone is when we're docked, although I don't know about the engine room just yet. Don't worry; you won't be trapped in here forever."

"Tha's good," Lawrence said as he followed Link down. "Won' be long 'til this room starts smellin' like stale drunk."

"Maybe we can find something to freshen the air." Link touched the deck and glanced to one side. "So _that's_ where the couch went."

The couch, with its loose leather upholstery marred by a strange, green stain on the right arm, had been tucked away under the walkway. So had Sello, left unconscious with his face pressed into the couch's backrest and a flask balanced on his hip. On either side of the couch were crates of different brands of alcohol, not one of them open yet. Link could only imagine that his drunken engineer had been too unconscious to break into them yet.

So Link leaned forward and shook his shoulder, causing the flask to fall to the deck. "Hey, Sello," he said. "Wake up."

"Yeah, Harley 'n I's already drawin' the schedule for _tha'_ duty," Lawrence said after dropping past the last few rungs to the deck.

Sello groaned and rolled to look up. "I zed cheese, not pillows," he told the deckhead.

"Come on, Sello," Link said. "We need you to start up your…" He gave the metal behemoth behind him a strange look. "… engine."

"Bwahf!" was Sello's response, although it was not clear if that was his intended response or if he just randomly felt the need to bark like a dog. "Find me a collar, and I can go ta da lake."

Link sighed and placed a hand over his face. "Come on, Sello," he said. "Focus."

"M'a firin' ma syrup," Sello coughed as he used a hand to search the deck for his flask. When he located it, he put the empty flask to his lips. Frowning, he gave it an irate look before placing the mouthpiece to his nose and inhaling as strong as possible. "Aw, butt."

Lawrence snorted. "Me _boss_, Cap'n?" he asked.

"Yeah…" Link groaned as Sello put a hand into the cushions.

Sello pulled a bottle from underneath himself and shook it. Then he used a thumb to pop the cork off and took a large drink. "Aaaaah," Sello sighed. Then he looked at Link. "You rang, Green?"

"I need you to start up your engine," Link said. "And don't call me 'Green'."

"Kay, Purple." Sello turned and sat up. His first attempt to stand dropped him back to the couch. His second attempt met with success, and he remained standing for a moment as if he was trying to get used to the position. Link would not be surprised, considering the amount of time Sello probably spent sprawled across whatever mostly-horizontal surface he could find. Sello walked with strange gait over to the engine. He opened up a large door in front of the engine, a door large enough to fit a Goron. Although, to say it was a door denied it depth; what Sello had opened was the cube composing the foremost section of the engine. He stepped around it and into the engine itself. Link and Lawrence traded looks before both of them moved aside to find Sello. The dim light filtering in through the door above only offered a view of a vaguely orange-colored, humanoid mass bumbling around the inside. When he stepped back outside, the label-less bottle appeared a little emptier. He walked to the closest coal bin and poured the rest of his bottle on top of it. Then he threw the bottle toward one of the water tanks (missing it), grabbed a shovel, and started hurling piles of coal into the engine, causing a number of pieces to fly in different directions on the outside as well.

"Don' mind sayin' I ain' been lookin' forward t' this par'," Lawrence told Link in a low voice.

"Well, if it doesn't work," Link told him, "all we have to do is slowly let Loft Steam out and _hope_ we find somewhere soft to land."

"Can' cater t' _me_, Cap'n. I 'eard wha' 'e did t' tha' boa' in 'Ovela."

Sello finished making a mess, having relieved the large bin of a third of its reserve. He jammed the shovel into the top of the bin and returned to the door, removing a tool from his belt. There were a couple of metal scrapes before the interior suddenly lit with flame, causing Sello to jump backwards. "Bad fire!" he shouted in an indignant tone. Then he stepped out and shoved the door closed.

"The man's gonna kill us," Lawrence said in a flat tone. Link withheld his impulse to agree, and the effort caused him to smile instead.

Sello manipulated what appeared to be a few latches over the opening on the side of the door before moving to a series of levers on that same side of the engine. First, he jumped up and grabbed the highest lever on the side of the box he had just closed. He pulled it down as far as it would go and then back, resulting in a heavy bang sounding off the inside of the engine. Then he reached for another lever on a dedicated panel just in front of him and jerked back on it hard. From his position on the opposite side of the room, Link saw a panel flop open on top of the engine for a moment before slamming closed again.

_Chun. Chun. Chun. Chun. Chun chun chun chun chun…_ A heavy throb which reminded Link of the Seventeen's locomotive sounded from behind Sello's engine. The deck was also vibrating beneath his feet in time with the engine. Other than the noise and shaking, there was no indication of whether the engine was working or not. Sello did not have any gauges to look at, only levers that did not even have labels. Not that Sello could probably concentrate long enough to make some in the first place.

"_Now_ wha'?" Lawrence asked over the noise.

"Hope the hull can take it," Link replied. "Get the rest of the engine room crew together and tell them what you've seen Sello doing. It's not likely we'll need to constantly start and stop this engine, but it wouldn't hurt to make sure everyone knows how to do it."

"Yeah, bu' I see a problem with tha'," Lawrence said. "'Ow do we know _'e_ knew wha' 'e was doin'?"

"He _built_ it," Link said, unable to hold back a grin. "It may be weird, but it works. Now we just need to make sure we can _control_ it."

"If ya say so," Lawrence said. Link turned to watch him stride to the door behind the nearer ladder.

Then Link climbed up the ladder back to the walkway. It occurred to him that the room was a little brighter as he looked back across the engine to examine it. That was when he noticed a string of electric lights hanging from the deckhead, now completely visible. Link was intrigued; this was the first he knew of an airship having a steam-powered generator onboard. His first thought as to how Sello pulled that off was immediately dismissed by the reminder of the elaborate devices that had once inhabited Sello's volcano.

He stepped through the door to the galley and closed it behind him. When he turned back around, he realized that part of the deck crew was loitering in the galley.

This realization was punctuated by Leynne asking, "What the hell's that noise? Is that the engine?"

"Yeah," Link replied. He gave a shrug. "Would you expect Sello to do anything subtle?"

Leynne chuckled in response. "No, I suppose not. I hope you don't mind, but I decided that half of us could use a break to get something to eat." He lifted his ration pack to help illustrate his intentions.

"No, that's fine," Link said. "Who's up on deck?"

"Uuuh…" Leynne droned, glancing at the other occupants. "I-I'm afraid I haven't had the time to leahn all the Gelto's names."

"I don't suppose you intend to assign all the Gelto to a single shift," Cale spoke up.

Link did not answer right away as he tried to determine who was not present. Cale and Leynne were both here, which meant that Gold was the only Hylian up on deck. As for the Gelto, he recognized Lwamm and Biluf, so Dubbl, Twali, and Layna were also up there. "I'm not sure yet," Link admitted. "We have… six, seven, ei—eight deck crew. I'd divide it into four airmen to one of two shifts, but it would mean that a Gelto or two won't have a translator on duty with them. And I can't assign all the non-Hylian-speaking Gelto to one shift; I'd have no way to translate my orders."

"Ah we suah none of the otheh Gelto speak Hylian?" Cale asked.

Link looked at Lwamm and Biluf. Lwamm looked up from examining a piece of jerky to meet his gaze. "Biluf," she said, nudging her companion with an elbow. "'Inbilunak Kyabtin nayx coy'ayton wubunik."

Bilun's response was a wide-eyed look at Link. "'Itab Giltiyn Dubbl than nadlwazhidak," she told Lwamm. "'Inmatikak Xili'anay 'anik max?"

"Na'," Lwamm said.

They both stared at Link, waiting for him to say something. However, after a moment, Link just turned back to Cale and said, "Yeah, I don't think so. Not these two."

"This would be easieh if we had anotheh Gelto on boahd who could speak Hylian," Leynne said. "But maybe Dubbl and I can come up with an altehnative. Maybe a few hand signs."

Link nodded. "Yeah, that would work. In the Sky Lines, it's easier to use hand signs, especially when no one's close enough to talk to."

"We'll try to wohk something out lateh."

"How else do you plan to divide the crew?" Cale asked.

"Well," Link said, "each shift should have a pilot and a lookout. Leynne, you'll be one of them, of course. And I think Gold should be on the other shift."

"Agreed," Leynne said.

"Each shift should also have a pair of handymen, so to speak," Link said. "I'm not sure if the Gelto would be good candidates… but I think I have it. Dubbl will be on the shift with Gold and two of the Gelto; one of _them_ will be lookout. Cale, you can be the lookout on Leynne's shift, and the remaining Gelto will see to the deck."

"Wheah's the lookout's station?" Cale asked.

"We've got a crow's nest, right?" Link asked.

Leynne put on a nervous look. "Uh… actually, I hadn't considehed the idea," he admitted. "I believed that, since the pilot's station was at the front of the ship, a crow's next was pointless."

"Oh, you did, huh?" Link said. He took a moment to think. "Okay… okay, I think we can work something out. The poop deck is high enough on the ship, so we could simply post the lookout there. But would it be possible to put together a crow's nest in the near future?"

Leynne shook his head. "I can't be suh. I don't think theh's a place to build one at the top of any masts; the construction might intehfeh with the operation of the mast it's attached to."

"Okay, that's fine," Link said. "Maybe something to think about later on."

…

Link spent the afternoon looking through the ship some more before returning to the weather deck. His next stop was the forecastle so he could look at the helm. And what a helm it was. Leynne had decided to mount a pair of wheels to a single post, making it possible for two people to steer the ship in a situation where a tight turn might be needed. He had also set up a panel against the rail dividing the forecastle from an unpleasant drop to the weather deck. The panel bore controls for the engine, all of them labeled levers indicating "propeller" (which he took to refer to the act of engaging the propeller to the engine), throttle control, and ballast control. But, as Link had suspected, Leynne had not put in a warning system for the ballast like what the _Island Sonata_ had had. It was not a comforting sign, and he decided to address the situation the next opportunity he could.

Leynne had replaced Gold at the helm. Link turned and asked him, "How does it handle?"

"Really, it's hahd to say," Leynne replied.

"Yeah, I know. We need to be moving in the _first_ place. So let's get moving."

Leynne turned to look at the panel. "We have a wind from the right side now. Not too strong, though."

"Are we still facing north?"

At this, Leynne looked at the post in between the wheels, where he had mounted a compass. "Northwest a bit, actually."

"Okay then," Link said. "Engage the engine. Let's see what she's got."

"Got it." Leynne turned back to the panel and placed one hand on the propeller control while his other hand remained on the wheel. He squeezed the handle and shoved the lever forward. Link watched the lever fight him a moment, rattling his hand before it finally settled into position. Leynne then eased the throttle control in the same direction. "I hope I connected all of this right," he commented to Link. "I'd hate to think I couldn't tell which paht of Sello's engine was the throttle control foh the propelleh."

"I don't think anyone would fault you for that," Link replied.

"If I did this right, the wind indicatoh should falsely indicate wind coming from ahead."

Link nodded, impressed with Leynne's device. "How are you getting the wind information?"

"When the _Symphony_ fihst lifted from the ground, I got undehneath and put in a simple wind vane. I felt it would be unaffected by the aihship's geometry down theh."

"You're right, it probably won't."

"The direction the vane points is reflected in this gauge." Leynne pointed out the gauge by tapping a finger on the glass cover. He glanced forward for a moment, and then back at the gauge. "Come on…"

Link watched the gauge's needle pointing toward the port side, finding that the direction corresponded to the ship's directions as they were looking back at the ship from the forecastle. The needle seemed a little unsure at first until it began moving toward the top. He felt a breeze off the bow. Then the breeze grew into a considerable wind, causing Link to check that his hat was snug. When he looked back, he saw that the needle was pointing at the stern, meaning that the wind was coming off the bow.

"It works," Link told him.

Leynne looked back at the gauge. "That it does," he agreed.

"Congratulations, Leynne."

Leynne gave a single, silent laugh. "What couhse then?"

"Due north," Link said. "And go ahead and keep us at this speed for now. We need to avoid the storm, but we don't want to overshoot Autumn Island."

Leynne glanced up at the sky above. "Oh, right," he mumbled. "Of couhse."

"You've shown Gold the controls, right?"

"Yes, I believe he has the gist of it."

"Good. I'll finish drawing up the shift rotation, and then I'll have him relieve you in about… five hours? Will that be all right?"

Leynne nodded. "Yeah, I think I can do that."

"Okay. Carry on, then." Link then stepped down from the forecastle and crossed the deck. He looked up at Cale standing on the poop deck, arms crossed and resting on the rail in front of him. He took a moment to think about his own experiences with having to stand watch in a crow's nest and decided that Cale's predisposition toward seasickness might not be served well being at the highest point of the vessel. He grinned and stepped up to the door leading into the aftcastle.

Link was not sure what he was expecting when he opened the door. So he was a little surprised when he found himself in the captain's cabin of the _Horizon's Eye_ once again. He found a large bed on the right side, set within an alcove as if to hide it. At the foot of the bed was a metal footlocker, and an upright wardrobe took up the remaining third of the port bulkhead. At the center of the room was a large table with a number of wide, thin drawers on the side facing port. Link stepped forward and found that the surface of the table was made of cork. Between the table and the window sat a desk probably much larger than Link required. It was definitely larger than the one he had used on the _Island Sonata_, with intricate knot designs on the front and a rich, lustrous finish to its entire surface. He had been supplied with a pen set and a selection of ink wells, all of them anchored to the desk with brass plates. The chair behind it had a high back, carved with what looked like tree roots around the edge of a velvet cushion. Next, he stepped over to the closet on the left side and opened the door to find a private toilet lit by a single electric light. He located a brass switch on the outside of the door and used it to turn off the light. Outside the toilet, against the wall they shared, was a short wine rack. As Link stepped closer to it, he found that it had been designed to hold bottles in place no matter what. One bottle occupied the far-right slot on top. Link took this bottle out and examined the card dangling from the neck.

—Link,

—I don't know if this is appropriate for the first commander of an airship, but it was the best I could find. It's twenty-year-old wine from a vineyard outside of Aboda Village.

—Leynne

Link smiled to himself. Technically, he probably should not be drinking wine at his age, but he decided to save it for a special occasion. He would have to make sure that Sello did not find out about it.

"What's that?" Link glanced back at the door as Irleen fluttered in.

"A bottle of wine from Leynne," he replied. He replaced the bottle and stepped over to the desk. "Where've you been?"

"Just looking around below," she said as she settled down on the desk. "I came up on deck, and the wind started blowing me back this direction. I've never had such a problem with flying before, but I'm guessing that I should stick with you if I wanna go out on deck."

"That bad, huh?"

"Yeah." She moved over to the desk pad. "Hey, what's this?"

"What?" Link asked.

"There's something under this pad."

Link leaned over and found the corner of a piece of paper protruding from under the desk pad. He pulled it out and found that it was a note.

"'—Surprise under your bed.' Huh?" Link glanced at the bed. That was when he noticed that the pillows had been laid against the wall.

Set there to cover up a large lump under the sheets.

"What is it?" Irleen asked as she fluttered closer.

"I'm not sure," Link answered, stepping closer as well. He reached forward and pulled one of the pillows away. The blanket behind it fell away on its own.

"Good mohning, Captain."

"Yikes!" Link shouted, jumping backwards at the sight of Dholit's face.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note<strong>: Translations of all (or most, if I missed any) Geltoan and Sorian phrases are now available in the forum. The link can be found on my profile page.


	70. Autumn Island

Chapter 70: Autumn Island

…

~~Dholit's on board.

~~So far, the Island Symphony's rise has gone smoothly. Leynne has confirmed that all of the controls connected between the helm and the engine work, although he comments that some of the connections are not the same ones he put together. He suspects Sello, but I see it as a bit of a given. Still, as long as the controls work, I'm not worried. I've just about finalized the routine, and I've assured everyone that it'll only be temporary until I can get a payroll and hire more airmen. Though, I have a feeling that this crew will be staying with me for a lot longer than just the day I predict. I hope I'm right; I'd like them to remain.

…

"Yep," Link said. "There it is."

"Wheah?" Cale asked.

Link handed him the duoscope. "Just a hair below the center of the storm. It looks like a large, dark spot." Cale put the duoscope to his eyes and looked up at the Undying Storm. Evening was slowly approaching, painting the massive cloud the same colors he had last seen them before the _Island Sonata_ passed into them: purple vying for black with flashes of lightning for personality. Link could barely believe that the _Island Symphony_ had risen so fast, especially considering her size. They had only introduced heat into the ballast tanks half an hour ago when Link felt it necessary. Now, Link was staring up at the place where he had lost his first vessel. The _Island Symphony_ had a bit of time before ascending to the appropriate level to enter the nearest Sky Line, but this vantage provided the perfect opportunity to see where that Sky Line was.

"Oh, I think I see it now," Cale said. "It's… it's just a _hole_. Ah you suah that's a _Sky Line_?"

"Yeah," Link told him. "When Rireen used that… baton… thing, it opened up the storm around the Sky Line. I thought it might've been gone by now, but… well, _there_ it is." He reached into the neck of his tunic and pulled out his compass. After pointing it north, he glanced back up and squinted at the sky. The distance made seeing the nearly-invisible Sky Line difficult, but he could see the intense wind shimmering as a narrow crack in the darkening ribbon of sky above. "Just a little more…"

Cale removed the duoscope from his face and glanced at Link before turning up to see what he was looking at. Then he asked, "Do you get to go home often? I mean… befoah…"

Link gave Cale a grin, watching him struggle to find a tactful way of mentioning the crash. "Well," Link said, "the thing about sailing is… you know, you kinda start thinking of the _ship_ as your home. Other than the _Grand Sails_, I've only ever lived in the barracks of Skyrider Port." His grin became wider. "But I can't wait to see the look on Captain Alfonzo's face when I find him. I'm sure Line's told him I'm dead."

"Youh old captain, cohrect?"

"Yeah."

Cale nodded. "I would imagine it _would_ be quite a shock."

Link nodded and indicated the storm with one hand. "Carry on."

"Right," Cale replied, turning back to the storm and putting the duoscope back to his face.

Link rounded the large opening in the deck, glancing down into it as he moved toward the bow. He had not known that Rosaline's cutter had been stowed in the poop cabin, being unable to see it until he stood on the deck above. She must have thought he could use it since he _had_ mentioned that even a small boat like it could be fitted with a ballast system and make a decent air vessel of itself. That would require time and money, something Link might arrange as soon as the _Island Symphony_ could be put to work.

Link stepped down to the quarter deck, and then the weather deck. He gave Dholit, Layna, and Biluf a nod as he walked past them. Dholit blew a kiss in response, provoking a quick laugh from Biluf and a confused look from Layna. Then he stepped up onto the forecastle. He would have to get used to calling it the bridge, especially since it was probably expected of him.

"Ah we theh yet?" Leynne asked after checking over his shoulder.

"Not much longer," Link said. "Go ahead and slow the engine. We're past the storm."

"How much should I slow?"

Link glanced at the controls. "An eighth should be enough to keep us moving."

"An eighth it is," Leynne replied as he turned. He kept his left hand on the wheel while he adjusted the throttle with his right. "Nehvous?"

"Huh? About what?"

"Flying into the Sky Line."

Link gave a shrug. "A little, I guess. Nothing against you or Dubbl, but I can't help wondering how well this ship will work inside one."

"We tried to reinfohce the masts as best we could. Unfohtunately, theh was no way to tell if these will wohk since we've been on the ground this whole time." He shrugged. "To tell you the truth, I'm ratheh afraid that the mechanics undeh the deck might be wrecked by the winds. I sincehely wish that we had a means of testing this on the ground. At least, if anything went wrong, we weh able to avoid a long fall." He paused to tap on the compass. Then he glanced back at the instrument panel. "I'm going to need to speed up; the helm isn't responding well."

"Okay, go ahead and take it back up to a quarter then. Once we hit the Sky Line, that'll drive us."

"Evenin', Cap'n, Chief," came a voice from behind.

Link glanced over his shoulder. "Airman Gold," Link replied with a nod. "Don't you still have an hour left?"

"Couldn't sleep, Cap'n. Usually takes me 'bout a day tae get used tae a new schedule. I been doin' days lately, so I'm a li'l awkward. I'll get use tae it."

"You'h just in time," Leynne said. "We'h neahly to the Sky Line."

"Ought tae be a sight." Gold leaned over to look past the bulwark. "Moun'ains look nice from up 'ere."

Link stepped to the edge of the deck and looked out. Most of the distant surface was already dark, but it was definitely a different sight from what Link could remember seeing. Further north in their direction of travel, Link saw what he took to be part of the Iyuk Mountains in the Snow Realm. The setting sun had dyed them a brilliant orange, and it looked like they were glowing. They did not look as intimidating to Link as they had before, although the change in perspective probably helped; from up here, they looked little larger than lumps. He felt more powerful like this.

He looked up and squinted, trying to find the Sky Line above them. It was a little more visible, but still some distance away.

"Should we open the sails?" Gold asked.

"No," Link replied, glancing back at them. "If we fold out the sails while the engine is engaged, we'll put the ship in irons. We need to be able to move into the Sky Line; we won't be able to do that with the sails open."

"—with the sails open," Gold reasoned at the same time as Link finished his sentence. "Just a bit confusin'. Been workin' on steamships most o' me life."

"You'll get used to it. There's only so much a steam engine can do for a ship up here, especially with limited resources."

"Now that you've mentioned that," Leynne said, "I can't help considering that theh just might be a lucrative business ventuh to be had."

"'Ow so?" Gold asked.

"Well, when you consideh the limited resouhces of the sky realm in comparison to the suhface, someone could probably open up a decent trade between the mining companies on the suhface to deliveh goods to the sky."

"Aah," Gold answered with a nod. "I see what yeh mean."

"Of couhse, the one thing that makes the situation ratheh difficult would be the lack of Loft Steam on the suhface. Afteh all, the only way to retuhn from this high in the sky is to bleed the ballast, and theh's no way to recoveh Loft Steam from that."

Gold shrugged. "Go'a be more down there somewhere."

After a moment, Link realized that both of them had stopped talking while he was examining some of the rigging attached to the nearby bulwark. When he turned, he saw that Leynne had returned his focus on the helm while Gold was examining the instrument panel. The next half hour or so was spent in silence while Link waited to give the order to maneuver the ship into the Sky Line. But the half hour seemed to stretch itself hours longer.

Then, when the Sky Line was close enough for Link to see without having to squint, he turned and crossed the forecastle back to Leynne. "Slow our ascent," he ordered.

Both Leynne and Gold gave him surprised looks. "Aye, sih," Leynne said, his voice hinting sarcasm. He turned and slowly pulled back on the ballast control.

"Feel like doing something, Gold?" Link asked.

"Wouldn't bother me, Cap'n," Gold answered.

"Do you know how to open the sails?"

Gold pulled open the corner of his mouth to indicate hesitation. "I might 'ave trouble with the levers…"

"I can do it," Leynne said.

Link nodded. "Gold, on the helm. Leynne, get the girls and open the sails."

"Right," Leynne answered.

"On the 'elm," Gold repeated as he stepped into Leynne's empty spot. "Aye, sir."

"Dholit!" Leynne hollered across the deck. "Tell them we'h opening the sails!"

"Oy, Cap'n," Gold said in a low voice as Link stepped up beside him to look over the weather deck. "That third Gelto down there… ain't she the Gelto with yeh when yeh rode the _Goddess's Tides_?"

Link groaned to himself. "Yeah…"

"I didn't know she'd be onboard."

"Neither did I." Link then hollered down at the weather deck just as Leynne put a hand on one of the control levers, "Leynne, hold up a moment so we can get into position!"

"Okay!" Leynne hollered back.

Link looked up at the Sky Line. "Ease her to starboard, Airman."

"Easin' 'er tae starboard, aye, sir," Gold repeated as he slowly turned the wheel.

Link waited a few minutes. Then he reached behind Gold and pushed the ballast control. Gold glanced at him, and he said, "Leynne dropped the ballast a bit too much."

Gold nodded. "Aye, sir."

Link glanced up. "Okay, ease us back to port."

"Easin' us back tae port, aye."

"Put us back due north. Make sure you have the wheel centered so they can open the sails."

"Aye aye, Cap'n." In the silence while Gold steered the ship, Link could hear the subtle, deep whistle of the Sky Line. He glanced up again. He did not think that they were that close, but the sound was unmistakable to him. It was strange, though, and he wondered if they were actually closer than he thought. "Wheel's centered, Cap'n," Gold spoke up, interrupting his thoughts.

Link looked out across the weather deck. "Okay, Leynne!" he called, holding up a thumb.

Leynne replied with the same gesture before throwing the locking lever. Then he, Dholit, Biluf, and Layna started turning the capstan. Just as before, the fore sails opened outward until they were perpendicular to the ship's hull. The gap in between all six masts offered Link a clear view as far back as the poop deck, where Cale stood looking down into the poop cabin.

"Disengage the propeller," Link said. "Make sure you close the throttle first."

"Aye aye, sir," Gold said. He turned with one hand still on the wheel and used the other to draw back the propeller throttle. Then he tugged on the propeller control, and the lever popped as if it had broken. In fact, Gold played with the lever for a moment, believing he _had_ broken it. "Whoops…"

"That's okay," Link said. "Just pull it down and lock it."

Gold did as he was told, checking that the lever was staying in place after releasing the locking grip. "Whup," he uttered when Leynne unlocked the steering.

The howl of the Sky Line was louder, and Link looked up to find that the _Island Symphony_ was close enough for him to see blue particles glittering in the wind. Leynne, walking up onto the forecastle behind him, spoke up and asked, "Does it always sound like that?"

"As long as I can remember," Link said. "No one really knows why, but the Sky Line is just a belt of powerful wind that always exists right where we find them. It's a good thing, too. We've come to rely on them quite a bit."

"Well… should we brace ouhselves?" Leynne asked.

"Yeah," Link said. "Grab something if you can. And pray it doesn't send you to the deck. Airman Gold, give it some more ballast and take us all the way in."

"Aye aye," Gold said as he turned around again and grabbed the ballast control. He braced his feet at the bases of the wheel and instrument panel before pushing up on the ballast control. Leynne was holding onto the railing behind him, but Link remained where he was, widening his stance so that he could better take the new ship's inevitable bucking once its sails hit the Sky Line. Then, as a last thought, he swiped his hat from his head. There was a reason airship captains did not wear hats.

For the longest moment, nothing seemed to happen.

Then the hull jerked underneath their feet as the full force of the Sky Lines struck the sails. Leynne lost his footing, but his grip on the railing stopped him from crumbling onto the deck. To Link, it felt like the same kind of hit the _Grand Sails_ would take when entering a Sky Line, but he was one month out-of-practice, and he staggered a bit. The hull lurched again as it completely merged into the Sky Line, and Leynne nearly fell backwards over the railing. Link immediately looked backward, and he saw that all six masts were still erect. Leynne looked backward as well.

Then he turned to Link and said, "Well, they'h still standing."

Link nodded and grinned. "Yeah. It looks like you guys did it right."

"I can live with it," Gold said.

"I doubt if any of us would've lived _without_ it," Leynne said.

Link nodded. "Go down below and get some sleep. You and I'll be disembarking in the morning."

Leynne nodded. "All right. Good night then." Link gave him another nod, and Leynne started down the stairs to the weather deck.

Then Link turned to Gold. "I'm going to get a bit of sleep myself. Autumn Island may only be an hour or so out, so you should see lights out there around then. Exit the Sky Line the same way we got in."

"Just lower the ballast?" Gold asked.

"Right. And if doing that doesn't seem to wake me up, have one of the Gelto come wake me. I'll give you directions to the docks from there."

"Aye aye, Cap'n."

…

Link could not sleep. Somehow, his mind was buzzing with thoughts of what he was going to say to Governor Lore. Not being familiar with her left him thinking of many different scenarios, a few of which ended with him accused of treason and hung. When the _Island Symphony_ dropped out of the Sky Line an hour later, he followed the lanterns he had told Dholit and the other Gelto to set up before the night shift crew woke up. The light of Autumn Island looked like an illusion on the horizon, although that might have been Link simply looking through the night sky with tired eyes. He was familiar enough with Autumn Island to remember that the docks would be on the east side, where the main routes throughout the kingdom were easily accessible. He directed Gold into the dock and told him to turn the sails away from the island so that the ship would fall into irons. This made it easy for Link to instruct Dubbl how to set up a mooring line and toss it to the dockers. The ship was tied up, and the dockers provided a gangplank. Link then instructed Dubbl to tell Twali to remain at her post. For the rest of the crew, he told them to keep an eye out for anyone boarding the ship without permission and to wake him if any problems arose.

Link still had problems sleeping. A couple of times, he thought he had fallen asleep because he thought he heard voices of people who could not possibly be on his ship, although he could not identify the voices, real or not. But time wore on, and, without a pocketwatch, Link could only guess how long he was awake. Twice, he thought about going on-deck and walking around to tire himself out. Both times, he decided against it, mostly because he thought he would drop asleep on the deck if he was successful.

Morning came, announcing itself through the windows. Link groaned to life and flopped over onto his back.

"Good morning, Link," Irleen said as she hovered over her chosen sleeping place, the cork surface of the table.

"G'morning," Link slurred back. He rolled and sat up on the edge of the bed. Then he tried to rub the sleep out of his eyes.

"Are you all right?"

"I had a hard time getting sleep." He stood up and stretched. "I'll be fine. You wanna come into town?"

"Sure," she said, fluttering over to him. She watched as he pulled his tunic over his head. After he put on his belt and boots, he grabbed his hat off the table and stepped to the door. "Wait, you're not taking your sword or anything?"

"No," Link replied as he put his hat on. "I'm not worried. Besides, it feels nice to not have so much weight on me. Oh." He stepped back to the footlocker and grabbed his wallet. "Let's go," he said after pocketing it.

It was still early enough in the morning that the sun was below the bulwark, casting shadow over the deck but lighting the sky a dull blue. Link strode forward and glanced out at Autumn Island. The dock area only had a few ships, and orange-clad crewmen from the Zephyr Sails company mingled with the dockers, most of them young men wearing blue uniforms. The buildings nearer to the dock were wide, allowing for storage of supplies that airships regularly needed. Past those, the buildings grew slender and tall, and Link knew a number of those would be apartments or business offices. The streets were naturally narrow so that room could be made for more buildings. Link had forgotten how cluttered an island can be, so he found himself surprised by the closeness of these buildings. Then, in the next moment, he felt a wave of nostalgia and relief, his mind reminding him that he was effectively home with the sight of this disparity between surface and sky architecture functioning as ultimate proof. His mood lightened, his drowsiness left behind as he put on a strong grin.

It felt good to be home.

"Good mo'ning, Kyabtin," Dubbl, standing by one of the rear capstans, greeted him.

"Good morning, Dubbl," Link replied. "How was your watch?"

"Quiet," Dubbl said, although her tone indicated disappointment with the situation. "No tlouble."

"Better luck next time," Irleen said.

"Maybe," Dubbl responded.

"Is Leynne up yet?" Link asked.

"Right heh, Link." Link looked amidships and saw Leynne approaching from the port hatch. Leynne had switched to a black, long-sleeve shirt, a leather waistcoat with a great number of pockets, and a new-looking pair of white slacks. His hair, however, looked to have been messed up by the Sky Line, part of it standing up in the back.

"Wow, Leynne," Irleen said. "You could use a brush or something."

"I'm two weeks without a decent haihcut," Leynne said. "I trust theh's a bahbeh's shop neahby?"

Link shrugged. "Sorry, Leynne, I really don't know. The _Grand Sails_ never spent a lot of time here."

"That's fine," Leynne replied with a dismissive wave. "I'll find time foh it lateh. What's on the itinerary?"

"You and I'll go into town and find the Skyriders' branch office. See what we need to do to get a payroll. We might have to go to Skyrider Port, and, if we do, I wanna stop by Castle Island first so I can tell Governor Lore what happened in the storm last month."

"Link?" Irleen asked. "What about getting me home?"

"We might have to wait a bit," Link said. "If the Skyriders are still guarding the Sky Line to Forelight Island, it'd be better to make sure they know we're one of them. Otherwise, we'd probably risk being shot out of the sky." He hesitated before adding, "Again."

"Okay," she said, satisfied with the answer. "So what are we waiting for?"

Link indicated the gangplank. "Let's get going. Dubbl, you have the ship."

"Ay'a, Kyabtin!" Dubbl called after him.

Link felt refreshed when he finally stepped foot on the island. And, understandably, Leynne had a few questions about the nearby buildings, most of which aided in Link's own memory of things around him. Although, Link had to admit that something felt a little odd about the island. He thought the sky around them was strange, but he dismissed it as believing that his lack of familiarity with the island itself was the cause. He even had to consult a directory before leaving the docks since he had no idea where the branch office had been set up. As they walked, Link was also aware that people were staring at him. It took him some time (in silence, since he had to spend a good portion of the time walking to explain things to Leynne) to rationalize that not only was he dressed as a Skyrider captain, but he was also wearing a hat and walking in the company of what people could only describe as a fairy. The fact that Leynne looked clean as well as nothing like a Skyrider airman was probably also drawing attention.

They found a building which served as a supply store for Skyrider ships as well as housed the branch office on the second floor. They did not make it past the first floor.

"—'Closed temporarily'?" Leynne read from the sign in the door. "Closed foh what?"

"I don't know," Link replied, trying to peek through the boards covering broken windows. "I can't see anything inside."

"Would these places have any reason to close?" Irleen asked.

"It'd be pretty difficult," Link said. "Skyrider ships can show up at any port at any time. It'd hurt business if there wasn't a branch office available to put requisitions through."

"Pehhaps the Skyridehs don't come to this island anymoh," Leynne suggested.

"Maybe, but you'd think there'd be an explanation why," Link said, stepping back so he could glance up at the second-floor windows. But he saw that those had been covered by wooden planks from the inside. "Weird."

"So what now?" Irleen asked.

Link shrugged. "I guess we head for Skyrider Port."

"But you'll still be going to Castle Island fihst, right?" Leynne asked.

"Yeah," Link said. "First, we'll stop by the dockmaster's office. I need to log the _Symphony_ being here. It'd normally be the second-in-command's job, but…"

"You haven't detehmined a second yet," Leynne finished. "Do you have anyone in mind?"

"Well," Link said as he gestured for them to follow along. He started back down the road toward the docks. "Part of the reason that I brought you along was that I was hoping _you_'d like the job, Leynne."

"Why me?"

"Of all the crew onboard, I've known you, Irleen, and Cale the longest. But Irleen can't communicate with people without her translating gem."

"Like anyone would take orders from me anyway," Irleen remarked as she fluttered between them so she could fly ahead a little.

"Cale, well…" Link continued, giving a side-nod with his hesitant words. "I don't think Cale would do too well. He… uuuh…"

"He screams like a girl," Irleen finished.

"He does?" Link asked her.

"Who else do you think screams when he's around?"

Link frowned at her. "I always thought that was _you_."

"Link, if I had the lungs to scream like that, I probably wouldn't be the size of a rupee."

"Right." Link paused to scratch his head under his hat. "Anyway, I'd like you to take it. It's not that difficult. Whenever I'm not around, you're in charge, naturally. And, when we dock, you visit the dockmaster's office so you can fill out the log for us and make contact with the branch office for supplies. I used to do it when the seconds-in-command on the _Grand Sails_ were busy with other things."

"You?" Leynne asked.

"I was the mostly likely out of the crew to not disappear somewhere else. So. Want the job?"

Leynne scrunched his face as he thought. Then he said, "I can do it. But the moment you find someone else, put _them_ in chahge. Because I'm suh I won't like the job afteh a while."

Link nodded. "Deal."

The dockmaster's office was on the way back to the ship, and they stepped in to find the dockmaster's assistant sleeping at the reception desk. So Link took up the pen sitting nearby and filled out a line in the log book.

"Hmmm," Leynne said, "looks simple enough." Then he frowned when Link started blowing on the page. "What ah you doing?"

"Drying the ink," Link said between breaths. He lifted the page and started shaking it. "I wanna check the log. If Line was here, he might've left something."

"You can do that?" Leynne asked.

"Yeah," Link replied as he started turning back pages. "The log is always available in case a ship needs to clarify its records or something. Let's see, the _Horizon's Eye_ was probably here about two weeks after the _Sonata_ went down…" He took a few minutes to examine about ten pages. "Here it is. '—_Island Sonata_, Captain Link, Noon'… And that's all."

"No problems to repoht?" Leynne asked.

"Like 'Demon airship living in a storm'?" Irleen commented.

"He probably couldn't do anything obvious," Link said as he turned the book back to the current date's page. "But if he managed to get word out, the best place would've been back at Castle Island or Skyrider Port."

"I'm assuming that the appropriate authorities would be located on Castle Island," Leynne said.

"Well, let's go to Castle Island, then," Irleen said. "I mean, how many times have you mentioned it today?"

"What, do I keep saying it?" Link asked.

"You've mentioned it quite a few times this mohning alone," Leynne said. "It makes me think we should probably go."

"If you know how to get there," Irleen added. "No map, remember?"

"No, I think I know how to get there," Link said as he walked to the door. "There's a Sky Line not far from here which should take us…" He paused as he tried to remember directions, having remembered that compasses in the sky were backwards. "… East. We'll have to sail out a bit, but I believe that there should be a pair of Sky Lines east of here. One will take us right to the island."

"Just the one Sky Line?" Leynne asked as they stepped outside.

Link nodded. "Some Sky Lines come in pairs but go opposite directions. Amazingly convenient as long as they stay together."

"Convenient, indeed," Leynne said.


	71. Did I Just Get Slapped?

Chapter 71: Did I Just Get Slapped?

…

~~Day 38 (Command, Day 1)

~~So far, the crew has responded well to life on the Island Symphony. Most of them have adapted to the schedule, although Airman Harley has voiced concerns about having to work with a half-intelligible retard and a Goron that makes a lot more sense in comparison. I told him that if he ever needs help, he can always ask Helo or Lawrence.

~~I don't know why, but I keep having the impression that something wasn't right about the sky around Autumn Island. I've maybe only ever been there a dozen times or so, so I think that I'm just a little leery of it. Once we make it to Castle Island, being back on familiar terrain will get rid of this stupid feeling.

~~We passed Turtle Island just a few minutes ago. Just like Captain Gale's log says, there are airships guarding the Sky Lines. Due to the distance, I couldn't quite tell if they were Skyriders, but they definitely looked armed. If we're lucky, the branch office on Castle Island might give us permission to make a quick run through the storm. If not, well, it means that it'll take a little longer to get Irleen home. I don't like the idea, but whatever it takes to get her there.

…

A late breakfast and a few hours later, the _Island Symphony_ was sailing around the eastern edge of Castle Island, trying to avoid the large amount of traffic floating above the central town. Link had never seen such a gathering before, and he wondered if they were grouped for a particular reason. Then Link noticed a number of tall structures attached to the massive walls of Hyrule Castle. These ships, each bearing a large, black flag were the ships' banners should be, were docked at these structures, and Link, with the assistance of the duoscope Cale had been borrowing from Leynne, saw that each of these structures were hauling crates or some other goods up through these bare-wooden towers by a simple elevator in the middle of each tower.

Link concluded that these were the Skyrider vessels that the royal family had been arming, his logic based on Captain Gale's logbook. Two barques, two barquentines, a schooner, and three cutters… and each of them sporting cannons on their weather decks. The barques and barquentines, he could see being used for actual combat, but he figured that the other vessels were probably transporting goods. If they _were_ Skyrider vessels, Link had no means of identifying them. As an airman, Link could easily recognize a line of signal flags a ship was flying; it was his first time seeing a single, black flag being used, especially as a replacement for a ship's banner. The idea caused Link to glance back at the flagpole mounted to the deck just in front of the transom. The _Island Symphony_'s banner fluttered in the wind created by the ship running on its engine. He wondered if he would have to switch the banner out once he made contact with the company.

"What ah those, Link?" Cale asked, pointing while holding the duoscope to his face with one hand.

Link looked back toward the castle. "Those are junks," he said. "They're smaller ships most ports used for ferrying cargo that would be hard to transport. Things like large furniture, lumber, iron beams… they're pretty light, so islands that use them for a lot of heavy moving have docks set up on the land itself in case the loads are too heavy for their ballast systems."

"Construction?" Cale asked.

Link shrugged. "Sometimes. Some of these junks have cranes attached to them for that, but not many people use metal for buildings."

Cale nodded his understanding. "Do they operate foh a company like the lahgeh vessels?"

"Some of them do. I think a bunch of the ones operating here on Castle Island are owned by the Royal Family. The rest tend to be owned by the local governors' or mayors' offices, depending on the island. The Skyrider company owns all of the junks that operate on Skyrider Port." Link noticed that the ship was descending and turned toward the bow. "Carry on."

"Okay," Cale replied as Link walked away.

Link stepped across the quarter deck and pulled his hat out, having carried it onto the deck by tucking it under his belt in the back. He had to pause at the top of the steps as he put it on, and then he descended to the weather deck as the ship pulled close to one of the docks. Dubbl and Layna were standing at the port bulwark, both waiting to toss mooring lines to the dockers. Link nearly questioned why Dubbl was still on deck before he realized that she had probably stayed up to show Layna, Biluf, and Dholit how to make and throw the lines. He watched them do so, and in minutes the ship was moored. After looking up at the sails to see that Leynne had turned them to put the ship in irons (as he had instructed), he stepped to the door in the bulwark and unlatched it.

"Shall the rest of us wait heah while ouh captain exploahs the shoah?" Dholit asked as she approached Link from behind.

Link turned to her. "Yeah, I guess," Link replied. "It shouldn't take long. I'll just be dropping by Governor Lore's office (if I can find it)." He looked toward the bow as Leynne crossed the weather deck. "Leynne!"

"The dockmasteh's office, right?" Leynne asked once he was in regular speaking distance.

"Ye—one other thing," Link said. "There should be a cartographer's shop near the dockmaster's office. You have some money with you, right?"

"I should," Leynne answered with a nod. "You want me to buy a map?"

"We should only need a general map of the kingdom," Link told him. "Something which shows us most of the known islands and the Sky Lines." He turned to Dholit. "The rest of you will watch the ship. I don't mind people going onto the island and maybe… I don't know, looking around, but just make sure they stay near the ship."

"What about lunch?" Dholit asked.

"Shifts," Link replied as he heard Dubbl chatting to Biluf and Layna behind him. He glanced over his shoulder to see that she was talking about how to guide the gangplank into place. "Make sure there's at least two people on the deck keeping watch."

"Aye aye, my captain!" Dholit replied with a salute.

Link sighed and told her, "Wrong hand, Dholit."

"It is?" she asked, glancing at her hand.

"Superiors salute with the right hand; inf—… _other_… other crewmembers salute with the left."

"Got it," she said, repeating the salute with her left hand.

Link dismissed her and waved to Leynne. "C'mon. The dockmaster's on my way."

Link and Leynne had to walk to the central area of the port before Link showed Leynne both the dockmaster's office and the cartographer's shop. They parted, and Link used the last of his money to pay for a carriage to take him to the governor's office. This was mostly for convenience; Link was trying to keep his promise not to take up much time at Castle Island, and he had no idea where the governor's office was.

As it turned out, the governor's office was not far from the port, only a few streets away and off the main road between the port and the castle. Compared to the other buildings around it, it was actually quite short. Its exterior was composed of white material that Link had never seen before. The front of the building sported a wide, stage-like area with its overhanging roof supported by columns. Link passed through a pair of gates and received an acknowledging nod from a police officer walking by on his way out. He did not noticed that, just in front of the gate, the officer turned and scratched his head at the sight of a young man wearing a green tunic and matching hat. The steps up to the building numbered around twenty and were too wide for Link's short legs to take at a comfortable stride. Stepping under the shade of the overhanging roof, Link glanced down at a large, bronze relief in the ground. It was circular with the silhouette of a castle over the triangle-and-bird emblem of the Royal Family, the island's formal seal. Link was surprised to find that the building itself was larger than he had imagined.

Link found himself awed by the rich, wooden structure of the main hall. Someone had provided banners bearing a blue castle over a white field to be draped in the massive hall. Red carpets marking the paths which one was to take while navigating the building served to provide further warmth to the area. Two staircases branched out from a central staircase on the opposite side from Link, each one ending at the balcony of the second floor. There was a strong, wood smell in the air, and, for a moment, Link was taken back to Talein's house in Whittleton.

"Can I help you, sir?"

Confused, Link glanced to his left to find an elderly woman sitting at a long reception desk. "Uh, yeah," Link replied as he stepped over to the desk. "I-I'm looking for Governor Lore?"

"Do you have an appointment?" the woman asked.

"Wuh… well, no, not really," he said. "I-I received a job from her last month, and I need to speak with her about it."

The woman, causing her nose to form more wrinkles with concentration, glanced down at the desk for a moment. "Your name, sir?"

"Link. Lieu—… Sorry, _Captain_ Link."

"Captaaaaaaaain…" the woman droned as she seemed to examine something hidden behind the desk's high countertop. "Oh, yes, here you are." She tore a green sheet of paper from the desk and offered it to him. "Up the left staircase, office at the far end, sir. You'll see her name on the door. Hand this to her assistant."

"Thanks," Link said.

But he only took two steps before turning back to the receptionist. She was already ahead of him, pointing as she said, "These stairs here. End of the hall."

"Okay."

As Link made his way to Governor Lore's office, he could not help feeling a little intimidated by some of the words he was reading on the frosted glass windows of some of the doors he passed. Like "Judge" and "Government Attorney". And, on the door across from Lore's office, "Executioner". This last one caused him to gulp before opening the door to "Office of the Governor of Castle Island". Inside, the walls were covered by paintings on the left and a bookshelf on the right. A chandelier hung from the ceiling, casting electric light on an already well-lit room thanks to the window behind the only desk inside.

The young man sitting at that desk, wearing a white, long-sleeve shirt under a green, sleeveless sweater, glanced up from the book on his desk, showing Link a pair of reading glasses. He looked at Link for a moment before asking, "Can I help you, Captain?"

Link stopped himself from asking how he knew Link was a captain, realizing that he still wore the belt that bore an anchor on the buckle. That must have given him away. He crossed the room and handed the paper to the young man. "Captain Link here to see Governor Lore?" he said.

The young man took the paper and allowed his eyes to go over it. "One moment," he said as he stood up. Link's eyes followed as he opened a door to Link's left. "Ma'am?" he said to someone inside. "There's a Captain Link here to see you."

"Regarding what?" Link vaguely recognized Lore speaking, a terse, deep voice for a grown woman.

"Uh… cargo shipment last month," the assistant told her.

"Cargo ship…" Link was unsure of how to interpret her pause. "Kalvin, take a second lunch."

"Uh, yes, ma'am," the assistant, Kalvin, replied. He stepped out and told Link, "She'll be with you in a moment." Then he walked across the office and out the door.

Link heard footsteps from the other office and looked back at the door just as Governor Lore opened the door further. In contrast to how he had seen her before, she wore a formal-looking, navy blue jacket with matching slacks and a purple shirt underneath. Her red hair had been styled to frame her sharp features with just a pair of locks on either side of her face, the rest tied behind her head in a low-set ponytail. Link caught a harsh look in her hazel eyes.

He only had a split-second to think about that look before his whole world took a sharp turn. Link collapsed, knees striking the floor and his hands saving his face from doing the same. His right cheek stung and he had to take a moment to realize that he had just been smacked.

"I don't know what you did, _Captain_," Lore told him, her voice sounding venomous, "but I guarantee that your life will be a living hell from now on. It's only the reward you deserve for what you did to us all."

"Wha-what _I_ did!?" Link asked, his high tone betraying confusion and panic. "Bu-but I—"

"_None_ of this would've happened if I had just waited for the _next_ captain in line. At least _he_ would've had the guts to show up a month _earlier_!"

"Wha-I—can't I _explain_!?" Link pleaded.

"You have an excuse?"

"Well, I-I-I-I—"

"You have _no_ excuse, _Captain_! You have _no_ explanation, _no_ justification! What you've done is given every man, woman, and child in this kingdom a reason to _hate_ you!" She paused for a moment, but Link did not have a response. Instead, he gave the floor a dejected look. So she continued, "And we know _you're_ to blame. None of this would've happened before you took the princess into the Undying Storm. Now she's moody… distant… disobedient… She's taken away all of my original duties, you know! I have nothing more to do than sit and talk with my assistant! The police, matters of the island, none of them are under my control anymore! I happen to think that I'd been doing a pretty damn-good job of maintaining those! Oh, look at me, I've used the word 'damn' now…"

Link had stopped paying attention the moment she started describing the princess. Was he interpreting her words right? Was she… was she _here_!? That could not be right.

"So what did you do to her?" Lore continued. "Because I swear, if I ever—_ever_—discover that you _slept_ with her or _molested_ her? I will tear your privates off and toss them to the surface!"

He subconsciously pressed his legs together as he spoke up, one hand raised to defend himself. "Wai-wait a minute!" he pleaded. "There-there's something wrong here!"

"Of _course_ there's something wrong here!" she shouted at him. "I'm being relieved of my position, and I can't even get into the castle just to ask _why_! I'd think you'd have something to say about her appropriating your company's _ships_! So _do_ you have something to say!?"

Link got back to his feet and took a step away so he was out of slapping distance. "Are… are you saying that Princess Zelda is _here_?" he asked.

Lore's face blanked. She stepped behind her assistant's desk, opened a drawer, and produced a pair of flintlock pistols. The sound of her cocking both weapons with her thumbs made all warmth leave Link's body. "You have to the count of 'five' to get your ignorant, slimy, no-good little ass out of my office before I put a lead round through your skull," she told him in a calm voice. Link's eyes grew wide as she casually stepped around the desk with both pistols at her sides. "One."

"It-it's not wha—" Link started as he backed toward the door.

"Five." One hand went up, and the pistol in that hand discharged. The sound deafened Link, and he had no interest in realizing that she had fired the weapon into the ceiling. He stumbled out of the office and bolted down the hallway, his boots taking him to the stairs within a second. After a slow run down the stairs, he touched the floor of the main hall and zipped through the door at such a speed that the elderly woman at the reception desk barely had time to recognize him before he slammed the door aside. Link took the stairs outside two at a time, not at all worrying about tripping due to his new concern about being shot.

He was across the road from the building when he finally slid to a stop. It turned out to be a bad idea because the sudden stop caused him to stumble into a nearby alley and tackle a trash can to the ground with a surprised cry. He ignored protests from a nearby stray animal as he lay on his back, trying to piece the situation together. It sounded as if Princess Zelda might have returned on the _Horizon's Eye_. If so… his understanding of the attack on the _Cloud Moon_ was lost. Link had believed that someone from Cunimincus' crew had returned with Line and the remaining crew of the _Island Sonata_; there had been nothing to indicate that the _princess_ was onboard. Then again, there was nothing to _disprove_ the idea, either.

What was worse to him was the idea that the princess was a completely different person. Assuming that she had returned, what was this change in personality that Governor Lore was blaming on him? The princess had seemed like such a kind girl, albeit not above inflicting some sort of pain on him. His cheek throbbed with renewed energy at the memory of her slapping him in retaliation for accidentally touching her… somewhere; he could not remember where. Then again… he considered that, if she had spent time as a prisoner, the experience might have had an unpleasant effect on her. Lore had blamed the change on him, and he began to wonder if he actually _was_ responsible.

Maybe he should try seeing her. After all, it might at _least_ help his case if he made an attempt to speak to her. Besides, she might know where Line, Flower, and Leonard were. He offered a silent apology to his crew as he stood up, knowing that this would hold them at the port for longer than expected. Having decided on his next course of action, he moved back onto the road and started limping down the street (and hoping to walk the pain out of his left knee).

Now that Link was walking the streets, he noticed that there was a touch of unhappiness in the general air. He was not expecting people to be overly jovial, but most of the people he passed seemed to be a little more miserable than he remembered. The local population used to like giving some form of greeting to others walking by. Once, when Line had managed to snag his ear in a (supposed) defective mousetrap, every second person they had seen on the way to the clinic had asked them if they needed help. Another time, a kind man had helped Link carry Line back to the ship after a mishap with a street vendor had left Line unconscious from pineapple juice tainted with whiskey. But now, no one appeared to even look up. Even at Link's height, they were looking past him at the ground. His shoulders were bumped twice each, and someone sweeping the front of their store hit him in the shin with a broom without offering an apology afterwards. Riders and carriage drivers shouted more obscenities at each other than Link had ever heard in a tavern full of airmen, mostly for getting in each others' ways.

Link's knee was feeling better by the time he could see the doors to the castle. Unfortunately, there seemed to be another problem. Knights wearing full armor with helmets stood outside, and the people walking by seemed interested in keeping outside a red mark painted on the main road. Link ducked around the corner of a nearby apartment building and watched. Seven knights stood at attention with halberds beside them, shoulder to shoulder as if to form a wall in front of the door. One young woman stepped a foot on the red mark, and the closest knight lowered his halberd into a ready position. The young woman immediately jumped away, but the knight watched her for a moment before returning to his original position. The rigidity of their post convinced Link that he would not be walking through the front door.

He had to find a way to clear up whatever conceptions Governor Lore had of him, and he figured that the best way was to get into the castle and talk to Princess Zelda. Assuming she was inside; he still found himself doubting the possibility. He glanced around for a solution. There was no way for Link to climb over the outer wall. And he really did not want to try waiting for the knights to rotate out, although he imagined that they already had a system in place to make sure there was still a guard at the door. Even if he was running with his current footwear, he would not be able to tell if they would see him or not.

Then his next idea definitely came from a page in Line's book. Good timing let him see a junk flying by overhead. That would be his ticket in. But he needed to find one coming out from behind the castle wall. He could vaguely remember which directions some of them had been flying while the _Island Symphony_ was skirting the eastern edge of the island and started jogging in that direction. He took a few back alleys before coming on a street leading due east from the castle. Here, he followed one of the junks until it landed in the perfect place.

A storage yard. It seemed a little out of place on the eastern shore until Link remembered that the east side of the island outside the buildings was dedicated farmland. Most of the buildings would have vegetables and fruit stored inside. The junk, a single-masted catboat, descended to a flat area of bare rock. Mooring ropes tied it to a platform, and a three-man crew stepped off. Link dashed closer and listened as hard as he could. One man (who Link assumed owned the boat) told the other two that they had to load up their last cargo and take it as soon as possible for… some reason that was lost to Link due to Link sneezing. He watched the three cross the road toward an office. So Link ran for the junk and stepped onto the mooring platform.

The junk appeared old, and it had been hauling turnips for a while; the smell disgusted him. The weather deck had a wooden roof through which its mast protruded. Link ducked down inside and moved to a hatch near the front of the compartment. Upon opening it, he found it to be the ship's supply storage. He climbed the ladder down inside, closing the hatch behind him, and moved toward the back where the darkness and unopened crates would hide him best. He squeezed himself between the aft bulkhead and a crate of rations and sat. His eyes adjusted to the darkness, but he still had to use scant light filtering through the hull planks to see his compass. After positioning it so that it would point the way he needed, he waited.

Minutes later, he heard activity up on deck. Heavy items scraped against the deck above, and Link had to bow his head to avoid dust falling into his eyes. The boat left the ground after what felt like a long time, and Link could hear the pumping of an engine through the bulkhead next to him.

As the boat moved west (as indicated on Link's compass), Link began thinking about how ridiculous a position he found himself in. He was hitching a ride (something only ever done by vagrants) on a junk just to get into Hyrule Castle, a place which he probably should not be sneaking into even when there was not a bunch of armed guards standing in front of the door. And for what? To see Princess Zelda? He realized that it made him sound like a stalker or some love-sick dope. How she got there probably was not any of his business anyway. But once he got to thinking about it, Princess Zelda was probably the last person he knew who had seen the remainder of his crew, not to mention the one who had the Skyriders blocking access to the Undying Storm and Forelight Island. Even if it was a relatively stupid situation, she might be able to clear up a few things that had happened after the _Island Sonata_ had been shot down. Although, he admitted that it probably would have been easier to return to Skyrider Port and ask if anyone had seen Line.

He felt the junk descend some time later, so he stood and kept low to the floor as he started toward the hatch. He waited until the boat stopped moving before he climbed up the ladder. Then he slowly opened the hatch and peered out. One of the crewmen was carrying a pair of crates out from under the roof while the other hoisted a pair for himself. The smell of turnips was stronger, and Link made a face as he waited for the second one to disappear. He saw the captain's boots on the starboard side where the men were offloading, so Link crawled from his hiding space. He moved over to the port bulwark and quickly peeked over the edge. There was still some distance between him and the ground, but he hauled himself over anyway and dropped. It was not a very graceful landing, having to save himself by landing on all fours, but he quickly ducked behind a nearby hedge that had been carved into square perfection.

After checking that his cover was clear, he moved along the hedge to a corner and looked around it. Similar to those knights outside, the knights on the inside of the castle walls all wore full armor. However, their armor was polished, new, as if they had never seen a fight before. Link thought back to the knights out front and realized that their armors looked nothing alike. The outside knights looked intimidating, murderous. In here, it felt no different than looking at a policeman on the streets. No one here was wearing a green tunic like before, and he knew that he would not be blending in well. He would need to remain unseen.

He spied an open door on this side of the castle wall. After double-checking his surroundings, he zipped across the open lawn and hid behind a statue barely larger than him. He placed his hands on the statue's hips and glanced around at the door. The two crewmen from the junk were walking out, leaving the door wide open. Link huddled around the statue and watched them return to the junk.

Then he jerked his hand away from the statue's posterior when he saw Princess Zelda's face. A little taken aback, he glanced down at his hand and up at the visage of the princess of Hyrule chiseled into stone. He felt as if he had violated her and decided to take a step back so as not to touch her again. Then he dashed across the lawn once more and through the open door.

Once inside, Link ducked into a nearby stairway leading up. Lacking familiarity with the castle was going to make the process of finding the princess more difficult as well as complicate his ability to maintain stealth. After making sure the hallway in front of the door was clear, he jogged to the next door and opened it carefully. Water closet, although by far the fanciest he had ever seen before. The next door a little further down was an unoccupied room full of bunks, probably servants' quarters. The next room turned out to be the same thing, but he ducked into this one upon hearing voices approach. He gently closed the door and put his back against the nearby wall in case one of them was to enter.

Their voices were muffled, but Link thought they sounded like a pair of gossiping maids. Apparently, the princess had been a slob lately, and one of them was speculating that she still might not be fully recovered. Link wore a frown as he contemplated that statement. Did the staff not know that she had been taken prisoner? Had hers and Lore's plan worked so well that, even after disembarking at Autumn Island, she was able to smoothly return to her original position without any fuss? Line was a regular blabbermouth, always had been. Had she somehow (and for some reason) managed to suppress the rest of the _Island Sonata_'s crew?

The maids passed, and Link checked outside again. In the clear, he moved down the hallway again until he was in a familiar location: the foyer at the front of the castle, the first room he had seen when Captain Alfonzo had brought him here. Maids were attending to cleaning a number of suits of armor and busts all around the floor and up on the dais. Across from him was another hallway, so he backed up and ran full-speed across the foyer. The sudden gust of wind caught attention, but Link was far enough into the hallway that no one could see him. Here, he found a third hallway leading deeper into the castle. Seeing as the hallway he was in now was probably the same as the one he had just come from, he decided to look down this third one.

He had to admit to himself that, after a while, the castle was really kind of boring. The walls were all grey stone and mortar, and only a plant here or a painting there served to break the monotony. There was only a single door here, and Link checked it to find that it was the quarters for the Knights of Hyrule, which smelled more like an airship's berth deck more than he really wanted to admit. He decided not to enter since there were people inside and continued deeper. He was amazed how there seemed to be no one in this particular area. It would be the best place to catch him, too; it was a straight corridor that did not have any sort of hiding spots save for a single pedestal holding a dead plant.

Two more empty hallways and a staircase (since he did not seem to be having luck with the first floor) later, Link was lost. At least the second floor looked nicer, with red-painted walls and gilt molding which added a richer effect to the castle. There were alcoves to keep exotic plants and decorative suits of armor out of people's paths. Link had to duck behind one of these when the telltale _clank clank_ of an armor-wearing knight caught his attention. The pair of knights walked by with a duty-bound stride, and Link followed at a distance, virtually silent on the carpeted floor. They turned down one hallway, so Link took the opposite direction and ducked into a different hallway so that they could not see him if they happened to turn around.

Then a single glance caused Link's breath to cease for a moment. A dress of pastel pink and violet, blond hair crowned by a gold circlet, and height no taller than him. There could not be any mistake. Link jogged up to her so his boots would not startle her with their speed. When he was close enough, he spoke up.

"Princess Zelda."

The princess's form froze for a moment before turning around to see Link standing behind her. No doubt about it, Link recognized her face as if he had only seen her yesterday.

But she stared at him with a perplexed expression. She glanced up and down at him. Then she asked a question Link had not been expecting.

"Who are you?"

Link's face changed from cheerful to dumbfounded.


	72. Where Legends Twist

Chapter 72: Where Legends Twist

…

"I asked you a question. Who are you?"

Link gave his head a small shake, now understanding that the princess actually did not seem to know who he was. It was actually a little insulting, especially since he was supposed to be the _cause_ of her attitude change. Trying his best to be polite, he replied, "You… don't remember me? I-I'm _Link_."

She glanced down at Link's clothes again. "Are you an apprentice or something?" she asked. "I thought only squires wore those clothes."

"N-no," Link replied, surprised that she did not know why he was wearing his tunic. "You _gave_ me this tunic, Your Highness. Remember?"

She frowned and cast her eyes to one side. It was a difficult look, and Link could not quite interpret it. Then she raised an eyebrow and addressed him, "I give out so many tunics that I sometimes forget names and faces. You said your name was Link?"

He nodded. "Yes, Your Highness."

"What is your station then?" she asked. "If you are not a squire, for what reason could you possibly be wearing that tunic?"

His conversation with the princess was only aiding in furthering his confusion. Of all people, he expected the _princess_ to know better than him what the tunic symbolized. Still, he watched his tone as he replied, "I'm a ship commander, Your Highness. I work for the Skyrider Company."

The princess glared at him. "Then you are out-of-uniform, Captain."

Link blinked. "I-I am?"

"And ill-informed. The Skyrider Company was conscripted to form my Royal Navy. Your traditions were to be discontinued."

"Oh. I-I'm sorry, Your Highness. I-I've been a… a little out-of-touch for the past month."

She nodded. "Yes, it would appear so, Captain."

That was the second time she had said it. "Captain". Link recalled that she preferred to call him "Skipper" or "Link" in casual conversation, maybe only using his title if others happened to be nearby. And the way she said it now, it made her sound a little contemptuous of him. How could _that_ be if she did not even _know_ him?

So he decided to try a change of topic. "I-I was… I wanted to speak to—"

"What's your vessel?" she asked.

"My-my vessel?" Here, Link paused for a second while he thought of an answer. While he was technically in command of the _Island Symphony_ now, he felt that giving the name of his old vessel might help her recognize him. So he answered, "The _Island Sonata_."

She frowned. "The _Island Sonata_? That does not sound like one of the conscripted vessels. Yet you maintain that you work for the Skyriders?"

That settled it; something was wrong with her. She did not recognize him, nor did she respond to the name _Island Sonata_ in any way. Granted, they only knew each other for a short time before leaving Forelight Island, he expected that _something_ about him would cause her to acknowledge who he was. Was she doing it on purpose? Or did she really not remember?

He decided that he would push the matter a little more. Even if she did not recognize _him_, he knew someone who should not be so forgettable. "Your Highness," he said. "What happened to Airman Line?"

There! For a moment, Link thought he could see the glint of a memory in her expression. He _knew_ Line would have left an impression; between him and Line, people were always likely to recognize Line's face a second time. Often it was not for very good reasons since Line had a habit of being such a pest.

Still, it was only a flash, and the princess seemed intent on maintaining the rouse by replying, "Airman who? Line? I find that I do not recognize this individual."

"He was a member of my crew," Link said. "We escorted you into the Undying Storm so that you could meet the Sorians."

The princess's left eye winced, and Link thought he saw anger spread over her face for a brief moment. What was she reacting to? "You… have me mistaken for someone else, Captain," she answered in a calm, collected tone to match the front she had put on. "You must have me mistaken. How long ago would this… voyage… have taken place?"

"A little over a month, Your Highness."

"Then you are _indeed_ mistaken. A month ago, I was horribly ill and unable to make any such voyage, especially to such a _dangerous_ location as the Storm of Purgatory."

Storm of Purgatory? Link knew that was the _Sorian_ name for the Undying Storm. But how did the _princess_ know it? And why would she answer with _that_ name instead of the name that the Hylians had been using for _decades_? He did not dismiss the idea that Captain Koroul might have spoken to her about the storm, but it was weird to call it something she had only heard maybe once or twice.

Horribly ill… Link recalled that it was the excuse that Lore was using while she attended to matters in Zelda's place. Governor Lore had seen no reason to keep up the rouse when she was alone with him. So why was the princess?

She sighed and told him, "If we have been on a voyage before, then you are aware that I am forever busy with matters of state, Captain. I wish to return to those matters. _You_ are to return to your company and familiarize yourself with the regulations of my new Royal Navy. You are in my _personal_ service now." With those words seething disdain given, she turned and prepared to walk away.

But Link could not let her go. Not yet. There was still one matter between them, one more problem that Link needed cleared up. So he took a step forward and said, "Your Highness."

She sighed and glanced over her shoulder, stopping in mid-step. "What is it, Captain?" she groaned.

"How did you get away from the _Smiling Gunner_?" he asked. Then he realized that the princess might not recognize the name of Cunimincus' ship, but it was already too late now that the question was out of his mouth.

She spun to him, and Link found, much to his surprise, a look of horror on her face. Her fair skin had become almost milky white, and she appeared as if she suddenly saw him as a complete monster. She took a step back. "W-what…" she tried to say through a voice suddenly choked out of its hostility. "What… did you just say?"

Link did not know what else to say. He had not expected such a reaction from her. "The _Smiling Gunner_," he repeated. "How did you get away from it?"

He did not think it was possible for people to suddenly lose complete color from their faces, but the princess's skin was slowly beginning to look like a fresh, white bedsheet. "H-how… how do you know that name?" she asked in a hushed voice. "Who… just _who_ the hell are you?"

The break in diction stunned Link; he did not believe the princess was able to append sentences with "hell". It was one of the lesser profanities used by anyone _except_ a member of the royal household. At least, he believed so.

With this and her sudden show of fear at the mention of the _Smiling Gunner_, Link felt like he had made a mistake. He took a step back. "I… I, uh…" he uttered.

The princess put on a determined look. And the depth of Link's mistake was realized when she hollered.

"Kniiiights! Knights, to my side! I demand knights!"

Link's breath caught in his throat at the sound of clanking armor. It must have been those knights he had passed by earlier. He was not sure what to do. Should he surrender and try to clear up—

"Link!"

Link's eyes went wide at the sound of the princess's voice. It was particularly jarring because it did _not_ come from the princess. While she continued to holler for her knights as she backed away so that her eyes remained on Link, a different rendition of the princess's voice rang loud in his ears as if she was standing right beside him. He looked around, but the only new thing to meet his sight was the pair of knights rounding the corner, swords drawn. So where—

"Link! Run!"

The voice was like the report of a pistol being fired over his head. With the hallway behind him blocked by the knights, Link's only escape was in the princess's direction. By the time the "princess" and the knights realized that Link had squeezed past her, Link had to stop at a junction further up the hallway before he decided which way to run. Then he dashed in one direction and came to another junction. He chose whichever hallways were the most empty because the princess and the knights were hollering loud enough that even after Link had left them, they were still quite audible. He had to find a stairway down to the first floor and hop aboard another junk leaving the castle. Unfortunately, by the time he found stairs to the first floor, he was far across the castle and in very unfamiliar territory. The alarm had spread to the first floor as well, and Link had to duck and dodge through a labyrinth of hallways just to keep his small lead on the armored knights roaming the grounds.

Link came to a junction of five different hallways, and the only hallway which was not occupied by a knight conveniently looking the opposite way was the hallway from which he had just emerged. Legs burning and breath heavy, he paused for a moment while trying to decide what to do. He was wearing down fast, something which had not happened to him on this scale before.

He was about to choose a hallway, deciding to try sliding past the smallest of these knights, when something grabbed him from behind, jerking him by the neck of his tunic. His response was a confused yelp as he was dragged into the doorway of a dark room. A hand clamped over his mouth, and he felt something large and metal press against his back.

"Sheer luck I happen ta know who ya are, Link."

Link recognized the voice and glanced up at the knight holding him as the man raised his visor. "Gi—Mister _Gilliam_?" Link asked through his hand.

"C'mon," Gilliam told him, dragging him further into the room. "I'm guessin' _you're_ the one that caused the alarm."

"I-I can explain," Link said just before having to catch himself.

Gilliam grabbed Link's forearm and pulled him along. "Just a sec," he told Link. With only the dim light of a single bulb near the end of this hallway, Gilliam located a gap in the mortar just barely thin enough to prevent his fingers from fitting inside. He released Link and drew his sword. When he fit the blade into the gap, there was a loud click, and Link thought the wall right in front of him shifted. Gilliam then stepped in front of Link and pushed the wall aside with almost no sound at all save for scraping against the dirt on the floor inside. "Watch it; there's stairs in there," Gilliam told him as he carefully pushed Link in by the shoulder. Link found a handrail and followed it down a few steps. Both of them were immersed in darkness when Gilliam closed the door above. "There is a switch at the bottom."

"Where?" Link asked as he descended. Something under his foot clicked, and he flinched at an orange light suddenly flickering to life nearby. A string of weak bulbs provided very little clarity as it showed Link a stone-and-mortar hallway looking much rougher than the castle walls above. The walls looked crooked, inconsistent, and careless, as if there had been a rush to build this area of the castle above all others. "Oh," Link said, his tone a little idle. "Found it."

Gilliam descended and pushed Link along the hallway. "Al know you're here?" he asked, urging Link into a jog with one hand on his shoulder.

"Al?"

"Captain Alfonzo."

"Oh. Uh… no, probably not. I'm… not sure if he even knows I'm _alive_."

"Sounds like ya got a story. Make it short."

"Okay, uuuh… I lost my ship."

"How?"

"Shot down."

Gilliam stopped and grabbed Link's tunic by the back of the neck again. Link let out a choking sound until Gilliam had finished pulling him backwards. "Okay, that's too short," Gilliam told him. "Whacha mean 'shot down'? Did ya get in a _fight_ or somethin'?"

Link hesitated as he tried to put his experience into words. "Well, it wasn't much of a fight. The _Island Sonata_ lost its ballast, and I rode it all the way down to the surface."

"And _survived_!?"

"Yeah. I've been on the surface for a whole month. I only recently returned in another airship."

Gilliam studied Link's face for a moment. "So ya get back up here, and the first thing ya do is sneak into the _castle_?"

"Uh… yeah…" Link answered, looking down at the floor. "Well, actually, it was the _second_ thing I did. The _first_ was going to Governor Lore."

"Lore? What's _she_ gotta do with this?"

Link took in a deep breath. "You remember that day Captain Alfonzo brought me here? So the Royal Family would recognize me as a captain?"

"Yeah," Gilliam replied with a nod. "I ain't seen Al prouder. You're gonna need ta make this faster."

"When I left, I took Princess Zelda with me."

Gilliam's face blanked at the statement. Then he said/asked, "What."

Link sighed. "It was an arrangement the governor and the princess made. She was supposed to be locked in her room a month back because she was sick, right?"

Gilliam frowned at him. "Yeah… but no one outside the castle was supposed ta know."

"Did you ever meet, uh… did you ever meet Rireen?"

"The half-bird girl? Once or twice. Ain't seen her around for a while, but most of the staff knows about her."

"Princess Zelda smuggled Rireen and herself onto the _Island Sonata_ and asked me to take her to Forelight Island in the middle of the Undying Storm. She was trying to get Rireen home, with others of her kind."

"And did ya?"

"Yeah. I was supposed to bring the princess back, but she decided to come back ahead of me on a Sorian airship. Sh—"

"Wait, a _what_?"

"A _Sorian_ airship. Rireen's people are called 'Sorians'. Anyway, I found out the ship she took was under attack, and I tried to go help her. Then… the ship that was attacking _that_ ship attacked and sunk _me_."

"So… what, someone _else_ brought her back?"

Link shook his head. "I-I don't think the Princess Zelda _here_ is the _real_ princess. Or… or something…"

"Or _something_?"

"I don't know what's going on."

Gilliam glanced back down the hallway before pushing Link along again. "When we thought… when we thought the princess was well, no one objected ta her returnin' ta her duties. I don't know most of the details _personally_, but some of the staff gossiped about how she seemed ta spend the first few days testin' her powers. Little things, like demandin' furniture be relocated and removin' staff that somehow offended her. Then she reassigned the guard; I've been on security patrol inside the castle for the past couple weeks. That was about the same time she decided ta draft the Skyriders' captains inna her own service, what she calls her 'navy'. First she armed all Skyrider ships, then she had carpenters set up those towers outside. She's had them all supplied through the castle, though I can't figure out why."

"Did Captain Alfonzo agree with this?" Link asked.

"Can't say," Gilliam replied with a shake of his head. "I ain't seen him since he brought _you_ here. But I imagine Al had a few choice words for this whole thing, and those probably weren't very pretty."

"Governor Lore told me that Princess Zelda has a completely different attitude since she returned."

"Yeah, that's pretty true," Gilliam said as he nudged Link down one direction at a fork in the hallway. "Temperamental, cold, kinda distant… Did I mention the temper? It's like tryin' ta walk on eggs without breakin' 'em; damn near _impossible_. Some of the regular staff claims that they've been lashed. No one's _ever_ been lashed in this castle before."

"Well, whether she's the real princess or not," Link said, "I think I know why she's acting like this."

"Do tell."

"It's the ship that attacked both of us. I think she was taken prisoner. _My_ ship was sunk, but the ship _she_ was on didn't find its way to the ground until about two weeks later. I found the wreckage of the other ship, and I _know_ Hylians were onboard. If anything, I know my _crew_ was on it."

"Where's your crew now?"

"I don't know. That was part of the reason I came to see the princess; I thought she might know what happened to them. But when I asked her about them… she _said_ she didn't know who they were or even who _I_ was."

"You don't buy it, huh?"

"It's the way she answered. She might not have known _me_, but she _knows_ about my crew _and_ the ship that captured her. Actually, she sounded like she was _afraid_ when I mentioned the ship by name."

Gilliam put a hand on Link's shoulder to pull him to a stop again. "Okay, somethin's _definitely_ wrong with all this," he told Link. "But unless you got proof, we can't touch the princess. Link." He squat so that he could look Link in the eye. "This is serious. The only people who can put a stop ta this are King Lauris and Queen Arla."

"Princess Zelda's parents?"

Gilliam nodded. "They were last seen in the south; they were trying to prevent part of the kingdom from breaking off contact with the Royal Family. _You_ have ta find 'em and bring 'em back _here_. Much as we adore the princess… ya know, except lately… the first one's we're loyal to are the king and queen. If ya bring 'em back, then they can yank the princess's power, and we can get ta the bottom of this whole mess."

Link nodded. "Okay. Okay, I think I can do that."

"One more thing. I don't _wanna_ do it, but I gotta report your escape. I also have ta tell the princess who you are, how you escaped, and that you're associated with Captain Alfonzo."

Link stared at him for a moment. "Wha… why can't you just _come_ with me?"

"Well, for one, ya got me inside, so I can probably get ya back in once ya find the king and queen. Two, if someone notices me gone, I'm a traitor, even if this whole situation _wasn't_ happenin'." He stood and pointed down the hallway. "This'll take ya to a wine cellar under an abandoned tavern north of the castle, so you'll have ta go around ta get back ta the port. Get there _fast_ as ya can, because they'll be on ya the moment they find me. Just get the hell outta the port."

Link nodded. "Okay. Thanks, Mister Gilliam."

Gilliam smacked his shoulder. "Just call me 'Gil'. I gotta get back, so get goin'."

"Right." Link then turned and sped down the hallway, much to Gilliam's amazement. Then he shrugged, realizing that he now had an excuse as to _how_ Link got away from him.

…

True to Gilliam's word, Link found an abandoned tavern at the end of the hallway. After emerging onto the street behind the castle, he sped down a bunch of alleys instead of taking the main roads. And he found out just how disorganized and crooked alleys on Castle Island could be. He had to stop a number of times to get his bearings from his compass. It must have taken him half an hour to get back to the port, after which he gave up stealth for a fast run back to the _Island Symphony_.

Gold stood at the bottom of the gangplank, leaning against a mooring post. He stood up straight as Link slowed to a jog. "Oy, Cap'n," he greeted with a hand raised. "Been wondering where yeh were. Leynne's looking f—"

"Is everyone onboard?" Link interrupted, stopping right in front of him.

"Huh?"

"Is everyone _onboard_? Link repeated.

Gold was thrown by the urgency in Link's voice. "Uh, yeah, should be, Cap'n."

Link pointed a finger at him. "On the helm _now_. We're leaving."

"O-on the helm, aye, Cap'n," Gold replied. Then he turned and jogged up the gangplank.

Link followed him up. "As soon as we're moving, turn us to starboard and get us in a Sky Line!" Link shouted at Gold as Gold parted for the bow.

"Aye aye!" Gold replied over his shoulder.

Link turned back to the port and spotted a pair of dockers loitering near the ship's stern. He cupped his hands over his mouth and shouted, "_Island Symphony_ to port, ahoy! Clear the moorings!"

"Clearing the moorings, Captain!" was the reply from one while they both hustled to pull back the gangplank.

Link then glanced across the deck and found Dubbl and Dholit walking toward him. "Dholit, go below and bring the other two Gelto up on deck; it's an emergency. Dubbl, haul in the mooring ropes and prepare to open all sails."

"Yes, saah," Dholit said before immediately dashing for the port stairs.

"Ay'a, Kyabtin," Dubbl said. Then she turned and hollered, "Biluf! Layna! Hayxwolan 'anw sanuth! 'Oyzhokan!"

Link glanced back at the castle. He could see that one of the barques had relieved itself of its moorings and started pulling away from the docking towers. So he turned up toward the poop deck and cupped his hands around his mouth again. "Cale! Cale!"

Cale emerged from the back of the deck. "Yeah?" he hollered.

"Keep watch on the ships around us!" Link hollered. "If you see one coming toward us, let someone know!"

Cale glanced along the port for a moment. Then he answered, "Okay!"

"Link." Link only had to glance down to find Leynne standing in the door to his cabin. "We might have a problem."

"One problem at a time," Link said. "We need to leave."

Link made to turn, but Leynne grabbed him by the shoulder. "No," Leynne said, holding a large scroll up for Link. "I think theh's something you should look at."

Catching Leynne's own sense of urgency, Link took the scroll and unrolled it to find that it was a map of the kingdom. For a moment, Link was stymied, unsure of what Leynne was trying to convey with so little words. Then Link lowered the map and strode to the starboard side with Leynne in tow. He stopped short when his new fear was confirmed.

The Sky Lines to the north of Castle Island, the same Sky Lines that he had told Gold to dive for as soon as the ship was moving, were missing.

Link was simply speechless. He glanced at the map again as if to confirm it. The map only showed three Sky Lines: the Dawn Line which cut through the Undying Storm and encircled the northern half of the kingdom and the pair of Sky Lines, the Northwest and Central Lines, which cut across the area encircled by the Dawn Line before disappearing off the edges of the map. And in this map of the _entire_ kingdom, those three were the only Sky Lines in existence.

"They're gone…" Link said. "They're… they're…"

"They've been gone foh a while," Leynne said to him. "That's what the cahtographeh told me."

Link scowled and pushed the map back into Leynne's arms. "We'll improvise then."

"Kyabtin!" Dubbl called from across the deck. Link and Leynne turned to find her waving at them. Both crossed the deck, and she pointed out at the docks. "Zey will not release us!"

Link glanced out to find that a trio of knights had shown up at the docks and had ordered the dockers to replace the gangplank. One stood ready while a second, armed with a crossbow, had a bolt trained on the side of the ship so that he could target the first person to touch the mooring lines.

The third one shouted, "Captain Link! Halt your departure and prepared to be boarded."

Link paled. "We have to get out of here," he said to the air in front of him.

"Layna," Dubbl suddenly snapped, "mayxwocan 'anw sanuth! Biluf, nwayrotan zhaylan gaylasiyn!"

"Ay'a!" both responded.

Then, to Link's surprise, Layna ran forward to the shroud holding the port main mast in place and jumped onto the shroud. After a quick appraisal, her arm swung, and Link looked back over the side.

"GYAH!" The knight holding the crossbow dropped his weapon and ripped his helmet off his head. To Link's horror, blood was seeping from a wound in his neck that he was desperately trying to place pressure on.

The knight that had delivered the ultimatum was on his companion at once and placed his bare hands on the man's neck. "Someone get a surgeon! Hurry!" he shouted at a docker just watching the action.

Link's sight then spun to stern just in time to see Biluf swing around the backside of the shroud on the port mizzen-mast and imparted enough kick into the front of the gangway that the dockers dropped it and fell on their butts. The gangway was far enough out that it fell over the side and through the gap between the _Island Symphony_'s hull and the dock. Then she dropped back down and secured the door in the bulwark.

Link turned again just in time to see Layna swing her arm again. For a moment, he feared that she was targeting the knights. Then, he watched both moorings spontaneously snap at their mooring posts. Link saw that some kind of bladed disk had embedded itself into the closer of the two posts. He looked back at Layna as she dropped back to the deck, her face completely unreadable. He began to wonder what _her_ position among the Gelto was.

"Layna!" Dubbl snapped at her. "'Inu nad'atnya'ak wabnik zabaytkw zhal!"

"'Inu nadyimiydhjya'ak falix, Giltiyn Dubbl," Layna replied in what sounded like a cold, detached tone. "'Ak Xili'anay sanway nayx yisaylwibak."

Link glanced at Dubbl to find that her eyes were open wide. "Xwali," she uttered under her breath. "Zhidi sanimyayl."

"Waba nadmatikak max?" Biluf asked as she approached from behind.

"Link!" Dholit hollered as she approached from the bow with Twali and Lwamm close behind.

Link shook his head to snap himself back into reality. He would have to address Layna's curiously murderous techniques later. "Everyone on the capstan," he ordered. "Prepare to open the sails, but _wait_ for my order." He did not wait for a response; the sails were moving as Gold prepared to take them in the wrong direction. He dashed for the bow and up the stairs. "Gold, wait!" he shouted.

"Cap'n?" Gold asked, glancing over his shoulder.

"Increase the ballast and take us to port," Link ordered. "Switch to the engine; we're sailing over the island."

"Aye aye, Cap'n," Gold replied, turning and pushing on the ballast control. Then he pushed the propeller lever forward and started fighting it. "C'mon, yeh stupid piece o'…" The lever locked into place, and he next pushed on the throttle. "So, 'bout this sudden need tae leave…"

"Yeah, the Royal Knights of Hyrule are after me," Link said. "I'll explain it later, but we need to get into that Sky Line while we're still capable of flying."

"Price on yer 'ead, Cap'n?" he asked.

"Not yet."

"Aaah, so we're becomin' pirates now, huh?"

Link glared at his grinning helmsman. "Hardly." He glanced out at the deck to find that Leynne and the Gelto were standing by the capstan. "Full ahead; we gotta get past those ships over the castle."

"Full 'ead, aye." Gold pushed the throttle as far as it would go and then turned the ship toward the island.

Link could feel the breeze over the bow and removed his hat. "Now we get to see how well Sello's engine works," he said as he tucked the hat into his belt. Gold steered the ship almost due south, which would take them past the castle's east side. "Add some more ballast," Link ordered.

"Aye aye," Gold said as he turned and nudged the ballast control. "What's the plan?"

"At this point? Run."

_Boom!_ Without warning, smoke issued from one of the cutters as the _Island Symphony_ rose in response to the ballast change. Link hurried to the starboard bow and looked down to see gun crews on all of the ships docked around the castle. He did not know how they found out so fast, but the princess's navy, the airmen who were supposed to be his coworkers, were gearing up to chase. Deck crews were hustling to pull up sails while cannoneers were loading the deck guns. One cutter, with its moorings already gone, was trying to ascend. Link was concerned, but he knew that the cutter would not be able to aim until it started some forward movement.

And almost within the same minute that the _Island Symphony_'s bow was in a definite kill-range for those guns, the stern was just pulling out. In the next minute, the airship was across the southern edge.

Link crossed the forecastle and called down to the weather deck, "Open the sails!"

"Right!" Leynne called back.

"Disengage the engine," Link told Gold. "We're riding the wind out."

"Aye aye!" Gold replied.

Link watch the sails open. And, in the distance between the masts, he saw the navy vessels rise to match altitudes with them. One of the barquentines turned to show the _Island Symphony_ its port side, and a row of smoke along its weather deck indicated that it had just opened fire. Link braced himself on the railing, but the _Island Symphony_ maintained her course without the slightest hint of being struck. This caused Link to breathe a sigh of relief. Sello's engine had performed quite well, indeed, having driven the ship out of firing range.

And now that Link could see the signal flags on the barquentine, he saw one flag which made him worry even more. Red at the hoist, black at the fly, underneath the ship's banner. A signal that the ship was currently engaging another vessel.

Only ships with active orders to attack would fly that flag. The fake princess intended to have him blown out of the skies again.

"Cap'n, we're too 'igh tae enter the Sky Line," Gold told him. "Should I drop the ballast?"

Link looked forward. "Not yet," he told Gold. "Wait until you can hear the Sky Line. Then drop, turn, and rise into it. If we lower the ballast now, we're gonna be vulnerable to cannon fire."

"C-_cannon fire_!?" Gold shouted. "'O the 'ell's shootin' at _us_!?"

"The people we're running from!" Link said, pointing backwards.

Gold glanced backwards. Then he gave Link a surprised look. "Cap'n, just _'o'd_ yeh piss off!?"

Link glanced down as the deck crew scrambled to the rear of the ship. "Get us in that Sky Line, and I'll explain it later," he said before descending. He dashed across the deck and slowed to a jog just as the crew was manning the pair of capstans at the back. "What are you guys doing!?" he demanded.

"Secondary spahs," Leynne replied as he accepted a shaped board of wood, the same kind the crew had used to turn the forward capstan, from Dubbl. "We'h running, right?"

Link nodded. "Yeah."

Leynne pointed out to the port side, near the stern. "Those spahs out theh ahn't just foh show; we can use them foh moh speed. Go watch."

Link watched Leynne place his board into the port capstan before jogging to the edge of the ship and looking down at the outboard spars. He watched in amazement as the main spar started pulling forward while the two smaller spars above and below it spread outward from it. The sails between the spars hoisted themselves during the process.

But then the process halted with the sails still slack. For a moment, Link thought that was as far as the sails opened. Then he glanced backward to find Leynne, Dubbl, and Twali struggling against the port capstan while Lwamm, Layna, and Biluf were still turning the starboard capstan.

He rushed back and asked, "What's going on?"

"The damn thing won't tuhn," Leynne grunted as he pushed his shoulder against the board. "It's jammed."

Link heard the sails above him shift and looked up to see the mizzen sails turn to port. The angle at which they were turned told Link that Gold was not trying to turn into the Sky Line; he was trying to correct the ship's course. "Guys, you need to get the portside spars open," Link urged. "Gold won't be able to turn into the Sky Line like this."

"Something isn't meshing right," Leynne told him, letting up on his board. "The mechanics undeh the deck must be jammed. We can't open it."

"We can do!" Dubbl replied. "Push ha'de'!"

"It's _pointless_!" Leynne shouted. "You'll just jam it moh. We have to close the otheh side."

"It will open!" Dubbl argued.

Leynne stepped out from behind the capstan's handle. "Dholit, tell them to close that otheh side; it isn't going to wohk."

"Waba nayx nadnaygothak nwaki!" Dubbl shouted at Dholit. Then she turned back to Leynne and said, "The Gilto, _my_ people. You not o'de'!"

"This isn't the _time_ to debate superiority, you idiot!" Leynne shouted. "We'h undeh _attack_!"

"I light!" Dubbl said. "Zey _will_ open. You _will_ help!"

"Dholit, _tell_ them to _close_ that one!"

"Nadlayxoman!" Dubbl shouted. Link could only guess that Dubbl was countermanding Leynne in Geltoan, particularly since Dholit looked confused.

Leynne must have thought the same because he told Dubbl, "Will you _shut up_!"

Dubbl's response was swift. Without warning, she pulled her board out of the capstan, stepped up to Leynne as he turned to holler another order at Dholit, and struck the taller man on the back of the head. Leynne collapsed to the deck with a bark of pain, and he covered his head with his arms in anticipation. Link was stunned at this show of violence, and he ran to check on Leynne.

"Dholit, saylotan 'inon!" Dubbl shouted. Dholit replied by taking up Leynne's abandoned spot. Dubbl wound her arm at Dholit and Twali. Then all three changed positions and started pushing again.

Link rolled Leynne over. "Leynne!" he shouted. "Leynne, are you all right?"

"I've been betteh…" Leynne groaned back.

Link held up a hand. "How many fingers do you see?"

"Ugh… three."

Link changed the fingers he raised. "And now?"

"Fouh."

Link then gave a relieved sigh. "Looks like she didn't hit you too hard."

"Pehhaps," Leynne groaned as he sat up, "but I'm still put off by having been hit with a length of wood."

Link glanced up just in time to see the port capstan jerk loose. Dubbl then signed at Dholit and Twali, and all three of them started turning in the opposite direction. They made more progress, and then they stopped a moment later. Link left Leynne's side and dashed over to the port bulwark to find that the spars had opened to full, showing a pair of triangular sails set vertical to a main spar positioned perpendicular to the ship. He glanced back to find that Gold had returned the mizzen sails back to their original positions.

Then he heard the wind whistling nearby and returned to the group. "Everyone down below!" he ordered. "Don't come up until I come to get you!" He spun and shouted up at the poop deck. "Cale, get below the deck! Now!" Yet again, he did not wait for a response. He dashed back to the bridge as he felt the ship turn. "Gold?" Link asked.

"What the 'ell's goin' on back there?" Gold asked. "Somethin' wrong with the sails?"

"Just a small problem opening the outboard sails," Link said.

"Goin' in," Gold said. He turned and pushed the ballast control. Link grabbed the nearby railing to save himself against the ship bucking under the harsh winds of the Sky Line. Link looked back across the deck before moving to the starboard side. The pursuing vessels had already fallen behind enough that they were just specks in the distance. He was also relieved to see that the _Island Symphony_ was still in one piece.

"We clear, Cap'n?" Gold asked.

"For now," Link answered. He breathed a sigh, but it was more for hesitation's sake than relief. The day had turned out worse for the crew than Link had imagined could be possible. The Skyriders were looking for him. The Sky Lines were nearly gone. And a fake Princess Zelda was controlling the kingdom. As if that had not been enough, now Link had to settle a dispute in his crew. His eyes wandered the weather deck below for a moment before he looked back at Gold. "I need you to stay on the helm a little longer," he said, his voice tired and grim. "I'll have Leynne relieve you in a few moments."

Gold glanced over at him and read the look on Link's face before Link descended. He scratched his head and looked out to port, making sure Link did not see the knowing look on his face. "Aye," he whispered to himself.


	73. In Charge

Chapter 73: In Charge

…

"You not command me! You not command my siste's! Zat, _my_ duty!"

"_I'm_ supposed to be second in command! That means my commands ah just as relevant as Link's!"

"Ze _kyabtin_ commands us! We not take o'de's flom oze's! You' o'de', _stubid_!"

"My ohdeh wasn't _stupid_! It was _logical_! What kind of idiot fohces a jam when it's cleahly a mechanical problem!? You couldn't stop and _think_ about that!?"

"I knew what I doing! You not listen! _Stubid_ man!"

"_I'm_ stupid!? You can't even speak right! It's like listening to a—"

"Okay, I think that's going a little fah," Dholit interrupted, hands raised as she stepped between Dubbl and Leynne. She pointed behind Leynne. "You just go ovah theah foh a moment and sit."

Leynne turned to Link, who was leaning against the front of his desk with Irleen hovering over his head. "Is this serious?" he asked.

"Please, Leynne," Link replied. Leynne grumbled and took a seat on Link's footlocker. Link stepped between them and glanced at both. He found that Captain Alfonzo's methods of dealing with a kink in the chain of command were not as applicable as he would have liked. For one thing, Link was not tall enough to reach behind Leynne's and Dubbl's heads and knock them together. Second, Link was particularly lacking in the body mass to be intimidating to either of them. Not that he thought Dubbl could be intimidated in the first place, not by him at least. It was part of the reason Dholit was in the room. She managed to talk Dubbl out of tying Leynne's body into a knot, and Link knew the effect Dholit had had on her back on the surface when Dubbl had nearly shaken him to death.

Leynne would not be subdued the same way, though. Fortunately for Link, he was capable of showing physical restraint in spite of his mouth. For now, that was all Link had to work with. He was a little paranoid that, if it came to Leynne attacking Dubbl, Layna might burst through the door to Link's cabin and kill Leynne. That was an issue Link would have to address later; the last thing he wanted to believe was that he had a trained killer onboard.

Link gave a sigh and said, "Look, you two. We have some bigger problems than worrying about who's in charge. Things like my fellow captains trying to blow us out of the clouds and having most of the regular trade routes no longer exist. We can't afford to be at each others' throats."

"The chain of command should be _cleah_," Leynne said. "You appointed me second-in-command, Link."

"And you had the right to order crewmen as you saw fit," Link replied, one finger raised to silence him. "I'm not denying that."

"Kyabtin, we not taking commands flom _him_!" Dubbl shouted, pointing her middle finger at Leynne.

"Dubbl!" Dholit snapped. "Coyniygothotak!"

"Dubbl," Link said in a calmer tone than Dholit. "If something bad happened, if I'm not around to give orders, who will?"

"He'," Dubbl replied, pointing to Dholit as if it was an obvious answer. "She close to you."

Irleen snorted. "Wow," she giggled. "That was one answer I _didn't_ see coming."

"Right, because we can expect _Dholit_ to make an infohmed decision," Leynne remarked.

"I _could_," Dholit protested. "I make them all the time!"

"Fine," Leynne said. "Then what would you have done?"

Dholit shrugged. "I might have hit youh head with a boahd, too." Irleen burst out laughing.

"Stop!" Link immediately demanded just as Leynne was opening his mouth. Irleen also choked off her laughter as if he had been talking to her. Link looked between Leynne and Dubbl for a moment and said, "Clearly, we need to know how command works. This is how it's _supposed_ to work. When I'm not nearby to give an order, Leynne is next in line. Dubbl, if Leynne isn't available, _you're_ in command. Fair?"

"No," Dubbl said. "I not want command. Please give to Dholit."

"Dholit needs to work with the other shift so she can translate for the Gelto on _that_ shift," Link explained. "Unless you want me to _trade_ your shifts and have you work directly with _Leynne_."

Dubbl shot a glare at a grinning Leynne before replying, "No. I will stay."

Link nodded. "Today was an emergency; I needed everyone on the deck. Hopefully, it won't happen again, but I want it clear who's in charge when it happens. Dubbl, if this happens again, I want Leynne to handle the ship."

"You not tlust me?" she asked, crossing her arms.

"Wha—_no_, no, it's not that. It's just that I've already shown Leynne his duties and would prefer that he remain in that position. We've already agreed that he'll step down as soon as we have someone else that can perform the task."

"I ask that soon," Dubbl said as she shot Leynne another glare.

Leynne held up his hands in surrender. "Look, foh youh infohmation, I don't think that highly of the job. Pehsonally, I wouldn't mind if it was given to eitheh you oh Dholit."

"Show of hands for those of you who thinks Dholit wouldn't take the job as seriously," Irleen said. Dubbl, Link, and Leynne raised a hand.

Dholit raised both of her hands. When Link gave her a questioning look, she grinned and said, "I _know_ I probably wouldn't take it as seriously as to the satisfaction of my captain, My Captain."

Link dropped his arm, allowing it to slap against his thigh. "Okay, so are we in agreement?" he asked, glancing at Leynne and Dubbl.

"What if zis happen again?" Dubbl asked.

"Then the first person to attack gets to walk home," Link told her in a harsh tone, trying to take advantage of how calm the two were. "From whatever port of _my_ choosing."

Dholit shivered. "Oooh, the thought of the captain punishing someone gets me _excited_."

"I _still_ don't want to know where Link found you," Irleen commented.

"Leynne?" Link asked.

Leynne did not appear intimidated by Link's remark, but he was still hesitant about replying. He sighed and stood up. "Agreed," he told Link.

"Dubbl?"

"Yes, Kyabtin," she answered.

Leynne held out a hand. "Will you shake on that?" he asked Dubbl.

Dubbl stepped forward and glanced down at Leynne's hand as if it somehow offended her.

Then she grabbed the neck of Leynne's waistcoat, pulled him closer with a burst of strength, and locked her lips to his. Leynne was taken off-guard, flailing his arms to avoid falling while sporting a wide-eyed look. His brief moment of surprise faded into an even briefer moment of relaxation. Then Dubbl pushed him backwards, causing him to sit back down on Link's footlocker.

She turned to Link and said, "Kyabtin, I ti'ed. Can I go wiz you' pe'mission?"

"You're dismissed," Link told her. "Go get some sleep."

"Zank you, Kyabtin," she said with a quick bow. Then she turned and left, closing the door carefully behind her.

The cabin was silent until Irleen asked, "Wha… what just happened?"

"What prompted _that_?" Leynne asked after his daze wore off.

"Oh, I wouldn't take that _too_ pehsonally, Leynne," Dholit said.

"You would if it was _Link_," Irleen commented.

"Yes, I know," Dholit said with a sigh. Then she told Leynne, "You have to undehstand that we Gilto can be quite passionate. When Gilto ahgue, it rises to such levels that… well, ouh emotions get a little confusing. So, in ohdah to end the tension and confusion, we conclude the conflict by finding a reasonable resolution and kissing to seal the agreement."

Link and Leynne shared a confused look as well as a blush. "Um… _despite_ the fact that the extreme majority of the Gelto ah… women," Leynne said.

Dholit grinned at his embarrassment. "As I said, we ah quite a passionate people." Leynne shifted uncomfortably.

"I-I think my head's going to explode," Irleen said as she carefully floated onto the desk.

"Dholit," Link said. "Would you… ugh… would you tell Gold we'll need him to stay on the helm a little longer?"

"Oh, yes, My Captain," Dholit replied, a mad grin on her face as she saluted. Link dismissed the salute, and she skipped across the cabin and exited.

"You don't want me to relieve him?" Leynne asked.

Link shook his head. "Not yet. While we're on the run, we need to find a safe harbor to get supplies. I need you to help me plot a course; I'm a little poor with my navigation skills."

"Maps," Leynne reasoned as he stood up. He retrieved a pair of scrolls from between Link's footlocker and wardrobe. "The cartographeh infohmed me that it happened about two weeks ago. Evidently, theh was no wahning oh otheh indication that the event was going to take place." He stepped up to the table and unrolled the first map on its surface. He continued to speak as he pulled open a drawer and used tacks to pin down the map's corners. "He said that stories regahding theih disappearance vary, but the most he had heahd was that the event stahted on the eastehn bohdehs, continued south, and ended in the west." To emphasize the last part of his statement, he pointed at the western side of the map.

Link stepped forward to look at the map. "No, that would have been where it started."

"It would?" Leynne asked.

"If that was how it happened, we wouldn't be inside a Sky Line right now," Link said. "You have to realize that, up here, north and south are switched." Link traced his finger from the west side of the map and dragged it over the northern islands. "So the further north we go, the further we get away from the Sky Lines and Castle Island. We'll have to skip from island to island, probably looking at up to three days between ports. The question is where we go first."

"How eageh ah we to avoid captuh?" Leynne asked.

"Very," Link replied. He traced their current Sky Line with a finger. "Right now, we're on our way back to Autumn Island. We can't afford to dock, though, because those ships are probably following us. We'll have to pass that island and get on the other Sky Line to put more distance between us. Those ships have been ordered to sink us."

"How do you know?" Leynne asked.

"They were flying attack flags," Link said. "Spontaneous attack is one thing, but if they have time to put up signal flags, they're under orders from someone not on the ship."

"Is this… something else you leahned as an aihman?"

Link nodded. "Signaling is one of the required courses you have to revise on shore duty, especially when you're working on the deck. Which reminds me; if we survive all this, we're going to need a set of signal flags."

"But not now?"

"I'm sure any ship looking at us can tell we're running for our lives."

"Ah. Noted. What about Skyrideh Poht? You indicated a need to go theh."

Link shook his head. "We can't go there anymore. The princess knows I'm a Skyrider captain; she probably already has ships moving in that direction. In the time it takes us to hop onto the other Sky Line and take it close enough to get to the port, there could be a ship or two already ahead of us. Which means we should avoid the eastern regions as best as possible."

"So much for a safe port, right?" Irleen asked as she moved to hover over the map.

"Done with youh sensory ovehload, ah you?" Leynne asked.

"Shut up."

Link glanced up at her. "I'm sorry, Irleen, but until this is all cleared up, I can't take you back home."

"That's okay, Link," she said. "I'd rather get home safely than have you try and get sunk again. The first time wasn't a whole lot of fun."

"Just hang in theh," Leynne told her. "We'll figuh something out."

"Thanks, Leynne."

"So, ah we to assume that the nohth is ouh safest haven?" Leynne asked Link.

"Until they follow us out there," Link said.

"I don't suppose we should be signing the dockmastehs' books at each stop."

Link shook his head. "If they know where we've been, they might figure out where we're going. And, without the branch offices to help us, I'm afraid that I'll need to ask for a loan."

Leynne gave him a dismissive wave. "Don't wohry about it. Strangely enough, I find my _own_ suhvival in jeopahdy. I just hope I have enough of a bank to get us wheh we need to go."

Link nodded, finding it the best time to explain to Leynne what was happening. "We need to find our way north. Right now, we have the princess working against us, which means the rest of the kingdom will only be helpful providing they don't know we're wanted."

"Is theh _any_ resolution on the way?"

"We'll have to provide it."

Leynne's eyebrows rose. "Oh? Plotting an ovehthrow of the ruling tyrant?"

"Replacement," Link said. "The King and Queen of Hyrule were last known to be in the northern areas; that was the reason the princess was left in charge. A… an associate of Captain Alfonzo told me that, if we can find them and bring them back to Castle Island, they can remove her from power, and we'd be able to clear up the mess she's made."

"Sounds like a plan," Irleen said.

"So wheh ah they?" Leynne asked.

"I, uh… I don't know," Link admitted. "I don't think _anyone_ knows where they went."

"So we'll have to go from island to island looking foh them," Leynne reasoned.

Link nodded. "It's gonna be a long search, especially since we don't have the Sky Lines." He looked up at Irleen. "Any idea why they disappeared?"

"I've been thinking about it since Leynne first mentioned it," she said. "When the Sorian mainland separated, some of the technoworks under the islands were converted to produce the Sky Lines."

"To… help hold Cunimincus back, right?" Link said.

"Uh, I _think_ you have the Sky Lines' purpose confused, Link. The Storm of Purgatory is Cunimincus' prison; it has nothing to do with the Sky Lines."

Link blinked, stunned to find that what he had thought about the Sky Lines had been wrong. "Oh."

"So, why _weh_ the Sky Lines made?" Leynne asked.

"You have to realize that Sorians can only fly so far," Irleen said. "The Sky Lines serve two purposes. The first one was to let Sorians travel from island to island. That's part of the reason we have airships. The second was to keep the islands together."

"What do you mean?" Leynne asked.

"Think about it, Leynne. The islands are little more than rocks floating in the air; they've got about as much stability as an airship. Haven't you ever wondered what's been keeping the islands still enough that you can draw _maps_ of them?"

"I-I just assumed that was… that was how they worked," Link said.

"I suppose the stability of these islands would eventually come into question," Leynne commented.

"When the mainland split, the islands drifted apart," Irleen said. "The technoworks beneath some of the islands were designed to manipulate the air and produce winds that stabilized the islands' locations. While the individual islands created airflows to stabilize themselves, the Sky Lines act like a large net, holding everything in place."

"Wait a moment, wait a moment," Leynne said, holding a hand up. "So, you'h saying that, without the Sky Lines, at this very moment, the islands ah drifting apaht?"

"It's possible, actually," Irleen said.

Leynne sighed and shook his head. "How do you know so much about the Sky Lines?"

"I was a librarian on my home island before all this happened," Irleen said. "I spent a _lot_ of time reading."

"Is there any way to turn the Sky Lines back on?" Link asked.

"We'd have to search the islands for the technoworks that control the Sky Lines," Irleen said. "I have no way to find them."

"Okay, theh's that wohd again," Leynne said. "What ah the 'technowohks'?"

"They're the centers of technology on each island. They keep the islands in the air and supply the islands with water from the surface. Kind of like a large machine."

"Sounds like something I'd like to examine," Leynne commented.

"I imagine you would."

"First things first," Link said. "We'll have to find a place to resupply."

Leynne nodded. "Well, we have a few days' wohth of rations; we can probably stretch those. You said it will take about a couple of days to sail between islands?"

"Something like that."

"Sooo…" Leynne turned his head as he looked down at the map. Then he pointed to an island not too far north of Autumn Island. "What about heh, this… Thicket Island? Is it populated?"

Link glanced at the map before nodding. "Yeah, that looks like the place to start. Go ahead and plot it out as best as you can."

"Where are _you_ going?" Irleen asked as Link rounded the table.

"I'm informing the crew of our new situation."

…

Link had never had to give a crew grim news. Having to tell his newest crew that they were now all outlaws felt like something he should not have ever had to do in the first place. But he could not simply leave them unaware of the situation, especially when it meant risking their lives. So he paced on the forecastle near the bow while his crew stood gathered around the helm. The only one who stood apart from them was Dholit, who volunteered to translate his words for the Gelto crew. Irleen was absent due to not being able to step out on deck. Leynne was still plotting their course in his cabin, but Link was not concerned since he had already explained the situation to him.

He took in a deep breath and stepped to the middle of the forecastle. "I know that this afternoon, we had a situation which required some explanation," he told them. Dholit began a running translation as he continued. "I would like to inform you that, as my crew, you are no longer safe.

"This afternoon, I attempted to make contact with a person of the Royal Family in order to clarify events since my former vessel, the _Island Sonata_, was destroyed. However, my actions were directed at an imposter operating under the guise of Princess Zelda of the Royal Family. This has resulted in my status as a wanted person in the realm of Hyrule. My company, the Skyriders, have been conscripted by the princess in order to form a navy dedicated to her and her alone. Knowing what I know, I cannot, on good conscience, allow myself to become involved with such an organization. Therefore, every Skyrider vessel we encounter will be neglecting us at best… and hostile at worst. Vessels that can identify the _Island Symphony_ have standing orders to destroy her, which will result in the death of every member of this crew.

"I appreciate that you all have been willing to accompany me this far, and I thank you all for your support. But now, I'm afraid that I cannot let you continue your service out of ignorance of our current situation. Again, I'm giving you a choice, and, unfortunately, it is much more limited due to our present situation. Again, I will be asking you individually whether you will be willing to continue sailing on this ship or not. If you do not feel it necessary to risk your life on this ship, then I will allow you to disembark at our next stop, Thicket Island, and not hold it against you to disavow knowledge of this vessel for the sake of your own lives. I'm… I'm sorry that I can't return you to the surface as before, but that would require us to enter hostile territory again, and we would not likely survive.

"I won't make it sound like we're serving a noble cause or anything by continuing our voyage. Our goal is to locate the King and Queen of Hyrule and return them to their seat so that the fake Princess Zelda can be exposed. This will eventually require us to risk our lives delivering them back to Castle Island. I can't give you a choice like this again; if you choose to stay, you stay until we succeed or until I die." He paused and gulped at that last statement. His voice came out cracked with his next first words. "I don't want to see any one of you killed, but it's what you risk if you choose to stay." He stepped to the starboard side and waited until Dholit finished her translation. Then he asked, "Dholit? Do you want to leave?"

"Noooo," she told him. "I'd miss you too much."

Link gave her a disappointed look. "That's… kind of a flimsy excuse."

She smiled at him. "My Captain, you killed a Malgyohg the size of the wohld just to save youh companions. I don't see a bunch of men on piddly little boats being much of a threat."

Link paused as he considered his words. Then he shook his head. "I've _got_ to find out how your head works one of these days."

"I run on optimism and sex."

Link started blushing madly. He looked away and uncomfortably cleared his throat. "Right." Then he moved toward the gathered crew. "Dubbl?"

"I feel ze way zat Dholit feel," she replied. "I will stay."

"You run on sex, too?" Gold asked with a chuckle.

"Lohakwan!" Dubbl snapped at him.

The short quarrel gave Link enough pause to remember the name of the Gelto standing next to her. "Lwamm?" he asked.

"'Inu nayx kwaylotak wabnik ga'na," she responded, her chest held out with pride.

Link turned to Dholit. "It was a poetic way of saying 'yes'," she assured him.

"You… _did_ explain what was going on, right?" Link asked.

"That speech wasn't as easy to convey as the last one," Dholit said with a shrug.

Link nodded, although he was not entirely certain what she had meant, and moved to the next one. "Twali?"

"'Al waba thibuz manak, 'inu nayx 'otaxak wabnik talwban adi'," Twali replied with a small bow.

Again, Link glanced at Dholit. "Same thing," she told him.

"Really?" Link asked. "That sounded a lot longer."

"She was _moah_ poetic."

Link shook his head; he was beginning to suspect that Dholit was taking liberties with her translation. He stepped to the next Gelto and asked, "Layna?"

"'Inu nayx naygodhak nwik 'ilthan'afi'il taf 'imayn kyabtin 'imayn silwabun 'ithab," Layna replied, giving Link a deep bow.

"I think I heard my name in there somewhere," Link commented.

"Yeah, she's not going anywheah, eitheh," Dholit replied in a casual tone.

Link moved to the last Gelto. "Biluf?"

"Waba socikwotak max, Kyabtin?" Biluf replied as she cracked her knuckles. "'Inu xaylokwak zayxwiyk sunway!"

"'_Aydhom_," Dubbl spoke up.

"'Aydhom?" Biluf replied.

"'Aydhom."

Biluf turned back to Link and said, "'Inu xaylokwak za'dhiym sunway!"

Link glanced at Dholit. "Should I even bother asking?"

"Actually, she sounds as if she has heh own agenda," Dholit replied. "But she agrees to stay."

"Really?" Link asked. "She's the _only_ one with an agenda?" Dholit just shrugged in response, so Link shook his head and moved on. "Cale?"

Cale seemed hesitant at first. Then he said, "I… I can't see myself anywheah else foh the moment. I'll stay."

Link nodded, grateful for finally getting a straight answer. "Gold?"

"Aye, Cap'n," he said. "I'm stayin'."

"Lidago?"

"Goron," Lidago replied with a sharp nod. Then he added, "Lidago stay."

"Helo?"

"I will stay, too," Helo answered.

"Lawrence?"

Lawrence shrugged, a difficult movement considering both he and Harley were supporting a barely-conscious Sello between them. "_I_ ain' scared," he said. "If the Gelto's gonna 'ang 'round, so is I."

"Nwaki 'addic 'acikwthin," Dubbl muttered to herself, just barely audible to Link over the sound of the Sky Line.

Link leaned forward to glance at his chief engineer's face. "Sello?"

Sello looked up and gave Link a goofy grin. "Ya godz da zpiritz," he said in his drunken slur. "I don' wanna go."

Link could only take Sello at his drunken word, knowing that any sober response was not very likely to happen. "Harley?"

"I kinda like the sound o' overthrowin' a tyrant," Harley replied with a grin. "Wouldn' mind bein' par' o' it."

Link nodded and returned to the middle of the deck. "I feel a little stupid for asking all of you again, but I wanted to make sure," he told them. "We'll be pushing supplies getting to our destination, but I hope we can all bear it. The established shifts still stand. Gold, I'll need you to stay at the helm a little longer until Leynne's done plotting our course. The rest of you, please return to your stations."

…

~~I'm afraid. I'm afraid that my ship is doomed to be destroyed again. I'm afraid that my actions are going to get my crew killed. I'm afraid that they're just blindly following me. I can't sleep. It's been five hours since the Island Symphony left the Sky Line on its course toward Thicket Island for supplies. I keep worrying that one of those navy ships will spontaneously be on the horizon behind us and shoot us down before we can get anywhere. I don't think I can stand losing another ship, another crew.

~~This is all my fault. If I had just said no at one point, there wouldn't be a fake princess on the throne. The Island Sonata would still be under my command. And those thirteen lives buried next to the remains of the Horizon's Eye wouldn't have been lost.

~~What the hell was I thinking.

…

"I understood that much. But I can't help wondering why you chose _my_ ship?"

"As I said before, it was rather arbitrary."

Link blinked. It was almost as if it was blinking himself out of a daze. He looked around at the room and began to recognize his personal cabin on the _Island Sonata_. Furniture which he had only used once, a bag of laundry slung on a hammock with dirty clothes left neglected underneath. He stood up and looked back at the chair he had only sat in a handful of times. The log book was still sitting on his desk; he had forgotten to put it away.

And standing before him, Princess Zelda, wearing her variation of an airman's outfit that Link had last seen her in. She looked just as stunned as him. They stepped closer to each other and stared in each other's eyes.

Then the princess threw her arms around him. "Link!" she hollered. He felt her squeeze him. "It's working! I can't believe it's _working_!"

"Huh?" Link uttered.

She started and pulled away. "I-I'm sorry, Link," she told him. Her face began to redden. "That was… a little inappropriate, wasn't it?"

"Uh… a little… _weird_," Link admitted as his own face heated up. He glanced around. "What is this? Why are we on the _Island Sonata_? It was sunk over a month ago."

Zelda nodded. "I know. Airman Line saw it happen. Link… this is a dream."

Again, Link just blinked. "Uuuh… yeah, I… kinda had that feeling."

"Yes, well… I'm controlling it."

And Link just blinked again. Thrown as he was by what was appearing to happen, it was really the only means he had to convey his confusion, which had not ended since his brain first established the lack of reality around him.

Zelda grew concerned and asked, "Link, are you okay?"

He shook his head. "I-I just don't know what's going on. I… I think I'm getting used to it."

Zelda nodded. "I'm sorry, Link. This must be overwhelming. I'll do my best to explain."

Before she continued, she walked over to his hammock and sat on it. Then she gave it a curious glance and bounced on it a couple times. "Oh, this is fun," she remarked.

"Your Highness?" Link asked.

"Huh?" She gave him a confused look. Then, her face molded into a shy smile. "Sorry."

She cleared her throat and said, "First, I assume you know about the airship inside the Undying Storm."

"The _Smiling Gunner_," Link said.

Her eyebrows rose. "You know its name?"

"I learned about it on Forelight Island. It's the ship Cunimincus used when he was fighting the Sorians. It's locked in the storm with him."

"I see… I had not known as much, not even its name." She sighed and continued, "So I also assume you know that I am on that airship."

"It was… hard to tell," Link admitted. "My dreams lately… I was under the impression that they were coming from you."

She gave a sad nod, eyes cast to the floor. "They were. I'm sorry, Link, but they were." She took in a deep breath, and Link thought he could hear her shiver with that breath. "It started… maybe a few days after our capture. It-it's hard to tell; time does not seem to exist here. At first, I thought that I was somehow… somehow _focused_ on what it must have looked like when you lost your vessel, when you… fell out of the sky. As if I longed to have fallen with you if only to avoid my own circumstances. Then I started seeing other things." Then, to Link's surprise, her sad tone broke with a healthy laugh. The sight made the skin on his back crawl. "I-I'm sorry, but I must ask," she said as she wiped away a tear. "Did-did you and Airman Line _really_ wear dresses at one point in time?"

Link felt embarrassed and placed a hand over his face. "Oh, man…" he groaned at the memory. He knew _exactly_ what she was referring to. She must have taken it out of context, as there had been a perfectly reasonable explanation for him and Line to have been wearing dresses at the time. Well, as reasonable as could be expected from two eleven-year-olds working on an airship. "You saw that?"

She giggled at his embarrassment. "Yes. But it wasn't until later when I realized that there was a reason I was embarrassed to be in a dress. But I digress, as I can see this is uncomfortable to you. I soon realized that I was seeing people I had never met before but knew so well. Places almost out of a novel. Creatures of fear I could never imagine. I find of particular fright the creature you fought under the earth."

"I've been trying to forget that one…" Link commented.

She nodded. "They were fearsome creatures, but I found my fears quelled as I watched you defeat them. It was as if you were rescuing me from them. Contrary to what you may believe, it was actually quite comforting to watch. I was dreaming your dreams while you dreamt mine. And this is why." She reached into her pocket and then held out her hand.

In her hand was a red, oval-shaped gem. It took Link a moment, but he recognized the gem that Irleen had given to Captain Koroul. He nodded and said, "I thought that might've been the reason. Captain Koroul, is he…?"

She shook her head. "He is alive. Along with the rest of the crew of the _Horizon's Eye_. But… I-I'm sorry, Link, but… Airman Albert…"

Link swallowed hard at the memory of finding Albert's gravestone and fought to hold back a flood of regret. "I already know."

"You do?"

He gave a sober nod. "We found the _Horizon's Eye_. He and Captain Koroul's airmen had already been buried when we found them."

She sighed. "I'm sorry for _all_ of this," she told the floor. "If-if I'd just…"

Link could see that she was blaming herself. It frustrated Link because he had just finished blaming _himself_ before he went to sleep. "No," he told her quietly. "No, it's not your fault."

"Link…"

Link took a deep breath. He could see that the conversation was leading to another sad subject and wanted desperately to avoid it. So he steeled himself and said, "Your Highness. Right now, someone impersonating you is sitting on the throne."

She looked stunned for a moment, thrown off by the sudden shift. She nodded her understanding. "Yes. Yes, I know. It's one of Cunimincus' crew. I watched her take my form right before my eyes."

"So they took the _Horizon's Eye_ back and put her in your place," Link said with a nod. "I know at least Line was with them. Are there any of my crew still there?"

"No, they all returned on the _Horizon's Eye_. And Captain Koroul and his men have refused to speak for a great deal of time."

"To you?" Link asked, not believing that the intimidating but approachable Sorian captain would intentionally disregard her.

"To _anyone_. There is another Sorian on this ship, one which was not part of their crew. They have refused to speak before him, which has made conversation considerably difficult since he is imprisoned with us. From the little that Captain Koroul has said, the other Sorian is a traitor who revealed secrets to Cunimincus. It would appear that, for his betrayal, he was imprisoned by Cunimincus."

Link frowned. "Wait, he betrayed the Sorians to Cunimincus, and then _Cunimincus_ imprisoned him?"

"I don't believe it is without logic. Why would they trust a Sorian who betrayed his own people? What kind of trust has he built that should mean he would not betray Cunimincus?"

He nodded. "But _you_ are all right? They haven't mistreated you, have they?"

She sighed. "It is difficult to tell. They have left us neglected ever since they allowed their crewmate to imitate me. However, I find that I have not been hungry or experienced a great amount of fatigue. We merely… exist."

He took in a breath and let out a sigh. Relief filled him, and he said, "I suppose that means you're safe for now. Your Highness, I need to know where your parents went. The fake princess has caused problems, and the only way to remove her from her position is to find the king and queen."

"They are missing?" She paused for a moment, a worried look visible to Link before she looked down and let her blond bangs hide her face. She brought a hand up and covered her mouth. Link began to fear that news of her missing parents had upset her, but she seemed to find composure again and looked up to address him with a frown that was difficult for him to read. "I'm sorry, Link, I don't know where they went. They should have only been a few days from returning; I can't believe they haven't come back." She stood from the hammock. "Link, I'm waking up. I have to end this."

Link blinked as he replied, "Okay."

But he found himself sitting in a chair, the last sound only vaguely falling out of his mouth when he realized that he was in a completely different location. He felt tired, as if he had not slept at all. Leaning forward, he found that he was back in his cabin on the _Island Symphony_. Irleen was lying on his pillow on the bed to his left. He looked down at the desk and realized that he must have fallen asleep writing in his journal. Someone had turned out the single overhead bulb, leaving only faint moonlight to filter through the windows behind him. He sighed as he looked down at his journal. Then, using the moonlight to see, he reread his last few sentences. Then he took up his dropped pen and added one more sentence.

~~I know where Zelda is.


	74. The Hunt is On

Chapter 74: The Hunt is On

…

~~Day 39 (Command, Day 2)

~~Aside from a need to clarify command to the deck crew, today seems to have gone much better. Considering the circumstances. The crew has repeatedly expressed their eagerness to help in my new goal of locating the King and Queen of Hyrule. Although, I have to admit that my attempts to have a serious discussion on the subject with Airmen Layna and Biluf have been difficult with the amount of context Dholit seems to omit from her interpretations. I can't really tell, though; the only real way I can be sure of her accuracy would require me to constantly defer to Irleen while exchanging her translating gem so that she can tell me what the other Gelto are really saying. I can only guess that this kind of arrangement would just annoy all of us.

~~Leynne and Dubbl seem to be a little more comfortable with each other now that they are working on opposite shifts. Well, as comfortable as they can be without having to deal with each other. I really don't want to have to call all hands on-deck again, especially now that I know that Dubbl likes to hit people whenever they disagree.

~~I've checked into both engine room shifts to see how they've been doing. So far, everyone on both shifts seems to understand the basic upkeep of Sello's engine. This seems to be helped along by Sello coaching them between drinking sessions. Admittedly, allowing Sello to drink as much as possible is beginning to have its effect. The engine room smells funny. And Sello's couch is missing. I don't think he realizes it's missing, but all four airmen have admitted that they didn't even see Sello remove it from the room.

~~Our current course is still northbound toward Thicket Island. We've been reaching for most of the day, which I really had hoped would eventually allow us a full run with the sails open. Leynne has taken some time to examine the port capstan controlling the outboard spars. He says that one of the gears which facilitate operation had failed to mesh correctly and that the capstans probably should not be operated until he can fix the problem. I've told him to get whatever he needs at a general store. Since we can't identify the Island Symphony as a Skyrider ship without attracting attention, we won't be able to obtain supplies at branch offices (assuming those are still open). No other company is likely to help us, either. Approaching Sagacity Island as we are, we'll be in territories close to where the Airliners and Zephyr Sails operate, and neither company likes Skyriders. We're sailing by the soles of our feet, and our lack of funds is going to eventually start hurting. We need support.

~~We need the company.

…

~~Day 40 (Command, Day 3)

~~The crew seems to have taken quite well to routine. I didn't expect issues to arise from Airman Gold, but the whole crew was especially bright this morning during the shift change. They worked out a meal schedule and rotate one person out at a time for lunch. I lent my assistance to the dayshift's schedule by taking the helm for Leynne. I asked Gold if he needed relief so he could get a ration at midnight. He explained that, with the engine disconnected, he has a panel which he can put a ration packet on so that he can eat while still working the helm. I just asked him not to make a mess on the console.

~~We've still been reaching on a northeast wind, but it's been a little stronger today. I'm hoping that we'll make Thicket Island some time tomorrow.

~~I'm a little dismayed that Princess Zelda didn't try to contact me in my dreams again last night. I have to admit that I've been a little skeptical about the whole thing. I haven't told Irleen about it until I was certain. The more I think about it, the more I realize that it could have easily just been a crazy dream. Maybe I'm just thinking about it too hard.

…

~~Day 41 (Command, Day 4)

~~We made it to Thicket Island this morning, and there've been some interesting developments. First, no one here seems to like Leynne's accent.

~~Second. One of the dockers I spoke to about a vessel carrying the king and queen sounded a little confused. He explained that he had heard something about some of the southern islands wanting to break off the kingdom to form their own nation, but he had no idea that the King and Queen of Hyrule were supposed to be passing by Thicket Island. I know that it wasn't likely that they stopped here, but the fact that he had not heard anything about it says that it's possible that they did not take this route. I've been trying to remember the layout of the Sky Lines, and, now that I think about it, I think the River Lines might've made for a more direct route from Castle Island. Still. At least we know where they aren't.

~~Third. We actually got asked about a shipping problem that occurred a few weeks ago. When the dockmaster found out that we had just come from Autumn Island (technically true), they asked us if the Autumn Island dockmaster reporting any missing supply crates. We told him that we hadn't heard of anything like that, and he explained that if we happened to go by Autumn Island again, we could tell the dockmaster that he's seen some supply crates go through here. Leynne asked why they weren't here anymore, and the dockmaster told us that someone had slapped a set of shipping instructions on them and sent them off to East Iron Island before he could stop them.

~~The dockmaster said that no one knew what was in them and that someone had gone over the top with adding warning brands to the outside. He said that he thinks that someone was playing a prank because that same person had marked the crates "Perishable", "Flammable", "Do Not Feed", and "This End Up" (among other things) on every side, and the "This End Up" indicated that every end was up. It might be wishful thinking, but that sounds just like the kind of thing Line would do. Leynne and I talked about it a little afterwards, and he's agreed that we should ask about the crates when we reach East Iron Island.

~~We've managed to get our hands on some cheap supplies, mostly rations and the part which Leynne needs to fix the capstan. We also found some cheap clothes for the crew, knowing that they probably did not expect to have to live in their clothes like this for too long.

…

"Kyabtin? Kyabtin!"

Link startled to life at the sound of Dubbl's voice calling to him. He pushed himself up from the bed and glanced around to find Dubbl waiting by the head of the bed.

"Con tùkħanu?" Irleen groaned from her hanging bed above Link's feet. "Tūbla? Con kapòhu? Hōn lòn rawàn."

Dubbl shot a confused look up at Irleen before returning to Link. "Kyabtin, you wake?"

"I think so," Link groaned as he moved to the edge of the bed. "What's going on?"

"Tlouble."

Link had to rub the sleep out of his eyes before Dubbl's mangled word registered. His brain immediately snapped to life, and he looked up and asked, "What kind of trouble?"

"Shib come flom ze souz," Dubbl replied, one hand pointing out the cabin's frosted windows. "Lights on."

Link became aware of his heartbeat. This was something he had been dreading. A ship from the south was an indication that one of the ships might still be pursuing them from Castle Island, and he had told both deck crews to keep their eyes open for any ship following them. It was a surprise that a ship had taken this long to find them; if those ships had still be pursuing from Castle Island, even with the lead they gained from the Sky Lines, they should have been on top of the _Island Symphony_ almost as soon as they docked at Thicket Island. He had forgotten about the order, but he was glad that they were still keeping watch. Although this vessel could simply be another ship from Autumn Island, Link was not sure if he should take that chance. So he told Dubbl as he stood up and moved over to his desk, "Turn on the lights and have the current watch meet me on the poop deck."

"Yes, Kyabtin," Dubbl replied with a sharp nod.

"Ħìtīn kīt hì ħawit cōthu con tùkħanu?" Irleen asked while watching Dholit leave. "Ħàn huk káhápīnatìn ta?"

Link, who had just picked up his tunic, decided to set it back on top of the desk and grabbed his trousers off the arm of his chair. He started putting them on as he asked, "Sorry, Irleen, what were you saying?"

"Just wondering if someone was going to tell me what's going on," she replied as she moved to hover over Link's desk.

"Dubbl said there's a ship coming," Link said.

"So?"

"From the south," Link replied after pulling his tunic over his head. "It might be a ship following us; I'm going to go look right now."

"You don't think they're still _chasing_ us, do you?" Irleen said as Link crossed the cabin.

"It might be nothing," Link said as he slipped his boots on. "But we should be sure. The _Symphony_'s pretty unique; it wouldn't take much time for them to notice a six-masted schooner with outboard spars."

"Yeah," she commented in a sassy tone. "Curse the Architects and their gift of building unique ships."

"Would've been nice if we hadn't become fugitives so fast," he replied as he opened his wardrobe.

"Your sword?" she asked as Link removed the sword he received from Meilont and slung it around his waist. "You can't be expecting trouble."

"I was wearing it earlier when I was on shore," Link said as he fumbled with the buckle. "This is just in case, but I don't think I'll need it."

Irleen sighed as she followed him out the door. "There's no place like home…"

When Link stepped out onto the deck, he found it empty and lit by the shadow falling off Thicket Island. The sun was just barely rising, blocked by the island but bright enough to hide the weaker stars in the sky above. The electric lights built into the ship's bulwark at intervals were alive and casting just enough light to distinguish the edge of the ship. Link rounded the port staircase and took it up to the quarterdeck. He paused to look out at the docks, finding that only a few dockers were wandering around this morning. Then he continued onto the poop deck, where he found the night crew standing at the transom.

Gold heard Link approaching, shifted his head to one side, and spoke in a voice intended to gain everyone's attention, "Cap'n on deck."

"As you were," Link quickly responded as the Gelto turned to see what was happening. "Report."

Dubbl cast Gold a confused look, and Gold replied, "Ship sighted tae stern, Cap'n. Can't tell if she's just passing or not."

Link stepped up to the transom. "Any sight of a black flag?" he asked.

"Twali," Dubbl said to the Gelto standing next to Link. "Waba thawcya'ak kwabbil 'afocxi max?"

"Na'," Twali replied with a shake of her head.

"Not," Dubbl told Link, although the headshake was enough of a signal to him.

Link located the ship a little to starboard. "Duoscope," he said, holding out a hand to Twali. Although Twali had not understood the word, she handed over the duoscope, and Link put it to his face. Just as Dubbl had said, the ship was running with its lights on, which was normal enough even as the sun was rising. Even with the low light, Link could see well enough that the ship was armed; the hull was painted black, just as most armed vessels should have been before the fake Princess took power. Link thought back to the ships over Hyrule Castle and tried to remember what their sail plans were. This ship appeared to be a brigantine, given away by the abnormally wide topsail which indicated that the rest of the aft mast was gaff-rigged. After concluding that there had been no brigantines at the castle, he sighed and stared long and hard, looking for some sign that it might be hostile. He could not see any open gunports, but that may have just meant that it had not spotted the _Island Symphony_ yet.

"Anything?" Irleen asked.

"Shhh," Gold hissed at her.

Then Link spotted it. The ship had turned a bit, probably in response to a hard gust from her port side. The helmsman had overcorrected a bit much and exposed the starboard side. And Link saw, just past the starboard edge of the fore topsail, the trailing edge of a black flag peering behind the ship.

"Oh, crud…" Link moaned to himself.

"Kyabtin?" Twali asked.

Link handed the duoscope back to her. Then he told Dubbl, "On the moorings; we're leaving."

Dubbl gave a sharp nod. "Yes, Kyabtin. Lwamm!"

Link turned to Gold as the two Gelto dashed for the main deck. "As soon as we're loose, drop the ballast to put us below the island. Then engage the engine and take us due north."

"Bad news?" Gold asked.

"I don't recognize it," Link said, "but it has a black flag. We need to avoid it."

"Ain't we bein' a li'l… obvious?" Gold asked. "I mean… leavin' _just_ as soon as we spot the ship?"

Link shook his head. "Not _that_ obvious. This isn't a bad time for a ship to leave, and going under an island isn't really suspicious."

"Aaaah. That was gonna be me _other_ question."

"As long as we're going north, we won't attract attention."

Gold nodded. "Sorry, Cap'n. Never been a fugitive 'fore. Never sailed _under_ an island 'fore, either."

"Just make sure we're low enough that we don't hit the underside," Link said.

"Aye aye, Cap'n," Gold replied with a grin. He turned and walked toward the bow.

Link heard Twali sigh and turned to her. She caught his glance over her shoulder and commented with a helpless shrug, "'Inu 'olwu giysomotak 'igazh. 'Inxaylokwak zasaykwl xiban dha' iddaf. Kwilis filwaf."

Link sighed. "If you're saying you're tired of running," he said to her, "I agree." Then he stepped to the bulwark and shouted at the dockers below, "_Island Symphony_ to port, ahoy! Clear the moorings!"

…

~~Day 42 (Command, Day 5)

~~Sighted an armed vessel for the fake Princess's navy and left Thicket Island bound for the next closest island, East Iron Island. The vessel hasn't appeared on the horizon, so it looks like they've stopped at Thicket Island. Still, we need to watch it; if it takes word back that it saw a strange vessel out here, we might have more ships out here looking for us. Dubbl, Leynne, Gold, and I have already talked out a solution in the event that that ship or any other navy ship appears. And we also have a plan in place in case we look too suspicious in asking about the king and queen and the cargo from Autumn Island. We figure that the armed ship we saw at Thicket Island will eventually overtake us, so we have to be prepared.

~~I still haven't heard anything more from Princess Zelda, but I'm trying not to just write the experience off as just a strange dream.

…

~~Day 43 (Command, Day 6)

~~I don't think that brigantine was interested in us. The horizon's been clear all day except for another schooner passing to the east. Cale alerted me twice about seeing something on the horizon, but it only turned out to be specks of dust on the duoscope; we found out that he sets it on the deck when he needs to rest his eyes. Leynne later modified the duoscope by attaching a belt to it so it could be hung around the user's neck.

~~We've still been reaching for the past two days, but the wind's shifted enough to give us a better push south. I'm hoping the wind will shift to the west a bit; if we're going as far as Sagacity Island, like I suspect we eventually will, we'll need it to get there fast.

…

The atmosphere in the tavern suddenly thickened with the presence of two black-clad airmen stepping through the open doorway, both of them sporting muscles threatening to rip open their undersized tunics at the slightest flex. Their heads were shaved bald, and they sported armor plates on their shoulders, elbows, hips, and knees, the kind of armor meant to be worn so that the wearer had a full range of motion. They had cutlasses properly strapped to their belts, indicating their usual gear. Their beady eyes wandered around the nearly empty tavern for a moment, and then one of them nodded in the direction of the door leading to the overnight rooms beyond. The one who nodded then approached one of only two occupied tables while his companion walked to the door.

He stopped beside the table and looked at the occupants. Two were dockers, an older gentleman and an apprentice enjoying their evening beer. Another occupant, although not actually sitting, was a tall, slender man with black hair, his clothing a pristine, white shirt and worn work trousers held up by a pair of blue suspenders. He had his arms crossed and, while keeping his face directed at the dockers he had been addressing, he allowed his eyes to look over the airman. The airman was not sure what to make of him, but his clean look hinted that he was not a local; no one who lived on an island known for its mines could ever look so comfortable. While he stood against a wall, a fourth person sat at the table in front of him, across from the dockers. The airman hesitated to call this person a man due to the pair of boots peeking under the brown, ragged robes barely touching the floor. The hood hid this person's face, and the airman wanted to avoid looking underneath it if he could avoid it.

The airman took in a breath and said to the whole table, "I'm looking for a ship."

"You feel you boys are in the right place?" the older docker asked, drawing a snort from his apprentice. "The port's _that_ way," he added, pointing out the door.

"It's a unique ship," the airman continued. "Six masts, all gaff-rigged."

"Long ship," the man against the wall muttered.

"It's called the _Island Sonata_," the airman said. "It's supposed to be captained by a child."

"Scrapin' the bottom of the barrel on _that_ one, aren't they?" the apprentice asked with an amused grin.

"I seen young commanders before, boy," the older docker said to the airman, "but anyone who'd put a _child_ in command _gotta_ be outta their minds."

"The captain's name is supposed to be Link," the airman said. Then he turned to the hooded figure at the table and tapped its shoulder with a finger. "Aren't you a little _young_ to be in here?"

The hooded figure stirred when it realized that it was being addressed. A pair of hands extended from the sleeves, and the figure removed its hood to reveal a young man with thick, blond hair. He grinned at the airman and said, "Aren't you a little _oldda_ be bullyin' kids?"

The airman's eyes flicked back to the standing man before saying to the boy, "Kinda young to be drinking."

The boy picked up the tin cup and tilted it slightly to reveal its contents. "It's milk." As if to prove it, he took a drink and released a loud, relaxed sigh. "Buy ya one?"

"Cute," the airman said to him. "You two don't look like locals."

"I _hope_ not," the old docker said. "If our boys looked like _them_, I'd say there's some hanky-panky goin' on in the mines." Then he elbowed his apprentice. "Not that I wouldn't mind gettin' inna that lot." Both dockers shared a chuckle.

"Okay, so we aren't local," the boy admitted with a shrug. "It isn't a crime'a roam around, is it?"

"Where are you two from?" the airman asked.

The boy exchanged a look with the standing man, who only shrugged. "We just got here from Might Island. We gotta been sailin' almost two weeks, even _with_ some good winds."

"Place isn't the same without the Lines," the apprentice said. The older docker nodded and leaned back in the chair.

"What ship did you two come on?" the airman asked.

"The _Symphony_," the boy replied.

"Company?"

The boy paused before he took a drink of milk. "Independent."

"So you're just waiting to be bought out, huh?" the airman joked.

"Well, if we do, we hope it won't be by a jerk like _you_."

The airman put a fist on the table and leaned on it. "Look, _kid_, I didn't _ask_ to be recruited by the navy; I was just a deckhand when this all happened. I'd think that the fact that I have the power to _arrest_ you would make you think twice about being a little _brat_. Why am I even _talking_ to you?" He looked up at the standing man. "Don't _you_ have anything to say? You _gotta_ be his superior."

The boy blew an amused raspberry and turned to the standing man. "Did you hear that? He wantzza hear ya talk. Feelin' the need, Captain?"

The airman's face paled as he looked back up at the standing man. He could see the glare deepen on the man's brow as the captain opened his mouth and mumbled in a barely audible voice, "Do I?"

The airman took a moment to compose himself, and the boy made no effort to hide the glee on his face. After shooting the boy an irate glare, he replied, "Sorry, Captain, but you gotta understand. There's a vessel around here that's wanted by the Crown; we're questioning _everybody_. The Crown has reason to believe this ship and her crew are dangers to the kingdom."

"And so you Skyriders gotta be the _cow rustlers_, right?" the old docker asked, hostility tinting his voice.

"Look, pal, this wasn't by choice," the airman replied, his own voice gathering aggression again. "When we got recruited, it was either put on the uniform or swan-dive overboard. The company captains are supposed to loyal to the Crown; we gotta chase down the captains of our own _company_ because some of them told the princess to shove off."

"And it's nizza see _you_ got your priorities _straight_," the old docker said. "You wore out your welcome, so scram. I didn't become a docker juzza hear some idiot cry his eyes out because his heaven-damned job doesn't suit his diaper anymore."

The airman reached for the handle of his cutlass. This, to his surprise, prompted the boy to shove his chair backwards while he stood up. One hand went inside his robes, and, with his shoulders turned, the airman realized that the boy must be armed with something. His captain had started, one half-step closer to the table with his arms down at his sides as if he waited to pull something as well. But the airman stared at the boy, wondering if he had a sword or a pistol under those robes.

He decided to check by asking, "You wanna start something, boy?"

A mechanical click sounded, but not from nearby. Attention at the table turned toward the bar and found the large, barrel-chested bartender standing at the close end of the bar with a flintlock pistol aimed at the airman. "If he doesn't, I _will_," the bartender snarled. "Wrinkles is right; you Skyrider bastards gotta worn out your welcome. Now get the hell oudda here before I decidda give ya a _handicap_."

"Jim, don't," the other airman called across the room. "It isn't worth it."

"_Both_ of ya, _out_!" the bartender hollered, waving his free hand for emphasis.

"We're going, we're going," the other airman said as he walked toward the door. "C'mon, Jim."

Airman Jim backed away a step and relaxed. The boy refused to drop his guard, so he shuffled sideways toward the door before finally turning and leaving with an even stride.

The boy waited until they were well out of sight before retrieving his chair. When he looked up from setting it back, he saw that he had drawn particularly irate looks from both dockers and the bartender. He thought he was in trouble until the bartender decocked the pistol and stowed it under the bar.

The old docker cracked a smile and leaned backwards in his chair again. "That's the worst accent I ever heard," he told the boy. "Lucky those Skyrider boys are dumb as bricks, or else you'd be _walkin_' home."

Link could not help grinning as he took his seat again. He had always suspected he had not perfected a "Southern" accent, but it was nice to know that he could pass for a local well enough. Link had to admit, as he took a calming sip of milk, that he was almost looking forward to fighting with that airman. He had spent most of his childhood dealing with pig-headed jerks like that, and it would have satisfied him to have fought against his unprofessional bullying. So he was glad he had something to drink; it was a welcome distraction.

"No kiddin'; that was a shitty accent," the apprentice chuckled before taking another sip of beer. "Where'd you learnna talk like that?"

Link licked his lips so they did not feel so dry. Then he said, "I have some friends that live down here. The Sokkarokka Band?"

The apprentice put on a wide-eyed look. "You _know_ them?"

"My old post took them to Castle Island for the past four years. They used to invite me and a friend to hang with them during the Founding Festival."

"Well, _that_ makes us friends. I always take time offa go see them down on Sagacity Island."

"Since we'h friends," Leynne spoke up, crossing his arms again, "do you suppose we could resume ouh previous discussion?"

"Yeah, what were we talkin' about?" the apprentice asked.

"Theeee… Royal Family, wasn't it?" the old docker asked as a bar girl brought them a fresh round of drinks.

"I believe so," Leynne said with a nod.

"Well, we can't say we saw them around _here_," the docker said. "We're just a small mining town; never been much reason."

"A royal entourage would gotta been a hell of a memory here," the apprentice added.

"Oh, if you must know where they are," the bar girl spoke up, holding her serving tray against her chest, "they might gotta gone'a Might Island."

Both Leynne and Link blinked at her in amazement. As familiar as Link was with the kinds of information that could be gleaned from dockers and airmen over a fresh beer, this was something he only knew from his usual visits to Sail Tavern, a place that never employed bar girls. "You-you would _know_ that?" Link asked.

She nodded, causing her ponytail to swing and bob. "I was a student every other week at the college on Sagacity Island. I got stuck here when the Sky Lines disappeared."

"Naturally," Leynne commented.

"I wrote a paper on the political issues the southern islands have been raising," she continued, shooting Leynne a smug smile. "The governor of Might Island was tryinna rally some of the southern islands inna askin' that their islands have permanent representation on Castle Island so that they don't gotta expend money'a send representatives back and forth so often. Additionally, since the Royal Family has monopoly on how land is distributed throughout the kingdom, they find it difficuldda set up a few select facilities on both Might Island and Timbre Island. The Royal Family keeps denyin' them the right to resettle the land they need. Relatively speakin', these are actually quite trifle matters, but the governor of Might Island isn't really a fan of the monarchy, and he twists the needs of his staff juzza justify his complaints."

"Wait, wait a moment," Leynne said. "What exactly _was_ the title of this… this papeh?"

"You godda funny accent," the apprentice commented.

"Originally, I intendedda support the separation movement," the bar girl explained. "But, after I did all the research, I hadda change the subject so I wouldn't look like an idiot. Really, not one piece of information I found supported my original premise. The title was… well, I titled it 'Being a Political Crybaby'." Both Leynne and the old docker snorted and quickly covered their mouths so they would not laugh too loud.

"So, you mean the King and Queen were last seen on Might Island?" Link asked while Leynne struggled to control himself.

"Ostensibly," the bar girl said with a nod. "I would feel they returnedda Castle Island by now, but if you're lookin' for them, it can't mean anythin' good."

Link looked up to find that Leynne was now in control of himself. Leynne shrugged and said, "Well, that's a faihly solid lead. Betteh than what we got from Thicket Island."

"Why are you interested in findin' them?" the bar girl asked.

"We think that, if we can find them and take them back to Castle Island," Link explained, "it might help solve some of the problems around the kingdom."

"You feel the Royal Family's connected?" the apprentice asked.

"In a ratheh… convoluted way," Leynne said. "Just as that aihman said, the _princess_ is the one in control of the navy."

"We think that she'll let the navy go if she's not on the throne anymore," Link added.

The bar girl nodded. "Yeah, that _should_ do it. You just needda hope ya don't get shot down doin' it."

"Trust me, that's the outcome we'h _praying_ foh," Leynne told her.

"Sounds like ya got the answer ya need," the old docker said.

"Just one more thing," Link said, raising a finger to him. "And this, I think, you should know more about. There should've been a few supply crates that came through here from Thicket Island."

The old docker shook his head. "We see a whole lodda crates come through here."

"Well, these are a little more specific," Link explained. "I'm not sure how many crates there were, but someone put a bunch of warning labels on them."

"Oh, I remember those," the apprentice spoke up. "We probably rolled one of those things five times before we decided which way was up."

Link gave a confused frown. "Was there anything _inside_?"

"I said 'we', didn't I? I couldn't tell ya what it was, but it _was_ heavy. And loose; I don't think it was packed right."

"Ah they still heh?" Leynne asked.

"I don't _feel_ so," the apprentice said.

"No, they're not," the old docker said. "I remember those crates, too. I didn't see who took them, but I remember seein' the shippin' orders slapped on them. All three major islands."

"'Majoh' islands?" Leynne asked.

The apprentice held up a hand and raised his fingers in response to his naming, "Sagacity Island, Might Island, and Bold Island."

"Direct routes," the old docker added. "Of course, that was before the Lines disappeared. Now, you gotta island-hoppa get anywhere."

"Don't we _know_ it," Link said. "Do you remember how big the shipment was?"

"A dozen crates at best," the apprentice said. "I didn't count them, though."

"Will you be goin'a Sagacity Island?" the bar girl, having stood at the table the whole time, spoke up.

"It's the closest one," Link replied with a shrug.

"Would you mind taking me there? I got family on Sagacity Island; I wanna make sure they're okay. I'd pay; I have one hundred and twenty-eight rupees saved up."

Link frowned and looked at Leynne. "What do you think?"

Leynne shrugged. "_You'h_ the captain," he said, drawing surprised looks from the apprentice and the bar girl. "Pehsonally, the money would be welcome. We could use a souhce of legitimate income while we'h running from the Crown."

"Wait, wait," the apprentice said. He pointed a finger at Link. "_You're_ the captain."

The old docker chuckled after watching Link nod his head. "Explains why you know more than your buddy here."

Link stood and held out his hand to the bar girl. "Captain Link of the _Island Symphony_," he said with an air of pride. "And one hundred twenty-eight rupees sounds like the right price."

The bar girl struggled to hold in a smile at the realization that Link was a head shorter than her. She took his hand and shook it. "Thanks, Captain," she said.

Link nodded. "If you have stuff to gather, do it as soon as you can; we won't be staying overnight."

"You'll find ouh vessel docked… south of heh," Leynne added. He pushed away from the wall. "Link, we should move. Dubbl will be wondering what's taking us, especially if they've had to move the ship."

Link nodded his agreement over his shoulder. "Two hours," he told the bar girl. "Remember; the _Island Symphony_. Just look for a ship with six masts."

"And the only ship with female crew on the deck," Leynne added.

The old docker chuckled. "Got yourself a unique ship there, Captain."

Link jerked a thumb at Leynne as Leynne fished a red rupee and two blue rupees from his wallet. "He designed it."

Leynne set the rupees down on the table and indicated Link with a nod. "_He_ hihed the crew." Then he told the bar girl, "Keep the change foh youhself."

She nodded, her eyes aglow with gratitude. "Thank you, sir."

Link and Leynne stepped out into the cold air of a Southern night, and Leynne placed his hands in his pockets to try to appear unbothered by the cold. He allowed himself a moment to play with his visible breath, blowing it out as if it was tobacco smoke, before saying anything. "It's a good thing the poht on this island is a little lahgeh than on Thicket Island," he commented to Link as they walked down the street. "Do you think they've seahched all the spaces by now?"

"It should've been the first thing they did," Link said. "But we'll have to make sure they aren't still watching when we board."

"Do you think two houhs will be enough foh heh to find us?"

Link shrugged. "I'm flexible, but we _really_ need to get out of here before that ship finds us."

Leynne sighed. "So, what's the plan from heh? I imagine we _ah_ going to Sagacity Island."

"Yeah. We probably shouldn't attempt to get to Might Island _just_ yet. If I recall, it's much further between Sagacity and Might than what we've traveled so far."

"And, doubtless, much fuhtheh from _heh_."

"Ooooh yeah." Link paused when he noticed a black-clad figure approaching them in the distance. "Leynne, walk ahead of me."

"Huh?"

Link swung his arm. "Walk ahead of me. Hurry."

Leynne glanced down at Link with a confused expression before taking the lead toward the docks. Link flipped his hood up so that the few streetlights would not illuminate his face so well. Leynne was silent throughout the experience and did not dare look back at Link unless Link said something. Link kept quiet as he fell a pace further behind Leynne and stepped out so he could see past Leynne's left arm.

The black-clad figure slowly walked closer without paying them much attention. Just as Link had suspected, this man was wearing a black tunic with the same style of armor as the airmen from before. The main difference was the violet cape fastened to his shoulder armor and flowing through the air as he walked. His hip sported an arming sword, but Link also saw another sword on his opposite hip, a kind which he had only seen once before. If the hilt and the tassels dangling from the pommel were the same as Link remembered, then the man was wearing a Captain's Saber. It was the only weapon regularly used by Skyrider captains before they had been drafted; Link would have probably obtained one if he had been in command of the _Island Sonata_ for more than two days. Captains were only supposed to wear them in a battle situation, when there was a chance their ship might be boarded.

Link's eyes then wandered up to the man's face. He was an older man with wrinkles just starting to form. As they came closer together, Link realized that he had a glass eye hidden in the shadow of his brow, revealed when he glanced at Leynne. The glance also showed off the scars in the streetlight. One was a diagonal slash over the socket sporting the glass eye, another a frightening crescent starting from the bridge of his nose and curving around his good eye. His black hair was ruffled but at least looked clean. Link knew the man from the captains' portraits kept in the main hall of the Skyrider office, probably the only captain who had his portrait switched to reflect his new beauty marks.

"Good evening," Leynne greeted the man as they passed. Link flinched; he was not expecting Leynne to draw his attention.

The captain offered them an acknowledging nod. "Gentlemen."

"Evening, sir," Link said, trying to play off Leynne's politeness.

But the captain's attention had returned to his path, and Link took that moment to follow him with his eyes as the captain walked past. Link waited a little longer, glanced backwards, and then picked up his speed so he was walking beside Leynne again.

Leynne glanced down at him. "That was… unusual," he commented.

"Sorry, Leynne," Link replied. "I was just taking a moment to reign my soul back in place."

"I didn't think he was _that_ frightening. Even if he _is_ one of the men chasing us."

"That black ship that's been chasing us. I know what it is now. It's the _Moon's Shadow_; that was Captain North that just walked past us."

"This is a concehn?" Leynne asked, his voice trying to convey more confusion than sarcasm.

"He doesn't look like that because he's a nice guy. He's been shot, stabbed, and slashed so many times it's a wonder he's still alive."

Leynne was baffled for a moment, unsure how to respond as he repeatedly looked between Link and the road ahead. "I… I see. It sounds as if he… takes cah of the dihty wohk foh the company."

"The _Moon's Shadow_ is one of only six armed vessels allowed to operate in the company. _None_ of the other ships has a battle record like it. Captain North has probably sent more pirate ships down to the surface than most other airship captains _combined_."

"Ah. Nice fellow."

"Yeah, if you're on _his_ side." Link heaved a sigh and glanced back over his shoulder. "This is bad. If Captain North has orders to sink us…"

Leynne glanced backwards. "Don't wohry," he told Link in a low voice. "If it comes to it, we can always have the Gelto kill him befoh he finds us."

Link nearly burst out laughing, but managed to reduce it to a humored chuckle. "Maybe," he said with a grin.

They continued to the docks, which were mostly empty of foot traffic since no one really wanted to wander around an area covered in fatal tripping hazards. They found that the _Island Symphony_ was gone. This, Link decided, was perfect. Where the ship had been waiting, had it remained there, would have been immediately discovered due to the black ship, the _Moon's Shadow_, mooring on the next dock over. Link and Leynne observed the _Moon's Shadow_ and her airmen for a moment from the dark nook between a pair of storehouses. Then they snuck through the storehouses and empty office buildings toward the opposite end of the docks. As they moved, the airmen from the _Moon's Shadow_ became fewer until only the dockers working the night shift occupied the docks. Link and Leynne made sure that the coast was clear before coming into the open, and, even then, they stood at the far end so they did not attract unwanted attention.

Link relieved himself of the tattered robes and dropped them to the ground, finding it safe enough to be seen in his captain's tunic. He had worn only his sword for his protection, but he had an additional belt situated between his regular belt and the sword belt. From behind his back, he pulled a pistol out of the holster attached to this additional belt and examined it for a moment. Unlike a flintlock pistol, this pistol had a wide, short barrel and no kind of flashpan or frizzen. The hammer was a small piece built directly behind the barrel and appeared almost indistinguishable from the frame of the gun. He pressed down on a button on the underside of the frame just in front of the trigger guard and pushed down on the barrel, opening the breech. From the new belt, he then drew a shell and loaded it into the breech.

Slapping the barrel closed, he told Leynne, "Keep your eyes open. We don't know if this is gonna catch some attention." Leynne nodded, and Link approached the nearest dock.

He stood at the mouth of the dock where an airship's bow should be overlooking the ground. He used a thumb to pull the hammer back until it clicked, just as Dubbl had shown him hours earlier. Then he aimed at the open air between the docks and, with some hesitation, pulled the trigger.

_Fzzzzzzzzzzz!_ The initial sound startled him as a stream of dark smoke blew out of the barrel, and he pointed the gun at the ground as he tried to watch the progression of the shell he had just fired. At first, he wondered if it had failed. Then the air beneath the docks suddenly glowed bright red as a single point erupted into scarlet light.

"Subtle," Leynne spoke up, still standing away from the docks. Link turned to look at him. "They would have to be looking straight at it in ohdeh to notice it."

"Yeah," Link agreed. He placed the gun back in the holster and walked back over to Leynne. "The question is whether the _ship_ spotted it or not."

Leynne crossed his arms. "I'm not wohried. We have some very attentive aihmen, and we _did_ arrange this befohhand."

Link nodded and glanced down the docks toward the _Moon's Shadow_, although he was not able to see it between the distance and the dark. His description of Captain North may have been a bit over-the-top even by his own admission, but he was no less concerned about being pursued by that man. Link had only ever met the captain once or twice, although they had never been introduced; Link had just happened to be on-deck when North had boarded to speak with Captain Alfonzo. He doubted if North even remembered his face. Link had not really been important enough at the time to be introduced to another captain.

A half-hour must have passed before anything happened. The dockers had been ignoring the green-clad airship captain, so Link and Leynne were surprised by a figure jogging toward them.

In fact, someone else was surprised at the sight as well.

Link and Leynne both jerked their heads in the direction they heard pronounced footsteps. They only had a second to recognize the bar girl before another figure dove out of the space between a pair of nearby storehouses. The bar girl stopped with a jerk as this swifter person wrapped one arm around her chest and placed a glint of steel to her neck.

"No!" both Link and Leynne shouted as they ran forward, hands held out to help signal the Gelto airman to stop. The bar girl stood locked in position, her suitcase dropped on the ground next to her.

"No, don't!"

"Let heh go!"

"She's a friend!"

"She's a passengeh!"

"She's coming with us!"

"Don't huht heh!"

But Layna, as revealed when they were close enough to see her face, maintained an emotionless scowl as she listened to the incoherent ramblings of her superiors. The bar girl mouthed help to them as carefully as possible, trying to avoid touching the circular blade under her jaw.

"Layna?" Link said as he cautiously approached. "Layna, let her go. Please."

"What a fine time foh heh not to undehstand Hylian…" Leynne commented.

"Layna," Link said. He mimed gently pushing something away with one hand. "Layna, move away from her. Let her go."

Layna glared at Link for a moment. Then she withdrew the blade and stepped away, revealing that she had exchanged her regular clothes for a black bodysuit decorated with straps and pockets.

The bar girl heaved a sigh of relief. "What… what just happened?" she asked Leynne, a slight tremor coloring her voice. She turned and looked at Layna. "Who-who are _you_?"

"An aihman who hasn't had heh rabies shot," Leynne said as he moved to stand between the two girls.

"We're sorry about that," Link said as he invited her closer with one hand. "We didn't know she was with us."

"Oh that she needed to be declawed," Leynne added.

Link glanced back toward the end of the dock to see the _Island Symphony_ slowly drift into the dock. "Let's get everyone onboard before she feels the need to actually _kill_ someone."

"If she hasn't already," Leynne said as he picked up the bar girl's suitcase.


	75. Welcome to Sagacity Island

Chapter 75: Welcome to Sagacity Island

…

"She's a _what_!?"

Leynne's loud question was a reflection of Link's own feelings on the matter at hand. While the _Island Symphony_ underway with the night covering her departure from East Iron Island, he had called Leynne, Dholit, and Layna into his cabin in order to get an explanation as to what Layna's function in Gelto society was. Needless to say, Dholit's response was quite surprising.

"She's an assassin," Dholit repeated, a wide, delighted smile on her face expressing her glee at Link and Leynne's expense.

"I don't get it," Irleen commented as she hovered over Leynne's shoulder. "And _what_ are you smiling about, Dholit?"

"An assassin," Link repeated. "It means she kills people."

Irleen hovered over and—_puh_—"Ow."—knocked him on the head. "I get _that_, Link," she told him. "I mean _why_ is this such a _problem_?"

"You mean _otheh_ than heh neahly killing ouh fihst passengeh?" Leynne asked.

"Dholit?" Link asked, rubbing the spot where Irleen had hit him. "Did _you_ know about this?"

Dholit gave a shrug. "I suspected," she told them. "The thing about Gilto assassins, though, is that you can't _quite_ tell one apaht from society. And they don't _strictly_ kill people. They'h moah like… like _watchehs_."

"Watchehs!?" Leynne declared. He indicated Layna with a hand, who flinched in response. "She almost _killed_ someone! Who was she supposed to be watching!?"

"My captain," Dholit replied.

"M-me?" Link asked.

Dholit nodded. "In case the enemy showed up."

Link stood up from his chair. "Dholit, the 'enemy' is my fellow _Skyriders_," he said. "We _can't_ kill them. _Any_ of them."

"Was this _youh_ idea?" Leynne asked her.

Dholit nodded. "When I found out what she was, I told heh that, on pain of death, she would protect you while you went onto the shoah. I didn't _exactly_ tell heh to kill anyone who approached you; she just… kind of approaches issues as she sees fit. Watch." She turned to Layna and asked in a gentle voice, "Layna, 'ijunwan wabin kyabtin thib 'anw 'addic 'asayzhali waba 'anw Xili'anay amidh."

Layna, having apparently lost the killer composure that Link had seen twice so far, gave Dholit a shocked look. Then she showed the look to Link. "A-Amda Kyabtin, 'i-'inu mizhoymiycak 'imayn abthuf 'agosji!" she declared, bowing as deep as possible. "Nwik fithoma mibinwoymak Amda Ky-Kyabtin thib tab zhidi thulwacuk xwabdhiyn na'ithab."

Dholit appeared impressed as she mumbled, "Ooh, 'anik 'ahaywxi…" Then, she said in a normal voice, "Na', Layna. 'Ijunwan."

Layna raised her head and nodded. Then, standing at her full height, she said, "'Inu nadlwaythawocya'ak 'anw Xili'anay amidh foltab 'ak kwofis zabicya'ak. Am-Amda Kyabtin taf Lyayn yitazmya'ak, 'idh 'inu bulnya'ak zhayf thusiyzhiltya. Taf…"

"Taf dhol?" Dholit asked.

"T-taf awyu 'inu kulwbya'ak zhadi…" Layna looked down at her toes, nervously playing with her fingers. "'Imayn xusruk mothayxwya'ak." Then she stood firm and told Link, "Nwaki nayx nadthikwufak 'idus, Amda Kyabtin. 'Inu nayx taynolak 'al 'inu yayxwot."

"Oooh, I can't wait to hear _this_ one," Irleen commented in a dry tone.

Dholit shot her a sarcastic smile before addressing Link. "She apologizes foh the attack and… hopes you will discipline heh as you see fit. She couldn't tell who the gihl was because it was so dahk, but she saw you jump and decided to attack. She, uh… she had a change of heaht and decided not to kill heh, quite hahd foh heh to do. And she says it won't happen again."

Link sighed. "Dholit…"

"You know," Leynne spoke up. "Having heh follow us might not be a bad idea. As long as she doesn't kill anyone."

Link looked at him for a moment before saying, "Dholit, tell her that she's only allowed to _capture_ someone if she has to, not _kill_. If she can do that, she can accompany us when we disembark again."

Dholit nodded. "I think she can do that."

"Tell her later," Link quickly said as Dholit made to address her. "Right now, I want both of you to go get some sleep. Leynne, you, too. Morning's gonna be here soon."

"My Captain?" Dholit asked. She indicated Layna. "What about heh punishment? She's waiting."

Link blinked in stupidity at Dholit's suggestive eyebrow waggle. He was not sure how to discipline airmen, never mind a _Gelto_ airman. "Uh… I'll-I'll let you take care of that, Dholit," he said.

Link did not think it was possible, but Dholit's smile became even wider. "Thank _you_, My Captain," she said. "I shall take great pleasuah in disciplining heh." She shared her manic smile with Layna, and Layna's dark skin visibly paled a few shades, something else Link did not think was possible. "'Inan sifunidh, Layna. 'Ak Kyabtin zhi xaylokwak 'inoy zalwciyk wabnik." Layna looked so stunned that Dholit had to pull her arm to get her to follow.

Irleen waited until they were out the door before saying, "You know, somehow… I don't think that was a very good idea. She's already mentally _scarred_ Dubbl."

Link shrugged and said, "I don't know _how_ to discipline airmen. And I'm not sure if I wanna _try_ disciplining a… a trained _killer_." He stood up and stretched his arms out. "Let's get some sleep. I wanna sleep before anything _else_ happens tonight."

…

~~Day 44 (Command, Day 7)

~~A drunk, a walking inun—inuendo (whatever that means), a brawler, and a trained killer. I'm not sure what's going to come up next.

…

~~Day 45 (Command, Day 8)

~~For the first time since we left the Sky Lines a week ago, the wind's shifted enough for us to open the sails for a decent run. It should give us a lead on the Moon's Shadow. We can use all the lead we can get since Captain North is following us. I'd like to think he would show some compassion for a fellow Skyrider captain, but the last time I saw him makes me think compassion went with his eye. I'm willing to bet that he would start shooting if he ever laid his remaining eye on the Island Symphony, so we'll have to hide her beneath Sagacity Island once we make it there.

…

~~Day 46 (Command, Day 9)

~~We found Sello's couch. Well, he put his couch back in the engine room, but no one knows where it's been this whole time. It smells like a shipment of fertilizer.

~~We're still running full toward the northwest with all sails open. So far, no sign of the Moon's Shadow.

…

~~Day 47 (Command, Day 10)

~~Our first passenger, a bar girl named Lilly, finally felt safe enough to come up on-deck. Although she stayed far away from Layna, she seemed interested in asking the rest of the crew about themselves. She spent a long time speaking with Cale especially. I guess it stopped when they both got distracted and fell through the poop deck into the boat deck. Fortunately, Cale's had enough experience falling from greater heights, and Lilly landed on top of him. But I think we should put a tarp over the hole so he doe—so no one else falls in. I'd been recently thinking about having Rosaline's cutter converted, but I'm beginning to realize that it breaks people's falls and muffles the sound they make against the deckhead to my cabin.

~~I can't believe I wrote that.

…

_Bam!_

Link and Leynne glanced at each other across the forecastle in reaction to the soft explosion and the jerk that was the _Island Symphony_'s response. Link knew that the explosion, if it could really be called that, could not have been a cannon; aside from the surrounding skies being clear, the impact did not feel right. He looked around to make sure that the sky was still empty.

"What was that?" Leynne asked as Link stepped past him to look over the deck.

"I-I don't know," Link said.

Leynne turned and pushed the propeller lever, finding that the mechanism was resisting. "The engine's still running, so it doesn't _appeah_ to have been Sello," he said. "Not that it really _means_ much."

"There's nothing in the sky to shoot at us," Link said as he looked around. However, other than Dholit and Layna sharing confused conversation, nothing appeared out of sorts "Everything _looks_ okay."

"Could it have been just a… I don't know, pehhaps a strange wind cuhrent?"

"Did you notice the wheel jerk?" Link asked as he looked up at the sails.

"Well… no, not really."

"Hang on," Link said when he finally noticed something. Although it was not very apparent due to the wind blowing over the deck, Link thought there was smoke wafting from the starboard stairs. "I'm going below. Have someone come get me if you start losing control."

"Suh."

Link quickly moved down the stairs and crossed the main weather deck to the below-deck steps. Now that he was closer, he could definitely tell that there was smoke emerging from below. He turned and called out, "La—_Yikes_!" The original intention was to call Layna and have her follow him down. Layna appeared to have taken the initiative, however, because she had already been standing behind him, giving him a curious look. Behind her, Dholit looked around in confusion as she tried to locate the person she had been talking to only a second ago. Link took a moment to calm himself and told her while pointing down the stairs, "We're going down below to see what's happening."

Layna glanced past him, and then she gave a firm nod. Sure she had the idea despite not understanding him, he waved her along as he moved down the stairs. They rounded the landing and emerged into the hold. Everything looked fine, but the hold was partially obscured by a thin cloud of smoke. Link quickly snatched his hat off his head and held it over his nose and mouth, and he turned back to find that Layna had taken a square cloth from her pocket, folded it, and was now tying it over her nose and mouth. Link took a few steps toward the stern, trying to see if there was a source in that direction. Then Layna tapped him on the shoulder. When he turned, she tapped one of her ears. He reasoned that she was telling him to listen and strained for a short moment before he became aware of voices. He gave Layna a questioning look, and she turned to point at the stairs leading to the galley below. Link nodded his agreement and followed her down.

"… ya would se' us on _fire_!" came one voice as they reached the galley. Thick smoke prevented them from seeing for a bit, so it was hard to tell who was in the compartment "Is ya _nuts_!?"

"Kwal waniygothotak 'immu thib?" replied a Gelto voice toward the back, sounding a little annoyed. "'Inu nadmatikak wabin 'anik."

"Guys?" Link called out. "Who's down here?"

"Tha' ya, Cap'n?" a second Hylian's voice called out.

"Ye—Is something on _fire_?" Link asked.

"It _was_," the first voice, which Link was now able to identify as Lawrence, answered. "It's ou' now."

Layna carefully pushed Link in a direction, and they emerged from the smoke beside the starboard hull. There, Link saw that Harley, appearing to only have recently awoken, was fanning the smoke toward the bow using his shirt. In front of him, Biluf was sitting on the deck with her back against the hull, covered in black powder like a coal miner and holding her head between her hands as if sporting a tremendous headache. From this vantage point, Link could also see the black, smoldering remains of some kind of furniture.

"What happened?" he asked Harley.

"No' sure, Cap'n," Harley replied. "I's jus' comin' down for a drink when I 'eard the boom."

"Is everyone all right?" Link asked, indicating Biluf to Layna. Layna nodded and moved past him to check on Biluf.

"Feelin' glad I used the 'ead earlier," Lawrence replied. Link could see him also waving something at the smoke to clear it out. "Go' scared shi'less when it 'appened."

Link coughed and waved his hand to clear the smoke away from in front of his face. "Anyone know what exploded? That's what it sounded like on-deck."

"_Knew_ ya guys might o' 'eard it," Harley said.

"It, accident, Kyabtin," Link heard Dubbl say from somewhere else in the room. "Biluf making shells."

"Shells?" Link asked. "For what?"

"Fla'es," Dubbl replied. "She make fla'es fo' gun."

The smoke finally cleared enough for Link to see Lawrence waving a fire blanket at the smoke while Dubbl was standing on the opposite side of the smoke, trying to hurry it along with another blanket. "Okay, so what went wrong?" Link asked. "Can you ask her?"

"She alleady said," Dubbl replied. "Zis room da'k, so she had lante'n. Powde' all on table. Biluf tested powde' and powde' test blew out ze lante'n. She stluck match to wo'k mo'e. Zen she dlopped ze match on table on accident. Boom."

"The table 'n some o' the floor was on fire," Harley continued, "bu' we go' it. Jus' go'a finish the smoke."

"Is Biluf okay?" Link asked.

"She have headache, but she all light," Dubbl said. "When she dlopped ze match, she fell to ze floo' fo' plotection. She vely fast."

"Okay, Dubbl, go make sure anyone still on the berth deck above moves," Link told her. "This smoke is gonna fill up the deck above; we need them to get out of there before they start choking. Lawrence, Harley? Keep fanning for now. I'm going above to see if we have a way to vent all this out of the cargo hold."

…

~~Day 48 (Command, Day 11)

~~I learned a couple of things today. First, Biluf is a fan of pyrotechnics. Dholit explained to me that she's one of the Gelto who makes bombs and shells for their flare guns. According to her translation, Biluf was trying to modify the color of the flares with different powders that she suspiciously obtained on Thicket Island. She had a lantern over her work table (which is now splinters all over the galley) while she was testing powder combinations, and she struck a match to light the lantern again. She dropped the match on the table and only had a moment to dive away from the table before the match lit her bag of gunpowder. Everything on the table exploded; there was shrapnel everywhere. Biluf agreed to clean it during her off-duty time. I discovered only about a half-hour ago that she had completely swept the galley clean. The only evidence left is the scorch marks on the deck where Dubbl and Lawrence beat away a couple of small fires.

~~Second, because of all the mechanics that work the masts and the controls to the engine, there's no cargo hatch in the weather deck. Leynne, after asking Gold to take the helm for him, showed me that he had already thought up an alternative to my inevitable question. He showed me that, between the frames in the hold, he had cut out panels which could be easily raised or lowered to allow heavy cargo in through the hull instead of the deck. He showed me all four panels by opening them, revealing two on each side of the ship. The best part is they can be controlled with ropes while standing perfectly safe behind the permanent hull. Thanks to this, we got the whole deck aired out within an hour and got the night shift back to bed so they had time to sleep before they went on-duty. Yet again, I'm stymied by this invention. It's almost as if half of this ship wasn't even built on conventional vessels just to mess with me. But, in this case, I'm glad they decided to experiment with the ship; a hatch in the deck might not have been as effective.

~~I've told Biluf that, if she wants to make more shells, please do it where it wouldn't cause such a problem. She decided to do it on the boat deck, which will be fine as long as she doesn't blow it up.

…

~~Day 49 (Command, Day 12)

~~Biluf has provided me with a range of shells which burn different colors when fired. We tested them out earlier today. Although they don't mix well with a sunny sky, they still show enough that at least it's possible to tell that there's a flare. She's made four different colors, so Leynne, Dubbl, and I worked out a system to determine what each color will mean if I ever have to fire one. We're planning to use this system so that we can communicate while we're at Sagacity Island. Knowing that the Moon's Shadow could show up there next, we've decided to create a few contingencies in case they come close to discovering us.

~~Twali has also provided me with something interesting: arrows. She's a fletcher and used to work on a skiff, using a bow and arrows to hunt Malgyorgs. The arrows she made came from the same source that provided Biluf's powders (which I'm trying not to interpret as theft), and she only had enough for a handful. They're only sharpened shafts without arrowheads, but I was still grateful. If it came to anything attacking me, I think something with any kind of point will come in handy.

~~We had a bit of a shift in the wind today, so we've had to go back to reaching. Still, I think we're close enough to Sagacity Island to be there within the next day.

…

Link was quite right as the _Island Symphony_ pulled into the southern reaches of Sagacity Island's port at noon the next day.

Sagacity Island, being almost as spacious as Castle Island, had developed a similar architecture of wide main streets and buildings taking advantage of the limitless sky. A number of buildings toward the center of the main town rivaled the walls of Hyrule Castle in height, buildings which Link knew were used to house a good majority of the island's population. He was surprised to find out from Lilly, though, that a couple of the colleges were also rooted in those towers. The port was a long string of docks and supply stores across the long, southeast edge of the island, purposely set up to mimic the layout of Castle Island's port for the ease of locating specific offices and storehouses. Although, Link wondered about the accuracy now that the fake Princess Zelda had turned Castle Island on its head.

Sagacity Island was not all town and flat land, though. The eastern edge sported a luscious forest that had not been touched by the residents since settlement, allowing nature to simply exist in a small oasis of its own. The town also sported some of this growth, but it was mostly relegated to dedicated parks and certain homes. Sagacity Island was one of Link's favorite islands for this natural beauty, second only to his permanent home on Skyrider Port.

However, now that they had arrived, they had only a limited amount of time to take care of business before the _Moon's Shadow_ appeared. Link decided to send Cale and Leynne with their passenger Lilly, who would show them to the town library. Link expected them to see if they can try to piece together the events of the past month since the Sky Lines had disappeared. He decided to leave Dholit and Dubbl in charge of the ship with orders to clear out if they happened to see the _Moon's Shadow_ on the horizon. This unfortunately left Gold their only pilot, but Link planned to only be in town for two hours, figuring that it was a fast enough time to regroup and exchange information while keeping the workload on certain crew to a minimum. Although Link did not ask for her, he assumed that Layna was accompanying him to shore in her stealthy way as before. He was not sure how she would accomplish this in broad daylight, but he would not be surprised if she could.

Link, wearing a plain green jacket instead of his tunic and only armed with his sword strapped to his waist, wandered into the dockmaster's office. The room was barely large enough to accommodate him, the secretary, the low desk the secretary was sitting behind, and a logbook. Link casually picked up the pen next to the logbook and scribbled in "_Horizon's Eye_, Captain Koroul, Noon", figuring that there would not be any question as long as he did not use the words "island", "symphony", "sonata", or "Link". Still, he had to admit to a little discomfort about forging the dockmaster's log as well as some guilt at using someone else's ship.

"A bit young for a lieutenant, aren't ya?" the scrawny man behind the desk, wearing a drab grey shirt and blue slacks, commented while looking at Link over a pair of thick glasses.

"I'm just a substitute," Link said. "The second-in-command is on another errand." Since this man had decided to talk to Link, he spoke up, "Hey, I have a question while I'm here."

"What is it?"

"Did this office happen to receive a strange shipment in the past few weeks? Some unknown crates from East Iron Island?"

The man shrugged. "I can check. Why, are they yours?"

Link watched the man pull open a drawer and start fishing through pages of paperwork. "Someone on Thicket Island was worried that someone on _Autumn_ Island had lost their shipment," Link explained, trying to play to the truth as best as he could. "My ship's been following them for over a week since we left Thicket Island. Someone keeps putting shipping orders on them, and they seem to just disappear the next day; it's taken us a while to figure out where they went."

The man pulled out a folder and started looking through a thick packet of what Link took to be the dock's receiving records. "You might gotta check the southern office; they keep separate paperwork for the stuff they receive over there. What's in the crates?"

Link shrugged. "No one knows. That's why we've been trying to find them."

"Well, it should've been on the copy of the shipping orders." He stopped and pulled out a paper. "Then again, I have a honeycomb growin' oudda my bellybutton and lost my head in a game of cards tomorrow." When Link blinked at him in confusion, he revealed the paper to Link and said, "No one wrote down the contents." He turned the paper and looked over it some more. "And someone's been cheatin' the system. Accordin'na this, the dockmaster on East Iron Island hadda payya get the crates here."

"I didn't know you could do that."

The secretary shrugged. "If a crate's sittin' around with shippin' orders, the dockmaster's gotta send it out within a day unless other arrangements were made."

"Who filled out the shipping orders?"

At this, the secretary had to squint at the paper. "IIIIII can't tell. Signature's crap. Not that the _rest_ of the order looks nice."

"Can I see it?" Link asked, holding out a hand.

"Sure."

Link accepted the paper and looked hard at it. Whoever had filled out the order appeared to have barely managed to make it legible enough to have it sent to Sagacity Island. The same person must have only had a passing understanding of Hylian; some of the information, like the date and the number of crates in the shipment, had been written on the wrong lines, although understandably so since one was above the other and used the same length of line. The handwriting was also full of errors, the writer probably lucky to have written "Sagacity Island" correctly. Just as the secretary had said, the "Contents" line had been left blank. And it looks like, at a few points, the pen that the writer had used had sliced through the paper from too much pressure. It left Link a little concerned; he had been hoping to find more of Line's messy handwriting, possibly hinting that he might be nearby. Instead, the order looked like it was written by someone with barely any understanding of the Hylian language. He knew Line better than that.

Link offered the paper back and asked, "Do you know where the crates are now?"

"I'll take a look," the secretary said as he accepted the paper. He leafed through the drawer again and pulled out another folder. Then he started glancing between the shipping orders and the new stack of papers he was searching through. He gave a few sounds which Link found hard to interpret. Then, after about a minute, he told Link, "They never shipped out; they're still here."

Link felt his spirit brighten. "Where?"

"Hang a sec." The secretary produced a small notepad and scribbled a few things with a pencil before ripping the note free. "Buildin' one-twenty, Stormrider," he told Link as he handed over the paper. Then he pointed in one direction. "Just that way. Give thadda the supervisor, and he'll take ya'a them."

Link gave him a relaxed, parting salute with the note. "Thanks."

"Anytime."

Link stepped back outside and took a moment to get his bearings before heading in the direction the secretary had pointed. Being familiar with Castle Island's port helped him navigate; he had never had to wander this half of Sagacity Island's port, and he could imagine that his experience with the other end of the Sagacity Island's port would be helpful if he ever found himself on the wrong side of Castle Island. One of the unique things about Sagacity Island's port, though, was the buildings. While all the port buildings on Castle Island tended to be painted blue or grey, Sagacity Island allowed local artists to paint on the outer walls. Most of the paintings, as Link noticed on this side of the port, were small pieces clustered on the sides, each additional painting respectful of the space claimed by the previous painter. Two buildings Link saw had their whole outer walls covered by a single mural. And the people who usually watched over these buildings often nicknamed them according to some of the older paintings. One was Sunrise because of the skyscapes painted on one wall. Another was The Chalkboard; Link saw local kids scribbling on a green patch of wall and the nearby path.

Stormrider took its name from the massive mural painted on one wall. Link was amazed by it because it looked remarkably similar to the relief he had seen back in the Sorians' library: a ship sailing on the billowing, dark clouds of an incredible storm. Whereas the other one had been monotone and frightening, this one had been painted in a multitude of dark colors, giving it a strong, brave feeling. Maybe it was the lack of a permanent grin broken into the bow of the ship. Maybe it was because all of the sails were whole and all the lines secure (for as few lines as had been painted; a ship's masts would not stay with so little standing rigging). Or maybe it was just that spot high on the left side, a burst of light in the midst of dark clouds that somehow made the whole composition less frightening.

Link stepped into the large door at the front of the building, immediately attracting the attention of an overweight man wearing a docker's hunter-green jumpsuit tailored to his girth. He turned to Link as Link approached. "Need some help, boy?" the man asked in a business-like tone.

"Looking for a shipment from Autumn Island," Link replied as he handed the note over. He glanced around the interior to find that, as far as warehouses went, this one was pretty empty. Normally, crates had to be stacked together to spare room, but only some of the smaller supplies had been stacked together. Link found that, even at _his_ height, he could see the tops of many of the crates nearby.

"You takin' this shipment out, airman?" the man asked as he knocked on the office window next to him.

"Uh, we just… we just need to confirm the shipment's _here_ for now," Link replied.

The door to the office opened next to the man. "Need something, boss?" a man behind the door asked, only his head protruding from the door.

The boss held Link's note to the other man's face. "Know where that's at?" he asked.

"Yep. Far corner, around that shipment of wine the _Cloudy Skies_ never got."

The boss was already nodding in response. "Follow me," he told Link.

Link asked as he fell into step with the man, "I don't suppose you know if anyone came _with_ the shipment, do you?"

"Can't say I do," he answered. "Why?"

"Well, someone keeps writing shipping orders for these crates; we tracked them from Thicket Island to East Iron Island to _here_."

The boss, who Link believed to be the supervisor, gave a thoughtful sound. "We ain't seen anyone. We got broken inna a while back, though. Nothin' stolen, but we hadda buy a new lock for the door."

"Really? How long?"

The supervisor, turning a corner, wrinkled his nose as he thought. "Might gotta been about… I wanna say a little over two weeks. About the same time the Sky Li—no, ya know, I feel it was two days _before_ the Sky Lines disappeared." Link's eyebrows rose. He had to admit that it was quite a coincidence, and he wondered if there might have actually been a connection between the Sky Lines and the break-in.

Then all doubts of a connection were immediately quashed when the supervisor stopped in front of what had clearly _used_ to be a group of crates. Four crates side by side with each other had been bashed to pieces where they sat as far down to the bottom side, probably the only intact parts. Link stared in shock; surely, these could not be the crates they had been chasing.

The supervisor threw his hands up in outrage. "Oh, what the shit!" he declared. Then he immediately stormed back around the row of crates as he shouted, "Mel, what the _hell_ happenedda the shipment!?"

Link glanced over his shoulder at the supervisor for a moment. Then he stepped forward and squat near the closest crate to look at it. With his gloves already on, he carefully picked up one of the larger fragments and looked it over. Just as had been described to him, the board had pieces of three different warning labels stamped on it in a disorganized fashion. He reached down and picked up another fragment which he tried to fit together with the first. Of course, they did not fit together, but he found that this second fragment had part of a "This End Up" stamp on it, set at a different angle from the same label on the first fragment. Dropping both fragments, he passed his eyes over the rest of the destruction, wondering what had prompted it.

He saw some kind of pattern on one bottom side that had not had as many fragments thrown onto it. He stepped over to it and used a foot to clear pieces away. He was surprised to find the treads of a boot actually _embedded_ into the surface of the wood. Link passed his fingers over the tread for a moment to feel the divots caused by the boot, curious as to what type of boot had produced it and how the wearer had been able to stomp a complete bootprint into the surface of solid wood. He put his own foot next to the print for comparison. The wearer's feet must have been nearly twice the size of Link's feet. It discounted the possibility of Line having made this print, but he wondered if even Flower or Leonard had feet large enough to produce such a print.

When Link looked up again, he saw something that sent a shiver down his spine. On the bottom of the crate to the far right, he saw a dried pool of dark red under some of the debris. He pulled aside an intact board and immediately regretted it. He jumped backwards with a hand over his mouth to keep him from losing the last ration packet he had eaten.

He reacted like this because there was a severed limb under that board. And it was not any normal, human limb, either.

It was a Sorian's wing.


	76. What Do the Sought-For Seek?

Chapter 76: What Do the Sought-For Seek?

…

Link returned to the _Island Symphony_ not long after, although he had had to duck behind a warehouse to throw up at the memory of what he had seen before then. This had attracted Layna, who had spontaneously appeared behind him to offer a sympathetic pat on the back. And she had disappeared just as fast. Link had walked straight across the docks to the _Island Symphony_, ignored everyone trying to ask what had happened as he solemnly boarded, and closed himself in his cabin for a moment. Irleen's questions went unanswered for some time as Link tried to let his panic and nausea pass. For a while, he was not even sure he had _heard_ any of her questions; he could not remember what she had asked him at first.

Then, she finally asked, "Did you find… did you find someone?"

Link, leaning against the window and trying to look through the frosted glass for answers, sighed heavily enough to put a layer of breath on the glass. He turned to find her hovering over the back of his chair. For a moment, he could feel the pit of his stomach squirm, and he swallowed back the bile that jumped into his throat. "N-not… not… exactly," he croaked in a dry voice.

"Holy s—Link, you're as white as _paper_!" she said as she fluttered closer to his face. "What _happened_!?"

He took in a breath to steady himself. "I-I found the crates."

"The crates from Autumn Island? What was in them?"

Link shook his head carefully, holding back nausea as he did. His words were slow as he responded, "They were destroyed. Someone broke them apart."

"And-and they were _empty_?"

He could feel bile rising again at the memory of what he had seen and tried to swallow it down. He wished he had something to drink. "Not completely." He hesitated, Irleen's gentle hover indicating a desire for an answer he did not want to give. "I… I found… I found someone's… someone's wing."

"A-a _what_!? A _wing_!?"

Link slowly nodded. "A Sorian's wing. I… I think it was cut off."

He could not be sure, but it looked like Irleen's light paled a bit as she backed away from him. "C… cut off… Gre… Great _Elders_…"

Link was mildly surprised to hear what probably passed for an expression of shock to the Sorians. He wished he only had the luxury of hearing about the wing as she did. He took a deep breath to help steady himself and let his head rest against the window. "I… I don't know what was in those crates," he told her. "But I think one of them might've held a Sorian."

"It would have to be an airman from the _Horizon's Eye_," Irleen told him, her voice empty as if the statement was just a thoughtless utterance.

Link nodded in agreement. "But what would it mean?" he asked. "A warning?"

"No, Link," she said, her voice now taking substance. In fact, it sounded a little urgent. "A Sorian's wing is only removed to prevent flight. There's only one group of people who would remove a wing from a Sorian like that.

"Cunimincus and his crew."

Even after coming to the conclusion before Irleen directly named them, he was still visibly shocked. "You… you think Cunimincus is _here_?"

"Cunimincus? Not likely, really," Irleen told him. "But it's not like his _crew_ couldn't find their way here. The only things holding them in the storm are Cunimincus himself and his ship. They probably smuggled themselves off with the _Horizon's Eye_."

Link nodded and thought back for a moment. "The… the supervisor of the warehouse where I found the crates… he said that someone had broken into the building two days _before_ the Sky Lines disappeared. I wonder…"

"You think they were breaking _out_, right?" Irleen finished.

"It fits just as well, doesn't it?"

Irleen bobbed up and down as if nodding. "Unfortunately."

Knocking interrupted their dying conversation, and Link glanced across the room. "Who is it?" he called in an even voice.

"It's Leynne," a muffled voice answered. "We'h back."

Link sighed and stepped to the edge of his desk. "Come on in."

The door opened, and Leynne, Cale, and Dholit filed in. "Link, ah you all right?" Leynne asked as Dholit closed the door behind her. "Dholit said you didn't look well when you retuhned."

Link nodded and said, "I'll be fine. Did you learn anything at the library?"

"Yes, actually," Leynne replied. "As it tuhns out, something _quite_ interesting happened on this island. Theh was an eahthquake."

"An… an _earthquake_?" Link asked with a frown.

"It happened around the same time that the Sky Lines disappeahed," Cale spoke up. "In fact, the eahthquake was repohted to have happened just _seconds_ befoah the local Sky Lines disappeahed."

"That's _fah_ too close to be coincidence," Leynne said.

"Irleen?" Link asked.

Irleen responded with a sigh. "I can't say _why_ the island would quake," she said. "But if the Sky Lines disappeared, it means that someone found the technoworks and shut them down."

"And we _might_ know who," Link said.

"Y-you _do_?" Cale asked as he, Dholit, and Leynne put on surprised looks.

"Link found the crates from Autumn Island," Irleen said.

"They were smashed to pieces," Link continued. "And… I found a Sorian's wing in the wreckage."

"A S-S-Sorian _wing_?" Cale asked.

"We think that some of Cunimincus' crew is here on the island," Irleen said. "And it's possible that _they_ turned off the Sky Lines."

"Cunimincus… that's the captain who shot you down, right?" Leynne asked.

Link nodded as he removed his jacket. "Yeah," he said.

"Why would Cunimincus oh his crew want to shut down the Sky Lines?" Cale asked.

"Honestly? I don't know," Irleen said. "I've already explained it to Link; the Sky Lines have _nothing_ to do with the Storm of Purgatory, the storm holding Cunimincus and… well, now, _part_ of his crew. If anything, they'll just wind up making things harder for themselves." She noticed the uneasy look on Cale's face. "Uh… y-you know… _if_ they happen to get out."

"With as much trouble as that false princess has caused," Leynne spoke up, "the possibility is becoming unbearably _cehtain_."

"So… what happens _now_?" Cale asked. "Do we tell someone?"

"Tell them _what_?" Irleen asked. "That we believe that a bunch of demon outcasts have taken over the secret facility under the island and used it to switch off all of the Sky Lines around here? How do we _not_ get laughed at?"

"There's no sort of police or knight authority on any of the islands _except_ for Castle Island," Link said. "The only policing force here is the dockmaster's office, and I don't think they're equipped to handle something like this. The only _other_ alternative is to tell the fake princess's navy."

"An altehnative we don't want to _try_," Leynne reasoned based on Link's tone.

Dholit stepped forward, a bright smile on her face. "So _we_ do it," she said.

"Right, because… that's a _betteh_ idea," Leynne told her.

"I'm going."

Both Leynne and Cale gave Link a surprised look while Dholit just continued to smile. "You… you ah?" Cale asked.

"Yeah," Link said with a nod.

"Why?" Leynne asked.

Link gave him a confused look. Then he said, "_Someone_ has to."

"Link… that's a ridiculous reason," Leynne said. "It's one thing to fight something trying to _kill_ you. But you'h talking about going afteh something you've neveh encountehed befoh and expecting to… what, kill them befoh they kill _you_? That's _suicide_."

"And how long do you suppose we'll last running about as we ah?" Dholit spoke up.

"I happen to think we've done quite well so fah," Leynne told her. Then he turned back to Link and said, "You've already told us that we have to keep moving."

Link cast his eyes to the surface of his desk, where his journal lay. Was it suicide to go after Cunimincus' crew? He thought back to the Tower of Spirit and his encounter with Byrne. He had called Link the "Hero of Journeys". He had also said that if he took the Lokomo Sword, he had promised to challenge Cunimincus when the time came. Up until now, he had completely forgotten about that promise.

Yet, Leynne was right. On the surface, Link had always found himself in trouble; he had not gone looking for it intentionally. As captain, he had a duty to command his crew through what had undoubtedly become troubling times. Taking on this calling would leave the _Island Symphony_ and her crew vulnerable to discovery. But he trusted his crew to protect themselves if necessary. Could he not do that?

"Leynne…" Link took a moment to realize that that was not his voice. He glanced up to find that Cale had drawn attention. "I think… we should try," Cale told him.

"What?" Leynne asked, his voice skeptical. "You, too, Cale?"

"We hid from the _Moon's Shadow_ befoah," Cale said. "Why can't we do it again?"

"This island _is_ a lot biggah," Dholit added. "The _Moon's Shadow_ would have to cahcle the whole island if they wanted to find us. And it's not likely they'll try; they could simply move on to the next island."

"And Cunimincus' crew?" Leynne asked. "How many will be going with you, Link?"

"Well, us _Gilto_, naturally," Dholit answered for him.

But Link shook his head. "No, Dholit," he told her. "You girls need to remain here to keep the ship crewed. Otherwise, it will only be Leynne, Cale, and Gold on deck, and we don't know how long it will take to find them."

"Well, _I'm_ going," Irleen said. "I may not know the layout of the technoworks under the island, but I'm the _only_ one here that can read Sorian."

"Why don't you take Layna with you?" Dholit suggested. Then her devilish grin returned. "I'm suah she'll enjoy wohking _pehsonally_ with heh captain, My Captain."

"Why not?" Irleen replied with a voice only halfway full of sarcasm. "It couldn't hurt to have a trained killer with us."

"But… I-I'm not going to be able to talk to her," Link pointed out.

"That's okay," Dholit replied with a shrug. "Just point at something, and she'll kill it."

"What if Link happens to point to himself?" Cale asked.

"Well, then Layna will be _pleased_, foh I will give heh special instructions foh that," Dholit replied, clapping her hands together.

The glee in her voice caused all three Hylians to glance at each other with discomfort in their eyes. None of them were sure what Dholit meant by "special instructions", but Link could not really interpret it as a favorable situation, especially because it had come from _Dholit_. He felt that he might be better off if he just avoided pointing to himself.

…

Link changed into his tunic and equipped himself with the items he had found on the surface. He had exchanged his regular sword with the Lokomo Sword and had on his boomerang, the small spike hammer that Sello did not want back, both of Irleen's gems, his Rope whip, and the bow he had stolen from the Gelto with the six arrows Twali had made for him. With the addition of the flare gun, Link felt a little heavier than usual. He tried to stretch himself out a bit before leaving the ship, preparing himself for what was likely to be a long evening.

With Irleen hidden under his hat and Layna somewhere nearby at probably all times, Link ventured back onto shore and left the Island Symphony to meet him on the opposite side of the island, where he felt he would be when he was ready to be picked up. He used his boots to make sure no one saw him out in the open dock area wearing his tunic, worried that someone might react to him wearing it in public. He soon found that people were not really as bothered by it as he expected. Upon remembering how Captain North and his airmen had dressed, Link realized that it was possible that the layman, not as aware of company regulations as him, might not recognize that Link's outfit was actually a slightly outdated uniform used by the most hated company in Hyrule. He confirmed it later on when he simply ventured out into an open street in search of a public map. Irleen looked at it with him, and she explained to Link that the Sorians might have hidden the entrances to the technoworks so that their operation would continue uninterrupted. Then she added that the Sorian builders probably left an opening on a raised platform so that they could identify it from a great distance and have a decent landing place. Link understood the concept, recalling the architecture on Forelight Island, and identified a waterfall in the middle of the wilderness on the western side of the island. The waterfall occurred near a lake with a river that bordered the town, so Link used his compass to navigate in that direction.

The river skirted a region of the island dedicated mostly to a residential area, a place where land was divided into small enough plots for individual family homes. It looked healthy in spite of all the madness Link had seen lately, with children enjoying some outdoor activity like Link had never seen before. The peace surprised both him and Irleen, who had chosen to remain in the open. The river was blocked by a wall and had no bridge across it, but further exploration to the north revealed a short gate Link could climb over. From there, he followed the river into a thick forest what, as far as he had ever seen, was the most friendly-looking forest he had ever entered.

Link must have walked for two hours before a clearing revealed the waterfall to him. The western sky was just beginning its transition to gold, and the trees appeared to hold up the sun for that little bit of light he still needed. The waterfall before him looked about as tall as any mast he had ever seen, framed on either side by a sheer cliff. At the distance he stood, he could see the edge of another cliff on top. He could feel spray reach him from where he stood on the edge of the clearing, something which felt good considering he had not had the luxury of a bath in over a week.

"So?" Link asked Irleen. "What do you think?"

"If it isn't an entrance…" Irleen hesitated as she hovered directly over Link's head, trying to find a good response. "Meh. I'll eat your hat."

Link looked up at her. "But… you can't eat."

"Link, accept the sentiment and start climbing."

Annoyingly, Irleen's response ruined Link's admiration of the scene, especially since there was no clear, easy way to get to the top of the waterfall. He found this climbing experience much more comfortable even without partners strapped to him. The cliff was jagged, leaving Link plenty of handholds to use. He reminded himself of the climbing tips Leynne had given during their climb in the Iyuk Mountains. He was grateful that the rock face was dry and he was wearing his fingerless gloves, protecting his hands from sharp edges. Irleen, naturally, had an easy climb, but Link, when he paused to rest a couple times, did not see Layna anywhere. He was not sure why she was trying to maintain stealth, isolated as they were from most of the island's population. But he conceded that she might know about something that he did not.

Link pulled himself onto a plateau covered in grass, looking about as spacious as Irleen had suggested. He collapsed in the grass and lay still for a moment while he tried to catch his breath.

"It couldn't have been _that_ bad," Irleen said as she hovered over his face. "You've climbed higher."

"Yeah…" Link huffed. "But that… that was still… _whew_ pretty tough." He picked up his head and looked around. "Seen Layna?"

"Are you kidding? I can't even tell if she's been _following_ us this whole time. If she has, then the way she sneaks around is just _absurd_."

Link sighed. "Well, that's about as much as I was expecting…" He got back to his feet and looked around. "So, if you were one of the Sorians who used the technoworks, where would _you_ put the front door?"

"Seriously, Link? You have to _think_ about it?" She hovered closer to the water's edge and indicated the waterfall splashing over the edge of the higher cliff. "It's behind the waterfall."

Link blinked at her for a moment. "I-I thought you said you didn't know where it was."

"We—I don't know _exactly_, but don't you think it's a little _obvious_?" She moved closer to the waterfall and bounced up and down in the air. "Look at that slope there. Doesn't that look like a path to you?"

Link had to tilt his head because she was blocking his view. She was right, though; between the cliff face and the edge of the waterfall, there was a small slope which appeared to lead up and into a small cavity behind the waterfall. The slope was narrow, and Link probably would not have noticed it without Irleen. "What makes you think there's an entrance behind here?" Link asked as he approached the slope.

"It's a classic, Link," Irleen explained, moving to hover near his shoulder as he walked. "_Any_ kind of story would eventually use one. Adventures, operas, fables, romances… I was once in this play whe—"

_S—tink!_

"Holy crap!"

"Yikes!" Link immediately jumped away from the base of the slope when a silver disk sailed just a hair's breadth away from his left ear and embedded itself in the rock face behind the waterfall. He spun, one hand grasping the hilt of the Lokomo Sword on his back, and looked over the plateau for a moment. Then he said, "I don't suppose you saw where that came from."

"Give me a moment; I'm still suffering from severe _terror_," Irleen answered. She hovered close to Link's back, shaking. "Do you hear anything?"

"I'd think Layna would take care of anyone nearby," Link said.

"What was it?"

Link turned back and squinted to get a better look at the disk in the rock face. It turned out to be hard to see in the flickering caused by the waterfall playing with the last bit of daylight, but he at least partially recognized its dimensions. "La—Yah!" he suddenly shouted just after turning to look over the plateau again. Layna was standing directly in front of him, completely unaware of Link's need for personal space and nearly causing his face to bump into her petite (and possibly dangerous, considering he _still_ did not know where she hid her weapons) bust. He backed away, but Layna's reaction was a confused tilt of the head.

Irleen fluttered back up to his shoulder and told Layna, "What is _wrong_ with you!? You nearly sliced us apart!" Layna blinked and would not give a response in the moment Irleen gave her to explain herself. "Killed! You almost _killed_ us."

"I didn't think she came _that_ close," Link pointed out.

"Sharp thing flying at _head_, Link," she snapped at him.

"Just-just… calm down," Link told her, raising a hand to help keep her quiet. "Layna?" Layna looked at him, and he turned so that he could point at the object she had embedded into the cliff. She nodded, and he followed her up the slope so she could retrieve the item. He was amazed to see that the weapon she had thrown, once she had pulled it out, was actually not a complete disk. She noticed him looking hard at it, and she offered it to him in both hands so that he could inspect it.

Link found that the object was four steel blades held together by a single, black, disk-shaped centerpiece of a material Link could not identify. All four blades had the same curvy shape which allowed all four to fit together without overlapping and sported the exact same, swirly, dust-like engravings on each blade. He was amazed by the craftsmanship, never having seen such intricate details in anything but pocketwatches.

He looked up at her and said, "It's-it's beautiful." But Layna, stifled by their language barrier, continued to give him a confused look before sliding the weapon into one of the thick straps on her thigh. Or was that a pocket? Link could not tell, realizing how well the hiding space did its job. Even having watched her slide it in there did not allow him to see any sort of giveaway as to what straps and pockets concealed what.

Layna then pointed to her breastbone. Link nodded, gathering that she was referring to herself. She nodded as well before indicating the cavity behind her. Link's mouth opened as realization set in. "Oh, you want to go first," he said. He nodded and indicated behind her with a hand. "Yeah, go ahead."

"Link?" Irleen spoke up.

"Yeah?" he replied as he watched her slip inside.

"The angle she threw that from. She would've been standing close to where that bottom waterfall starts, right?"

Link glanced down the small stream bisecting the plateau and traced about where the throwing weapon had flown before hitting the wall. "Yeah, I guess."

"Sooo… where the hell was _she_ when she threw that thing?"

Link blinked in amazement when he realized that, if Layna had thrown the weapon from the end of the stream, she should have been standing right out in the open when both of them had turned around. Even if she had just been climbing up the cliff behind him, how would she have thrown the weapon at the wall, ducked back below the cliff, and then simply popped right next to him the instant he had decided to call for her, all without making a single sound? Link found himself suitably uncomfortable. "Maybe… we should just assume she's _that_ good and… move on," he told her.

"These Gelto are beginning to creep me out."

Link stepped up the slope and followed it into what turned out to be a deeper hollow than what he originally thought. The waterfall scattered light behind him, making it difficult to see much beyond the opening, so he signaled Irleen to fly ahead. She may have only provided a green glow, but it was enough to see the walls as well as find Layna in the dark. If she had been at the beginning of the hollow, at least. They found about ten paces in that the hollow cornered to the left. They followed and soon found Layna standing in front of an opening in the ground before her.

And unique about the opening was the soft, golden glow emerging from it. Link drew closer, but with the darkness around him, he had a hard time telling if there was more beyond the glow other than a ladder at their feet. So he asked, "Irleen, is this it?"

"Oh, yeah," Irleen said as she fluttered inside.

Layna mounted the ladder first and climbed down. Link followed and immediately found the ladder to be made of metal piping, something he had not seen before. He maintained focus on the ladder as he went, slowly feeling his exhaustion from climbing the cliff return. He was thankful for the ladder, making it much easier to descend. By the time he met Irleen and Layna at the bottom, he ventured that they must have traveled farther than the climb up the cliff, maybe just about double the height. But he did not have time to look back up and appreciate the height. As soon as he backed a step from the ladder, Layna grabbed a fistful of his tunic. He turned to see what was wrong and discovered a look of shock directed at the room around them.

A look Link shared a split-second later. The walls, floor, and ceiling all looked to be made of copper. "Looked" to be; Link doubted if actual copper would fluoresce between its natural orange-ish luster to shades of yellow and, in few places, light green before reverting back to orange. It was like watching an endless flock of small, brightly-colored birds fluttering from one end of the room to the other or… as soon as Link made the comparison, he realized the significance: the flow of color was like the glowing blue particles he always saw speeding by in the Sky Lines, perhaps a little more pronounced here than there. The floor was laid out in a checker pattern alternating between two different styles of tile: one bearing a spiral formed out of squares turning counterclockwise as they decreased in size, and the other sporting a soft, broken pattern like gentle ripples on a liquid surface. The walls were much larger, each "tile" as tall as a house and wide as any yardarm Link had traversed. Each wall tile had been debossed with a rectangle of a smaller side than and the same shape as the tile, and these rectangles sported smaller debosses of the exact same nature. Above the newcomers, two wall tiles high, was the only part of this room which had not been given such stringent design schemes as the rest. The ceiling, though jagged and uneven as expected of a cave ceiling, was still made of the same, copper-like material and sported the same fluttering coloration. With no discernible light source anywhere as well as weak shadows nearby, the group could only conclude that the light in the room was being produced by whatever this material was.

"Oh, _wow_…" Link breathed.

"I'll say," Irleen replied in a similar air. "What a wonderful invention color pictography was; those old pictures don't tell you a _thing_."

Layna shook herself out of her daze and put on a serious look. She tapped Link's shoulder to draw his attention. When he glanced at her, she indicated something on his right side with a finger. He followed the gesture and saw that she was pointing to a doorway that he had glanced over earlier. So he nodded at her, and she stepped around him. "Let's go, Irleen," he said as he followed her.

"Yeah," Irleen answered as she started to drift in Link's direction. "Okay."

The three of them crossed the room, but Layna halted Link and Irleen at the doorway as she slid past it. She lowered her body closer to the ground and slowly moved down the adjoining corridor with long, lithe strides. The change in posture alerted Link that she might have seen something, and he grasped the handle of the Lokomo Sword. But he waited to draw, wanting to see if Layna had really spotted a danger so soon or if she was being overcautious, like he felt she had been the whole time she was following. Then he watched her circle something on the floor, the corridor wide enough to still allow space between her and the wall as she took interest in something in the middle of the floor. Then, with her attention directed further down the corridor, she used a hand to probe around the floor before picking something up.

Link relaxed as she returned with a series of jumping sidesteps, designed to move her back down the corridor fast while she kept her eyes toward the unknown end. Satisfied that nothing was following, she turned to Link and held out a hand. Inside was something he recognized almost immediately.

"An identity tag…" he muttered as he took the small piece of metal in between his thumb and forefinger. Different from the ones he had seen before, this one had a very thin chain (so thin that he thought it was a string at first) looped through a small, circular cut in the metal. "Irleen?"

Irleen circled his hand before stopping right between him and tag. "'Airman Kaheel, _Horizon's Eye_'," she read. "This… this is probably the Sorian missing his wing."

"I don't get it," Link told her. "Why would they need to bring a _Sorian_ with them? Wouldn't that just be a lot more trouble?"

"Maybe, but this one was special," Irleen replied, moving aside. "You see that triangle shape?" Link nodded, now taking note that the shape embossed underneath the Sorian writing was a feature he had not seen before. "That's how we identify magic users. They weren't taking a risk with him, Link.

"They were _using_ him. I think… I think they're trying to use the technoworks for _themselves_."


	77. The Sagacity Technoworks

Chapter 77: The Sagacity Technoworks

…

Continuing from their point of entry led them into another room similar to the entrance, although this one was without a ladder. The next room was much larger and had a more diversified structure. Standing at the top of a short platform on the other side of the doorway, Link, Layna, and Irleen found themselves staring over what appeared to be a large junction. The level below them was an L-shaped platform spanning the left side of the room's depth, leading to two doors on the left and far sides. Past that, at the end of a two-story ladder beneath the ladder directly at their feet, was another platform spanning the right side. The space directly beneath that platform was occupied by a large, still body of water. Unlike the previous rooms and the hallway, this large area was not as brightly lit, nor did the colors in the wall do much better than glow between bright orange and dark copper.

Link glanced backwards into the previous room to double-check that it was still brilliant and colorful. "Is it supposed to be like that?" he asked. "All… dark?"

"I can't be sure," Irleen replied, "but something _does_ feel wrong. Look at the right side. Doesn't it seem darker than the left?"

Link offered a shrug as Layna silently started climbing down the ladder in front of them. "Kinda, I guess. Does it mean something?"

"I don't know. But this looks suspiciously like the early effects of necrosis."

Upon seeing Layna reach the bottom of the ladder, Link turned and began descending. "Neck-_what_?"

"Necrosis. In other words, _death_."

Link paused in the middle of the ladder to look for her. "_Death_? You mean… you mean the island is _alive_?"

"The technoworks is," Irleen said as she hovered into his view. "Sometimes, the best way to manipulate magic is to channel it through a living medium. Otherwise, it gets pretty tricky."

"But…" Link trailed off when he found himself lacking words, so he knocked on the wall in front of him to help make his point. The sound it made, though, was not like hitting a piece of metal as he had expected. If anything, it was silent, like he was rapping his knuckles against a large boulder. As soon as he drew the comparison, he said, "Isn't all of this just… rock? Or… _maybe_ metal?"

"Yeah," she replied, "So?" being implied by her tone. "Rock can come alive if you know how." She slowly descended level with Link's head when he resumed climbing down. "Now, I say it's 'alive', but it's technically not 'aware'."

"What do you mean?"

"The technoworks has no way of perceiving things outside itself. Its whole existence is dedicated to its natural processes, which basically amount to eating and… uh… excreting."

"Ea—… Wha… What does it _eat_?"

"Whatever we want it to. In the case of the islands, they feed on water impurities; that's how they produce fresh water for whoever lives on the surface. It uses whatever it finds in the water and excretes the stuff it can't use as the underlying soil you would find if you dug deep enough into the island's top surface."

Link's foot slipped, and he nearly fell from the ladder. "Whoa," he grunted. But he quickly saw that he was close enough to the platform and simply dropped the rest of the way. "Augh. Whoops." Layna, already walking down the platform, stopped and turned, offering out a hand to him. He held up a hand and shook his head at her. "No, I'm okay." He found Irleen again and asked, "Are you saying that… that we've been living on top of the technoworks' _poop_ for all these years?"

"Well… assuming Hylians removed the original topsoil," Irleen said. "Amazingly, the excrements the technoworks produce are just as viable as soil."

Link shook his head in mild humor as he followed Layna across the platform; suddenly, a number of phrases involving the word "dirt" had just taken on new meanings. "Okay," he said, trying to be serious. "So, when you say 'necrosis', you mean that something's killing the technoworks?"

"Yeah. Whoever wound up down here hasn't been treating it right. It's kind of a surprise; you'd think the Sorian with them would warn them against it. Necrosis isn't something you want happening to something as big as the technoworks; if it becomes complete, it will drop the entire _island_ out of the sky."

Link glanced at the wall on the opposite side of the room as he made the turn in the platform. "As it is now, can anything be done about it?"

"Yeah, probably. If we can find some method of controlling the technoworks down to its component level, we can tell it to begin apoptosis."

Link shook his head. "How do you know these difficult words? I don't think they're even in _my_ language."

"If you understand them on at least a level where you _know_ the native word, then you must have bumped into them some time in the past."

"So what's that new one? Aper… apepsis?"

"Apoptosis. And, really, it's the harder one for me to explain on the whole; I don't know if I get it myself. All I can say is that triggering apoptosis will cause parts of the technoworks to split up in a way that the _rest_ of the technoworks can absorb and restore. It'll save the technoworks from losing functionality."

"Could the Sorian around here do this?"

"Hopefully. If we find him."

Link noticed that Layna had stopped at the door and continued to stand there for a long time. Her head was moving around, so he knew she was looking the room over. He stopped behind her and asked, "Layna?" Her response was to hold up a fist, and although Link did not quite understand the meaning, he felt he should wait until she did something. Irleen pulled into a hover just over Link's shoulder, as if trying to peer past both of them.

Then Layna slinked in. Link stood wondering at the doorway when a number of metal _clink_s sounded from the room. He stepped up to the door and saw that Layna was using a pair of her throwing blades to make the sound, each sound occurring in a quick pair while she slowly moved forward. Link could see the reason for her caution. The room, being maybe about half the size of the entrance further back, had a number of square holes in the adjacent and opposite walls. The floor was covered with piles of dust and grey rags. Link was not sure what it was, but the atmosphere inside felt like the crypt under the Lost Woods.

Layna stopped at the far end and glanced around. Then she turned back and invited Link inside with a curt hand gesture. Link stepped inside and found that the wall the door was against was just a little duller than the rest of the walls, which showed as much life as the other part of the facility. The holes, by contrast, were dark on the inside. As Link drew closer to one hole at his height nearest to the door, he saw metal fixtures anchored to the wall, indicating that something had hung there at one point. "Irleen?" he asked.

"Don't be too alarmed, Link," she replied as she moved inside the hole so that her glow shone on the walls. "This is what the material looks like after necrosis, but this was done back when the technoworks were first put together."

"How come?"

"These are kinda like barracks or dorms. These cavities were purposely sent through necrosis so that they could sleep in a dark location _inside_ the technoworks."

"And… these don't affect the rest of the technoworks?" he asked as he poked his head inside.

"This is _exactly_ what they were made for. The Sorians who made these caused the technoworks to grow out like this before telling the technoworks to allow _this_ part of itself to die. I know, it sounds a little bizarre, but it's how the technoworks were made to function."

"Amda Kyabtin," Layna called across the room. Link pulled his head out of the cavity and looked in her direction. She pointed at a row of cavities four rows above the floor. "'Inu dhifumak tinnayl."

"What's she saying?" Irleen asked.

"I-I don't know," Link said. "Come on, let's have a look."

However, while Link and Irleen crossed the room to get to her, Layna pulled herself onto the wall and started climbing by using the cavities. The climb looked difficult to Link, especially since Layna looked like she could barely reach the next row by stretching as far as she could. She actually moved up a couple rows higher than she had indicated before she stopped and appeared to sniff the air for a moment. Then she moved along the wall back toward the entrance. Five cavities away, she stopped and looked inside the one she was holding onto.

Then she moved to the next one and called down, "Fay Irliyn. Waba nayx yimidhujak yazaklwub nway."

"I think she was talking to _you_," Link said.

"I have a bad feeling about this…" Irleen replied as she left his side. She rose and hesitated outside the hole Layna indicated to her. Link thought she might have glanced at Layna before entering. Layna slowly worked her way back to the floor and was about to touch down when Irleen emerged. She hovered in front of the hole for a moment, and Link was about to call to her.

"_ĦĪĪĪĪĪĪĪĪĪĪĪ_!" Link jumped in surprise at the scream Irleen suddenly released. He clapped his hands over his ears, bracing himself against the pain her high pitch was causing. Layna slipped off the last hole and fell to the floor on her hands and knees. After looking back up in alarm, she pushed her back against the wall and covered her ears as well. Irleen's scream (of frustration or horror, Link could not tell) echoed throughout the room for a moment.

When the scream subsided, Link and Layna exposed their ears to Irleen bawling and hiccupping as she slowly fell out of the air. Both of them stepped forward to catch her, but Layna yielded, allowing Link to catch Irleen before she fell to the floor. Link looked down at her in his cupped hands with confusion, but he saw that Layna was allowing a tear to fall through her emotionless façade. He hesitated to say anything, unsure why either of them were behaving this way.

Thankfully, Irleen spoke up. "She… she found a-Airman k-Kaheel," she said, her voice unsteady as if she was going to vomit.

Link glanced up and then at Layna before looking back down at her. "Is… is he…" Link started, unsure if he wanted to finish the question.

Irleen sniffed. "He's dead. The—_hic_! There's no… no blood, so… he-he might have… poisoned himself. Or maybe just let-let himself… starve to death."

Link felt his whole body shiver at the news. "He whhh…" he tried, but words failed him. He felt sick again, and he tried to swallow back the feeling so he could ask, "Is there… a reason why he would do that?"

"I don't know!" she shouted at him. He started, taken aback by her response. "Stop _asking_ me things, Link! Shut up! Just… shut…" Her voice disappeared in a renewed fit of crying.

Link glanced at Layna, and Layna avoided the look as she decided to slowly walk away. It made him feel a little lonely, especially since Irleen did not want to talk anymore. But he could not stand watching her like this. She had no face for him to read, not that he could not tell she was seriously distraught by finding the closest Sorian they had come to in over a month dead. He realized that she must have felt even lonelier. It must have been a feeling, a frustration, she had been bearing ever since they fell to the surface. He empathized with her, drawing on his isolation from the sky to help him understand her. He carefully got on his knees with her still in his hands and asked, "Irleen. Is there _anything_ I can do?"

"Yeah," she said as her sobbing subsided. "Yes, there is, Link." Her voice became hostile, hateful in a way Link had never heard her speak before, as she added, "I want you to make these… these _bastards_ pay."

…

Link and Irleen spent a few more moments in silence as Layna watched the large junction outside. He wanted to wait until Irleen was willing to fly on her own before going on. She eventually broke her silence and explained to Link that, while she did not know the airman personally, she felt that all the Sorian killing that had been happening lately was causing her some grief. She confessed that she might have done it before if Link's screaming at the time had not put her on alert for bad news when he had found the gravestones of the _Horizon's Eye_'s dead crew. The news of Link finding a severed wing had made her hope that they might rescue a fellow Sorian, and finding the identity tag had made her believe that the Sorian was still alive. Link apologized that she had had to see the body instead of him, but she told him that, even if Link had discovered the body, she still might have snapped.

Feeling a little relieved by their talk, she picked herself up onto her own wings. Link followed her to the doorway, and Layna immediately ducked outside to make sure their way was clear. He failed to tell Layna which way he was going, so she had to slide by him to make it to the doorway to their right before he stepped inside. She signaled him to stay put with a hand while she examined the small hallway beyond. She invited them along as she looked around the room beyond.

The room turned out to be very interesting. It had a lower ceiling of solid tiles which mimicked the floor in design. In each corner was a pipe of clear glass filled with flowing water. Here, the walls were not as pristine; the wall on the right looked to have been smashed with something heavy, the living material around it a deep red color as it pulsed with the rest of the room in the same orange blotches that they had seen all over the junction.

And, perhaps most interesting of all, a skeleton sat in the far left corner, parts of its bones hidden behind the large pipe.

"Irleen…" Link spoke up as he looked to her.

But Irleen shook her form side to side. "I'm all right," she assured him. "Whoever that was, they've probably been dead for a long time, though I can't really say why their remains are still here."

Link nodded. "What is this place?"

"My best guess was that this was some kind of control room."

Link indicated the red-glowing wall with his head. "Why is the technoworks doing that? Is that necrosis?"

"No, not yet. Those dark pieces on the floor, yeah, but the rest of that area is in the later stages. Right now, the technoworks here are trying their best to keep necrosis at bay until it receives the command to begin apoptosis and repair itself. Some active growth would also help fill in all this mess and replace whatever might have been on this wall."

"What _would_ have been on this wall?" Link asked as he approached it.

_Chnk chnk._

"Well, if this was a station, it would be a set of instructions on how to change the flow of water to the island's surface. Though I imagine they locked it when they left."

"Amda Kyabtin." Link glanced over his shoulder to find Layna holding a large bone in her hand, her other hand occupied by one of her throwing blades. He turned and walked to her as she demonstrated her discovery by tapping the bone with her blade.

_Chnk chnk._

She offered the bone to him, and Link took it, discovering that it was actually quite different from what he expected. It was a little heavy, and its exterior was a glossy grey color instead of ugly white as he had seen on old bones before. The fact that it looked quite clean, save for a few cuts and scrapes, also made it curious.

"This bone is made of metal," he said aloud.

"Metal?" Irleen asked.

"Mital?" Layna mimicked.

"Oh, no," Irleen uttered. Her voice took on a tone that sent a shiver up Link's spine as she said, "Link, put the bone down and _slowly_… slowly leave the room."

Link passed a look of fright to Layna to help communicate their intentions, and her face immediately steeled itself. "Just out of curiosity," Link said as he carefully placed the bone on the floor in front of him, "what _was_ I just holding?"

"Back away easy," she said. "It's something only Cunimincus could come up with. When he realized that he was losing followers to the fighting with the Sorians, he decided that the best way to get them back was to reanimate their skeletons. It's an old trick to making a Stalfos, but that cloud of crazy decided to take it a step further. To make sure he could not lose his reanimated followers, he had their bones dunked in molten iron and left to solidify on their own. This made a series of troops which we call 'Stalarmors'. And we just found one."

"Okay… how do we fight it?"

_Chnk chnk chnk. Chnk chnk. Chnk chnk chnk._ Link watched the bone roll along the floor toward the rest of the pile. The rest of the pile started rattling against the floor, their movement caused by nothing any of the other occupants could see.

"By running."

The bones suddenly piled themselves together and rearranged themselves with a series of clanking. What they put together looked like a scrawny skeleton twice Link's height. Its head looked vaguely human with a small horn decorating its forehead. It reached back behind the pipe and produced a metal shield which it fit to its left arm and a longsword with a disk-shaped guard which it wielded with its right hand. Link drew the Lokomo Sword and held it in front of him. The blade attracted the attention of the blue, pinpoint eyes that wandered the inside of its eye sockets. It raised its sword above its head, and Link prepared to jump to one side.

_Chink!_ The Stalarmor's head jerked when a small, sliver disk bounced off its left cheekbone. This caused its downswing to veer to Link's left, and he jumped to the right to make sure he was out of its way. It reeled for a moment, and Link thought it was going to fall on top of him, so he backed away a few steps while he tried to find something to attack. The Stalarmor's head looked right at him, and then forward at Layna. Layna's face had turned into a death glare, and Link thought he saw some kind of small tool between her fingers. The Stalarmor stepped forward at her and attempted an upswing. Layna dodged out of the sword's path, slid along the ground to its right side, and immediately jumped on the creature. Link jumped forward and leveled a low strike at the back of the creature's left leg, straight through its knee. The Stalarmor faltered, but Link watched as the bones he had struck through quickly returned and put its knee back together.

_Pang!_ In the moment Link had distracted it with the strike to the knee, Layna had pulled its head off and fallen to the floor with it. The skull had rolled free from her hands and landed near the corner of the room. Link expected the Stalarmor to fall over, but his expectation was met with a backhanded strike that left his head reeling from the impact against the creature's shield. He fell to the floor and waited for his head to stop ringing before he looked up. The Stalarmor's head was already in the air, and it landed back at the top of its spine.

But Link had seen something interesting before the head fell back into place: a small, blue orb at the top of its spine, perfectly protected by its head.

The Stalarmor went for a low sweep with its sword, but Layna rolled just out of range before the tip of the blade could find her. This left its back exposed to Link, so Link stood up, located his sword, and delivered a hard slice at the side of the Stalarmor's skull. Unfortunately, the Stalarmor's stature made the blow awkward, and the Lokomo blade simply skipped off the skull's round surface. The Stalarmor was not unaware, though. It spun on Link while swinging its sword at a level about even with the top of Link's head. Link ducked lower to ensure that the sword did not find his scalp, and he backed off before a second swing could dig into his shoulder.

Layna recovered and leapt onto the Stalarmor's back. She jammed a small blade hidden in her hand into the Stalarmor's right shoulder joint and twisted, causing its arm to pop out of its socket. Then she moved and put her foot against the arm as it tried to put itself back into its socket. The Stalarmor attempted to grab her with its left hand, but she ducked into a difficult spot on its back where the Stalarmor could not reach.

"Layna!" Link shouted. "Layna, take its head!" He shifted to his left so that he was lined up with the Stalarmor's front. Layna peered at him through its ribs, and Link patted his head with his free hand. "Take its head!"

Layna hooked a hand underneath the Stalarmor's jaw. Link jumped forward as soon as its longsword had swung in a different direction to try to get Layna's foot and grabbed onto the Stalarmor's ribcage. Layna rose so she could get her arm over the front of the Stalarmor's face, ripped its head off again, and fell off its back, this time making sure that she did not lose her grip on the skull. Link pulled, and, due to being disoriented by Layna bashing its head against the floor, the Stalarmor's torso leaned forward. He swung his sword as hard as he could into the blue orb recessed in the Stalarmor's topmost vertebra. The orb cracked, and the Stalarmor's bones froze in place as it made to jab Link from the side. Link backed up just as the metal skeleton clattered to the floor. Layna stood up and threw its jawbone aside.

Irleen flew back into the room and hovered over the skeleton as Layna moved to the back corner where her throwing blade had disappeared. "Or you could do _that_," Irleen said.

Link let out a long sigh as he looked at the body. "I guess that's how they fit in the crates," he told her. "A collapsible skeleton."

"The question is how many of them there are," Irleen replied.

"This one probably fit in the crate with the… the Sorian," Link said, his pause caused by the realization that he now had a nasty headache. He pressed his free hand against his forehead. "Oh, man, that hurt…"

"At least your head's still attached," Irleen joked. "How did you know that gem was its life source?"

Link shrugged as he sheathed his sword. "I just thought, with all this talk about living rock and necrosis and whatever, a shiny blue stone on a living skeleton might be something I should smash." Then he stepped forward and picked up the heater-shaped shield. Although it lacked any sort of adornment on its face, Link admired the fact that it had actually taken very little damage in its time. He turned it and fit his right arm through the straps. It felt heavier than the wooden shield that had been claimed under the Fire Realm, but it also felt like it could take many more hits. "What do you think?"

"You're going to steal another shield?" Irleen asked as Layna, now back to her curious self, tilted her head at him.

"Ooooh, yeah," Link said as he tugged a longer strap out of a clasp in the back of the shield. He continued to talk as he removed the shield and slung it over his head. "If we're gonna run into more of these guys, I'd like some protection."

…

They left the room and traveled back to the junction after Link had taken a moment to let his head clear up a little more. They descended to the second platform and looked inside the first door. It was small and probably the darkest room they had found, but without any sort of features, Irleen said that it might just be a storage room.

The second room turned out to be more interesting. At the end of a short corridor with a bend in it, they discovered what must have been the widest room yet. It was also probably the most devastated. To the left of the entrance was a large area of wall that looked to have taken a few blows from a sledgehammer, such were the large divots in the wall. Other, unharmed sections of the wall were glowing red along with this, making Link wonder if the rest of the room was just reacting to the damaged part. The rest of the long wall on the left side was covered by five, large, glass tubes. Only four of them were filled with flowing water; the closest one was dry. The right side of the room looked plain until Link noticed that there was a space in the wall when they walked closer. Around it—

"Wha—!"

—something Link was not seeing soon. Layna suddenly clapped a hand over Link's mouth and pulled him against the wall by a sleeve. Then, seemingly as an afterthought, she realized what she had done and quickly removed her hands. He watched Layna as she seemed to listen for a bit before sliding along the wall to peer around the corner. Her attempt to signal him forward went unanswered for a moment since Link did not recognize the finger-hook gesture she gave from the arm she had pressed between her hip and the wall. When she glanced back at him and gave him a less-subtle wave forward, he stepped up behind her (not realizing that brushing her thigh with his hand spontaneously caused her extreme discomfort) and leaned to one side to look around her.

Around the corner was a large space which glowed bright red on all three walls and was covered in a great number of black rocks. There was a pair of columns covered in a vast array of colors that jerked in a disturbing manner. Before these columns, which had probably caused Layna to halt their advance, were two Stalarmors seemingly interesting in jabbing their iron-clad finger bones into the columns. These Stalarmors looked to be well-equipped compared to the first Stalarmor. In addition to broadswords and larger shields, the Stalarmor on the right wore a cuirass and spiked pauldrons while the Stalarmor on the left wore an entire suit of chainmail. Both wore helmets with a great number of spikes, a few of them hanging off the helmet (assuming that the bare metal was not actually their skulls) at odd angles. With their backs to Link, Irleen, and Layna, it seemed like they had yet to notice their new company.

"Oh, great…" Irleen groaned as she hovered around the corner. "Ideas?"

"I don't see any doors out of here," Link whispered. "We could probably just leave them here for now."

"Eeeh, not gonna work out," Irleen whispered back. "You see those columns? Those are how the technoworks are controlled. It's pure luck they haven't smashed _these_ apart yet. We should try getting rid of them before they _decide_ to, though."

Link sighed in exhaustion and told himself, "I probably should've thought this through…"

"That's what _I_ said before we left the ship. But you've got Layna. She's just… point and kill, right?"

Link and Layna shared a look. "I didn't think I'd have to actually do this," he groaned at himself. "Layna?" He put one hand on his sword and pointed with the other to the Stalarmor on the left. When he met her eyes again, her curious glance had become an emotionless mask. She gave a sharp nod and held up a hand with all five fingers raised. Link watched the first two drop before he realized that she was counting down to an attack, and he quickly pulled his shield off. She had just gotten to one when he had the shield on his arm, and the moment she dropped her last finger, she slipped past him and crossed the large, open floor at a full, silent run.

Link lost track of her as he pulled the Lokomo Sword and dashed for the Stalarmor wearing the cuirass. He had to hold back his speed so that his boots would not activate and cause him to smash into the Stalarmor's back, but he was still rushed because he wanted to take advantage of the surprise that would be lost the moment Layna began her attack on the other one.

As a result, the boots activated. Link quickly caught himself and slowed just in time to realize that, if he did not stop, he would run into the two rows of blades that decorated the Stalarmor's spine. He slid to a stop, making the Stalarmor pause in curiosity at the new noise. Feeling that he was about to lose the surprise, Link raised the sword and delivered a downward strike to the back of the Stalarmor's head.

_Pank!_

The Stalarmor stepped forward, its head lowered as if to duck another blow. Then, as Link backed up, the Stalarmor raised a hand and felt the back of its skull until it found the groove Link's blow had left. It stroked the groove with a fingertip, completely oblivious to the fact that Layna had just jumped onto its companion's back and started tearing into its chainmail with a small knife. The Stalarmor whipped around to look at Link, and although the creature had no fleshy brow with which to express its ire, Link could tell that he had greatly angered it by the high-pitched screech caused by the creature grinding its back teeth as it stared at him. Link backed up further when he saw that the creature not only wielded a broadsword on its hip, but it sported a massive war hammer which it carefully and deliberately retrieved from its resting place leaning on the column. The head looked like the head of a large claw hammer, and the handle was almost as tall as the Stalarmor holding it and just thicker than Link's arm. He watched as the Stalarmor raised the hammer above its head with both hands, and he jumped out of the way the moment he saw the Stalarmor swing.

_BAM!_ Link felt the floor shake under his boots, and he was glad that he had not been standing there. The Stalarmor raised the hammer again, but this swing came at an angle that was probably meant to remove Link's head. He jumped backwards out of range, then he lunged forward and laid a horizontal strike which would have hit the Stalarmor's head if the spike on its pauldron had not been so high. The Stalarmor gave an irritated grunt (through what means, Link was too distracted to guess) and freed its right hand to land a cheap shot against Link's shield. Link stumbled forward, and he quickly spun around as soon as he regained his footing. Then he raised his shield when he saw the Stalarmor thrust the head of the hammer at him. Pain flashed through Link's arm, and he gritted his teeth together in an effort to keep from shouting aloud. He realized that he could not allow the Stalarmor to strike him again, especially since a direct strike of any greater force than that thrust would likely destroy the shield and shatter Link's arm. He _had_ to find its weak point.

The Stalarmor raised the war hammer again, and Link saw by its tilt to the right that it might be preparing another diagonal swing. Link needed to dodge and find a way to distract the Stalarmor long enough to find its life source.

The Stalarmor struck, the swing intending to snap Link's collarbone or neck (or whatever body part just happened to be in the way; the Stalarmor did not care what). Link ducked and dodged to his right, moving underneath the swing with room to spare due to distance. Then, he took a step at the Stalarmor's exposed arm with his left arm raised. He brought the blade down on the Stalarmor's elbow just behind its shield. The Stalarmor's control of its left forearm faltered, and it stumbled when the weight of the hammer it had been bringing up for a horizontal swing at Link suddenly shifted completely to its right arm.

And Link caught a glimpse of a glowing source underneath its cuirass. The Stalarmor's life source was attached to the spine on the other side of its armor.

Link took advantage of the Stalarmor's stagger and used his sword to hook its raised left leg. The Stalarmor slammed into the floor next to the column, its hammer trapped beneath its body. Its arm had just reassembled, and it held up its shield as Link dropped his sword down on top of it, intending to knock its ribs out of place and get to its life source. It batted Link's sword away with the shield, causing Link to stumble again. It then got to its feet and drew its broadsword. Link recovered in time to raise his shield and intercept the broadsword aimed to disembowel Link. With the Stalarmor being right-handed, Link had to duck behind the shield and turn his shoulder into the strike to block, leaving his sword arm out of range for a counterstrike. The Stalarmor took advantage of this and twisted its torso. Link managed to take some power out of the next blow with his shield, but he still felt the impact of the Stalarmor's shield against his head. His vision swam, and he staggered away from the Stalarmor so he had a moment to get his bearings. He found them just as the Stalarmor aimed a downward strike at his head, and he jumped to the left. This gave Link a clear shot at its right arm, and he used his sword to break through its barely-existent elbow. The sudden lack of control caused the Stalarmor to fumble its broadsword. The Stalarmor leaned forward as if to catch the sword in addition to its arm.

This afforded Link the opportunity to thrust his sword into the Stalarmor's ribcage. Since the cuirass had no back plate (likely because anyone who tried to attack from behind was likely to run into its weaponized spine), Link was able to then swing his sword at the area of spine protected by the ribcage. Link's blade sliced through the Stalarmor's lack of connective meat, and its upper torso from where Link had struck nearly fell to pieces. Its shoulders and head as well as part of its spine flew over the top of its cuirass as the Stalarmor tried to stand straight back up to stop the attack. This motion left the blue orb of the Stalarmor's life source exposed. Link, upon seeing the orb, swung his arm in a circle and tried to put as much power into a blow aimed at something as high as his chest.

The strike was awkward because there were still ribs covering the orb as well as the jumble of detached bones floating in the way, but he managed to deliver enough of a strike to crack the orb's surface. The Stalarmor's flailing suddenly turned into a definite fall as its body flung in two different directions: the lower torso forward since it was still trying to catch its falling bones and the upper torso backwards as it had tried to reassemble. This resulted in a long line of scattered bones across the floor.

"Link!" Irleen shouted from overhead. "Layna's in trouble!"

Link spun to find that Layna, having stripped the second Stalarmor of a good bit of its chainmail, had been caught in the Stalarmor's grip and now dangled by her forearm as the Stalarmor drew its sword. Without considering what he was about to do, Link used his boots to accelerate to high speed and smashed his body, protected by his shield, into the Stalarmor's pelvis. The Stalarmor swayed in two directions and, trying to save itself, threw Layna aside. Layna jerked in the air and managed to save herself from a bad fall by catching herself on her hands and feet. The Stalarmor was just moments from having its upper body smash against the ground when its bones finally drew and reassembled themselves back around its pelvis.

Unfortunately for the Stalarmor, Link had caught sight of the life source embedded on the inside of its pelvis. Link spun around and struck the Stalarmor's pelvis with a horizontal swing. The orb broke in half, and the Stalarmor collapsed to the floor seconds later.

For a moment, Link and Layna stood still, watching both piles of iron bones for signs that the Stalarmors were going to put up another fight. Both were breathing hard, and Link's legs felt sore. Then Link relaxed and lowered his sword. His eyes fell to the spot where the first Stalarmor had tried to squish him, and he saw that that area of the floor had turned bright red. That must have been how the Stalarmors had been damaging the technoworks: brute force. The one wielding the hammer must have caused most of it; the floor looked cracked and fragmented like most of the red areas they had seen.

Link let out a sigh and turned to Layna, who had adopted a more relaxed stance. "Are you all right?" he asked her. She tilted her head in curiosity, so Link gestured at his arms and spoke a little louder. "Wounds? Wounds?"

"I don't think she understands _loud_ Hylian either, Link," Irleen told him as she descended from the high ceiling.

Link shook his head. "I guess I should try learning Geltoan some time."

"As long as you don't learn it from _Dholit_…"

Link gestured at the columns, which had steadied their colors to show swirling patterns of warm copper with blue particles falling from the top like rain. "You said these control the technoworks, so how do we use them?"

Irleen hesitated before responding. "Uh… actually, the process isn't that simple. These _accept_ commands. We still need a medium to _give_ commands through, something that the Sorian magic user would have had with him."

Link sighed. "So, we still need to look around?"

"Yep."

Link gave her an uncomfortable look. "But… this is the last room."


	78. Stalensign, Skeleton Officer

Chapter 78: Stalensign, Skeleton Officer

…

Irleen took a few moments to explain that the columns, when working properly, showed the general health of the technoworks. However, due to the massive amount of damage to the wall behind them, they could not function correctly. They looked around the room for a moment, then they returned to the smaller room they had looked at earlier, the one that Irleen had dismissed as a storage room.

Which she _still_ dismissed as a storage room even after she had Link walk to the back of the room and look for hidden switches or fake walls.

Link and Irleen emerged back into the junction and looked up at the higher level. "Do you think we missed anything up there?" he asked her.

"I really don't think so," she replied. "Airman Kaheel… didn't have anything. Those things had even gone as far as to take his clothes… those…"

"Okay, okay," Link replied in a calming tone. "So… Airman Kaheel had nothing on him. Did you happen to notice the Stalarmors carrying anything?"

"No, nothing."

Link then looked to Layna with the intention of repeating the question. But when he realized who he was about to talk to, he sighed and said, "I don't suppose _you_ saw anything?" Layna replied with a confused frown.

"Hand her my language gem," Irleen said. "I'll ask her."

"Oh, yeah," Link said. He dug into his pocket and pulled out the language gem. He offered it to Layna, who gave it a curious look for a moment. Link thought he saw a blush come to an otherwise neutral face as she picked the gem up into her fingers.

"Layna, 'inan sabinwumak filwaf wammu thib," Irleen said.

Layna's eyes widened as she stared at Irleen. "Fay Irliyn, wa-waba yinaygithak Gilto 'anik max?" she asked.

"Layna, 'inu nadsa'ijunwak nwaki," Irleen answered. Then she paused and added, "Taf naddhozaman 'inoy 'Fay Irliyn' to. Coyhuxwnwak."

Layna seemed to hesitate before responding, "Ay'a, Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn."

Irleen gave an exhausted sigh. "Xwali…"

Link turned his attention to the large pool of water beneath the platform, having lost interest in a conversation he could not follow. The still surface was somewhat difficult to see into due to the dark lights on the surface in addition to similar lighting underneath, indicating to Link that the walls and bottom of the pool were composed of the same material as the rest of the technoworks. But even with the proliferation of concealing illumination, Link could see some odd discolorations beneath the water. One was a larger area on his right (the direction of the control rooms) which actually looked much brighter than the surrounding area. The second was on his left, a spot of darkness which, from his perspective, looked to be no bigger than his fist. It took him a moment to realize that he really had not understood why, when the rest of the facility's rooms seemed to have their own purposes, this junction had a large pool at the bottom. If anything, it looked like a hazard if anyone were to fall from the upper platform. Not that it would be anything particularly dangerous for the Sorian builders, it nonetheless made Link curious.

And, without thinking, he asked over his shoulder, "Hey, Irleen? What's this water for?" He then realized that the two were still talking and glanced over his shoulder while saying, "Hey, you two."

Layna jumped in response, causing Irleen to start as well. Irleen then turned to Link and snapped, "Dhol!?"

"The water here," Link replied, pointing a finger. "What's it supposed to be used for?"

"Dhol? Liynk, 'inu nadmathosak wabnik. Waba niygothotak 'anik 'adhofnwin 'ithab. Kwal waba niygothotak 'immu thib 'anik 'a… dho…" Link could only look at her, wondering if she realized that her words had meant absolutely nothing to him. She exchanged a look with Layna. "Oh. 'Inu ya'lu niygothotak Gilto 'anik 'ithab, 'inax?"

Layna nodded. "Ay'a, Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn."

Irleen gave an annoyed sigh and said, "Taymokwan 'anw thibbak Liynk zanak."

Layna stared at her for a moment before saying, "Amda Kyabtin zanak?"

"_Ay'a_, Layna," Irleen replied in an irate tone, causing Layna to start. Layna held her hands out, and Link took the gem back. "Now, what were you saying?" Irleen asked.

"I was asking about this water here," Link said. "How come there's so much here?"

Irleen let out a thoughtful sound as she moved to hover over the water. "I don't know," she replied after a moment. "If it was flowing, I'd say it's a fresh water source. As it is… yeeeeah, I'm clueless." She flew a small circle and then continued, "You know, if someone were to drop something in there, it'd be pretty hard to find. I wonder if Airman Kaheel might've dropped his magic object down there."

"Sounds like it might be worth looking," Link said as he took off his shield.

Irleen watched for a moment as Link started setting his gear on the floor. "You're going down there? Do you know how to swim?"

"What, you think I never learned to swim?" Link asked as he dropped his whip on the floor. "Line and I used to go for a swim whenever the _Grand Sails_ was held up on an island with a lake. It didn't happen _too_ often, but it was nice when it did." He sat on the floor to take his boots off. "What will I be looking for?"

"Uh, something metal, I guess," Irleen said. "Magic users can use practically _anything_. Pens, watches, slide rulers, even small instruments. It usually depends on how crazy they feel like being. I once knew an older librarian who used a shoe with a wooden foot inside."

"A wooden foot?" Link asked before pulling his tunic over his head.

"He said it belonged to his mother. Are you… stripping naked?"

"Just to my undersuit," Link said as he stood up. He dropped his trousers and stepped out, leaving him wearing just a white body suit with the sleeves colored grey up to the elbows. "I'll be right back."

"Līnca, kákirōl ahà ō," Irleen complained at him.

Link had decided to ignore her as he sat down on the edge of the platform, allowing his toes to dip into the water. The water was cool, but not unbearable, and Link carefully slid off the edge and into the pool. He kept a hand on the edge as he allowed himself to float for a moment, making sure he had his bearings right.

Then he took in a deep breath and disappeared under the surface. When he opened his eyes again, he found that visibility was difficult to determine due to the light from the surrounding walls. He located the dark space and dove toward it. He had never gone so far into a body of water before, usually out of concern for something alive at the bottom of whatever lake he had been swimming in. However, his curiosity kept his mind focused as he dove maybe a story and a half before finding a third floor.

What was more interesting was the dark space itself. Some kind of brown garment was attached to the base of the wall. As Link used his fingers to probe around it, he found that there was a source of suction from behind the wall itself. He could not tell what prevented the garment from being pulled beyond the wall, but the black hole beyond told him it might be another part of the technoworks that had been purposely sent through necrosis, although he was not quite sure what for. His lungs began to burn, so he decided to return to the surface for more air.

"Ħìtīn kahūt?" Irleen, hovering not far from where Link had surfaced, asked.

"Just a minute," Link replied. His words elicited an annoyed remark from Irleen, but he dove back under before he could hear the whole thing.

As he returned, he thought about his next course of action. He decided that, if the garment below belonged to the Sorian airman, it might be worth it to retrieve it. So when he reached the bottom again, he took a handful of the garment and pulled. But he found that the suction was holding tight, so he grabbed with both hands. The moment he managed to tug some of the garment from the hole, he felt the water around him move. It startled him, causing him to let go and almost lose his breath. Link backed away and immediately returned to the surface again, alarmed by the water in his mouth. He broke the surface and spat the dirt-tinged water out of his mouth.

"Līnca!" Irleen cried out. "Con tùkħah!?"

Link coughed before raising a hand out of the water. "I'm okay," he croaked. "Just wait."

"Káħàwò Rītánìn karōlat…"

Link dove back under and immediately grabbed the garment. After bracing his feet against either side of the hole, he started dragging the garment up like he was hauling a line. The water suddenly pulled harder on him, but he kept his legs straight and continued to pull. At first, he thought the garment was just a long piece of damp cloth. Then he discovered that it was a pair of trousers, and his hand felt something in one of the pockets as he tugged. The water pulled harder still, and Link sunk until his back was on the bottom. But he had the trousers wrested from the hole, and he tried to turn and swim away with them slung on his shoulder.

Instead, though, he found that he could not push against the wall hard enough to swim away. Twice, he tried to shove himself away, and he found that the water was pulling him back toward the hole. His third kick was much harder, and he tried to swim as frantic as possible to get away. However, he found that, having already spent some time swimming on top of all the climbing and fighting the Stalarmors, his muscles were beginning to ache. He set his feet on the wall and gave himself a moment to relax. Then, realizing that he was almost out of air due to all his movement, he used a hand to pinch his nose shut so he did not accidentally tried to breathe. His head was clouding up. He had to get out before he drowned.

His stomach touched the bottom again, and he looked up. And he realized that the surface was approaching _him_! The water was draining out of the room. After just a few more seconds of waiting, the water's pull weakened, and Link was able to not only move away from the hole, but stand up and take a relieving breath of air. He took in a large breath and started coughing.

"Līnca!" Irleen cried out. "Katòhan!?"

Link, although not understanding Irleen, held up a hand and nodded. "I'm okay." He looked around at the drained floor and saw something he had not been expecting. The glowing he had seen, the large spot across from the hole, revealed itself to be a doorway down another hallway. It sat on a raised platform that took up the right corner across from Link, providing a (relatively) dry path between the door and the ladder from the walkway above. Link, after much of the water had drained, stood in water now as high as the middle of his shins. Unseen previously, the water came from a number of spouts on the left side of the room, spraying loud now that they were open to the air. He turned and found that, indeed, the hole into which the water was draining was a part of the facility that had undergone necrosis, including the grate-shaped cap that had prevented the trousers from being pulled in.

Link pulled the trousers from around his neck and found the pockets at the waist. The first was empty, but the second one yielded something interesting.

A harmonica.

As far as harmonicas went, it was actually a very handsome piece for being in the water for days. If he remembered correctly, the configuration of the mouthpiece, with thick spacing between each hole, made this particular instrument a blues harp. The exterior was mostly steel, but the cover plates were set with large, thin bars of emerald. The top cover plate held ten strips of emerald arranged right above each of the holes in the mouthpiece. The bottom plate, however, was a single, solid bar. Or, at least, that was how Link _thought_ the instrument was supposed to be oriented. He put the instrument to his mouth and blew. The result was a brief spray of water before the instrument played a clear note. Link then looked at the blues harp in concentration. He considered that he would have to see someone to make sure it was properly tuned; not having owned an instrument before, he could not be sure with his own ears.

"Àciwátōn?" Irleen asked as she hovered closer. "Kōwì luc itì wáh pīn?"

"Interesting, huh?" Link asked her.

"Līnca, Hīlīħánìn kárōl ō," she answered in an annoyed tone.

Her words killing his excitement at the find, he glanced at the walkway above. "Hey, Layna!" he called. He held up a hand to invite her down. "Can you bring my stuff?"

_Ba-bam!_

All three looked toward the new doorway in response to what sounded like something heavy falling beyond it. Although Link and Irleen had clear sight down the hallway, neither of them could see anything different.

"What was that?"

"Luc nūc?"

"Nwaki dhol?"

…

Link had to take a moment to get dressed and equipped before the three of them descended to the lowest level and investigated the hallway. They discovered that there was a bend to the left, which explained why Link and Irleen had not seen the source of the sound earlier. Layna, of course, strode before them with steps silent and one of her small blades in each hand. Link found himself feeling anxious about this new room, although he could not be sure why. Only after they turned the corner did Link realize that it might have been because he felt that they had not found all of the Stalarmors. He remembered that there had been _four_ crates back at the port, as well as someone saying that the single Sorian in those crates might have been accompanied by one of the earlier Stalarmors. Or had that been something he had just thought? Either way, it seemed like a legitimate cause for concern to him. A little further on, he realized that there might have even been more than just those three Stalarmors. With their ability to collapse, there could have been two, maybe even _three_, to a crate.

"Link?" Irleen asked. "Are you okay?"

"Huh?"

"You've got this… weird look on your face."

"Oh." He shook his head. "Just… I think I'm just thinking about…" He rubbed his eyes. "Too much, I guess."

"Welcome to the club."

The room they stepped into was about as large as the storage room they had found earlier. However, this had the distinguishing feature of a window on the right side. Link glanced out at a much larger area which, at first, looked to simply lead out to the open sky. The area was walled by rock, but its ceiling was the same tile pattern that they had encountered all over the technoworks. The deep blue of a late evening sky darkening the surface below allowed them to see the light from the ceiling tiles shimmer off bodies of water on the other side of the glass as well what looked like a glass platform between both bodies.

After Link spent a few minutes looking out the window, he turned to another item of interest in the room: a pair of red spots in the middle of the room's floor. Something had caused damage to the floor, likely from something heavy falling on it. Link looked up at ceiling as Layna's feet disappeared into an overhead cavity she had noticed earlier.

"Think she'll find anything up there?" Link asked Irleen.

"I guess it depends on how much room there _is_ up there," Irleen said. She paused for a moment before adding, "And, judging from how long it's _already_ taken, it's a little extensive."

Link nodded and glanced back out the window. "What's that out there?"

"Probably just where the technoworks stores all of its water before putting it up on the surface."

"Why is it made of… glass?"

"Yeeeeeah, I'm not gonna know the answer to that one. So my best guess is that it's one of those artistic things."

Link put on a difficult face. "Maybe for a Sorian, but… really, I'm kinda _done_ with looking at the surface."

"Oh, come on, Link," Irleen said as he started walking to the other end of the room, where Link thought he saw a hallway connecting to the water storage room. "It's not like the surface was _bad_."

"Except for all those big things we ran into."

"Right."

"And the fact that we _fell_ there."

"Oh… kaaaay…"

"And that we nearly got killed a bunch of different times."

"All right," she snapped. "Now you're just being difficult. The surface wasn't _all_ bad. You know what? You may have met your future _wife_ after falling down there. Did you think of _that_?"

Link frowned, although it was actually in reaction to noticing that the connecting hallway had bare stone walls, meaning that this area was a little dark. "Hm." Then he stopped near the entrance and looked over his shoulder. "Wait, my future _what_?"

"Oh, come on, Link. Don't tell me you never noticed all the attention you got down there."

Link raised an eyebrow at her. "Yeah, that probably had something to do with all those… what'd you call them? Bosses?"

"Wha—of _course_, Link! You were almost _famous_ down there! You even impressed a whole _tribe_ of exotic _women_!"

Link started walking again. "The Gelto wanted to _use_ me! I don't think I _want_ their attention!"

"Oh, grow up! Meilont, Valley, Dholit, Dubbl, Layna, Rosaline—I've _never_ heard of one man getting that much attention, not even in _fiction_!"

Link stopped in the middle of a T-junction in the hall and turned around. "Why do conversations with you always _go_ in this weird direction?"

"What? This is just something I like to think about."

"What, about the people who show interest in me?"

"Well… mostly the _women_…"

"Why would y—"

_Bam bam bam bam bam bam bam bam BAM BAM BAM BAM!_

Link had only a split second to realize that something to his right was charging at him from down the hallway. Then he was struck by a shield the same size as him and shoved into the short corridor leading into the water storage room. Irleen screamed in response, startled by the disappearance of her partner in the blink of an eye. Link could not stop himself, and both he and his attacker fell into the room. Link landed on his back, feeling the rigid form of both his sword and his shield in the most painful way possible. His head had also snapped backwards and hit the floor, causing his vision to swim horribly. He was vaguely aware of something landing near him as he lay still and waited for his head to clear. He rolled over and looked at the thing that had shoved him out of the hallway and into the room. He knew he could fight a naked Stalarmor. A Stalarmor wearing a few pieces of armor, he might have trouble against.

But when this new Stalarmor rose from the floor, partially reassembling itself after the fall had dislocated some of its joints, Link found himself staring at a menacing freak of nature wearing full plate armor. Its cuirass had been crudely designed with outlines of skulls. Its left pauldron sported more skulls arranged in a line with two more above that line, leading Link to believe that it was actually a show of the number of people this abomination had killed. Its gauntlet sported a blade-like ridge on the outer forearm and rows of spikes over the plates designed to guard the fingers. When it flexed its reassembled leg, Link saw that the piece covering its right knee also sported a blade the length of its thigh. It did not appear to wear a helmet. Instead, a crude visor looked to have been bolted directly to its skull about where its ears should be. As if to respond to Link's look of fright, it used the hand free of its shield (which turned out to be _much_ taller than Link stood) to life the visor. Then it angled its head so that it could show Link the permanent smile carved into its fleshless face. Overall, this one stood at a height maybe a head taller than the previous Stalarmors, tall enough that it probably had had to hunch low in order to walk the halls of the technoworks.

The Stalarmor slammed its visor down with a resounding _tang_ and wrapped its mail-clad fingers around the hilt of a sword mounted on its back. Link immediately pushed himself to his feet and pulled his stolen shield off. He had it affixed to his arm when the Stalarmor drew what almost looked like a broadsword missing its point. Then it swung the sword, and, with a _shink_, a second blade slid into existence, making even the creature's _sword_ taller than Link! Link quickly drew the Lokomo Sword and held it pointed at the Stalarmor. He realized that he was seriously outclassed. Not only was his opponent larger than him, it wore a full suit of armor that he would never be able to get past. Worse, Link had no idea where the creature's weak point was, knowing now that the Stalarmors did not keep them in the same place. He felt his best option was to escape, but his only way out was the ladder behind him. The Stalarmor would skewer him before he could make it to the doorway above.

The creature took a step forward, which automatically brought it within strike distance. Link saw it raise its sword for a horizontal swing and brought up his shield as he jumped backwards.

_TANG!_

Link spun and nearly stumbled into the pool on his right when the end of the Stalarmor's sword found the edge of Link's shield and nearly tore his arm out with a devastating strike. If the strike had been any closer, Link probably would have been _thrown_ into the pool. He found his footing again just in time to see the Stalarmor was swinging in the opposite direction. Link dropped to his knees and leaned backwards and watched as the sword flashed past his face, close enough that he could feel the blade slicing through the air. He had leaned too far, though, and flopped onto his back. The Stalarmor paused to change the direction of its swing, allowing Link time to see that it was going to drop the sword down on top of him. Feeling that there was no safer place to go, Link rolled _at_ the Stalarmor just as it swung. _PANG!_ The sword hit nothing but the glass-like floor. Link found this to be a good opportunity and sprung onto a knee. He wrapped his arms around the Stalarmor's right leg and pulled, hoping that he was just strong enough to topple the creature.

The Stalarmor lifted its leg. Link found himself glancing at its masked face for a second.

Then the Stalarmor spun on its other foot and kicked. "YAAAAAA—Gah!" Link sailed across the room until he slammed against the opposite wall. He dropped to the floor, his hand fumbling the Lokomo Sword. He shook his head clear of the fuzziness put there when his head had struck the wall.

And he saw that, between him and the floor, lay the Stalarmor's right shin and foot. Link quickly looked back at the Stalarmor and saw that it was still _standing_! He found the Lokomo Sword and jumped back to his feet. He could not understand how or why, but _this_ Stalarmor could throw its own pieces! Even if he _could_ sever any of its limbs, it would not be affected!

The Stalarmor recalled its missing shin and, as if to prove to Link that his assessment was correct, thrust its sword arm forward and launched its gauntlet across the room. Link raised his shield and ducked out of the way. The sword's point bounced off the wall. Then Link raised his sword in defense when the Stalarmor's sword angled one cutting edge and sliced downward at him. He had to brace his sword with his shield, finding that even the detached limb possessed enough force to nearly make the Lokomo Sword embed itself into Link's skull. Link's muscles screamed at him to stop straining, sore as they were from the day's activity. Only his determination was working to keep him from getting killed, but he did not know how long that would last.

Link suddenly lurched forward when the Stalarmor's sword slid off his sword, and he watched the gauntlet return to its owner. The gauntlet reattached, and the Stalarmor flexed its arm as if to make sure its joint still worked.

Then, against any laws of physics, the Stalarmor leapt at Link with its sword raised over its head. The stunt was incredible; a skeleton coated in iron and then suited in metal plates and mail should _not_ have been able to jump high enough to nearly touch a ceiling as far up as three times the creature's height, never mind having the thrust from standing still to launch its whole body across the room. Link had only a moment to gauge the plausibility of such a feat before he tucked and rolled out of the way of a sword which was looking to cleave him in two with enough force to put a deep gash in the glass-like surface they both stood on. The room blushed red from the attack, revealing the nature of the glass surface that they stood on.

Link sprung back to his feet and shuffled to a position behind the Stalarmor. Still no sign of anything that could help him fight this creature, at least not until he thought about it. Although he could not see the life source which had allowed him to defeat the other Stalarmors, he _did_ find something which just might be as pertinent.

Rust.

The red pulsing of the injured technowork floor nearly hid it from Link, but in between the flashes of light, he saw that a patch of ugly orange decorated the bottom edge of the Stalarmor's left greave. The Stalarmor had a rusting problem. And if its greave was rusting, Link found it to be a fair bet that the _rest_ of the Stalarmor's body could rust. Link's eyes immediately swiveled to the pool behind him. To his fortune, he found that the technowork block they both stood on did not stretch over the pool, but in fact formed the pool's edge.

He had a plan. And he had to check something.

The Stalarmor had just removed its blade from the floor, so Link quickly laid a strike into the back of its left knee. Unlike the bare Stalarmors he and Layna had fought before, this Stalarmor only faltered for a split second without having any of its pieces detach, as if the Stalarmor was solid underneath. The Stalarmor took umbrage to the attack and whipped its left arm around to deliver a strike to Link's head with its massive shield. Link's shoulder actually took most of the blow, which was not as powerful since the Stalarmor did not have the room to swing any harder. Link backed away with a series of light skips across the floor, opening the distance between them. He had seen that he would never get the Stalarmor to topple over like the others, not by striking out its knees.

So Link put his sword away.

The Stalarmor turned to find Link, and it gave Link a curious head tilt as if to ask what he was doing. Link, despite his predicament, grinned in response and smacked his free palm against the outside of the shield in a juvenile taunt. The Stalarmor reared back as if plotting to throw its sword at Link.

Link turned out to be both right and wrong. The Stalarmor did indeed throw its sword. And, like before, it threw its gauntlet along, probably to maintain control of the weapon. Link knew that it would have to throw the arm if it wanted to hit him; he had backed up almost to the opposite side of the room. And as soon as he had seen the Stalarmor twist to throw its weapon, Link charged forward.

The Stalarmor only had a split-second to see Link's intentions, and, in that regard, it utterly failed. Link's boots sped the boy up fast enough that the sword would overshoot him by a great margin. In addition, Link's timing was spot-on despite not really intending to find the new opening that he now had. By the time that the Stalarmor's sword had reached where Link once stood, Link was close enough to aim his shield into the Stalarmor's groin while the Stalarmor's own shield was too far and the Stalarmor's shoulder spin too heavy for the Stalarmor to bring the shield back to protect itself. Link did not even try to add power to what he was about to do; he just ran full-on into the Stalarmor's faulds with his shield aimed to take the brunt of the impact.

_BAING!_

The twist of the Stalarmor's hips caused Link to glance off to one side, but the resulting force of impact was enough that the Stalarmor stumbled this time. Link had fallen to the floor near the pool on his right. The Stalarmor, being top-heavy with all its equipment, reeled backwards and staggered for the pool on the opposite side. Realizing that it was about to go for a permanent swim, the Stalarmor flung its shield away (dropping its sword at the same time) and waved its arms in circles as it tried to regain its balance. Link quickly got back to his feet and, using two long strides to close the gap between them, bashed his shield into the Stalarmor's faulds again. The Stalarmor, finding that it would not recover, immediately recalled its other gauntlet and latched both hands to the edges of Link's shield in order to drag Link with it.

Link, not really expecting such a move, slid his arm out of the shield right away.

_SPLAAAAAASH!_ A torrent of water rose into the air as the heavy, armored skeleton fell in. It sank immediately to the bottom, which revealed the depth of the pool to be about twice the Stalarmor's height.

Link backed away when the Stalarmor launched its gauntlets to the edge of the pool and began to pull itself up. Something was wrong. Link thought that getting the Stalarmor into the pool would cause it to rust, but the iron abomination was still moving. Link backed off and toward the exit when the Stalarmor got an elbow back onto the floor. Then it slung its leg up, and in just minutes, it had rolled back onto the floor. It lifted its heavy body onto its feet and took a single step toward Link.

Then it stopped. Link watched as it glanced down and back at its trailing left foot.

Which had turned an ugly combination of copper and brown. Link could hear what sounded like something crumpling. The orange discoloration continued up the Stalarmor's leg, wrapping around its greave. The Stalarmor toppled sideways, just barely avoiding falling into the other pool. It tried to pull itself along the floor, but the smooth floor provided no grip for its armored hands. Link watched as another spot of rust started spreading at its left elbow as it tried to reach out.

And at the angle Link stood, he could see the Stalarmor's life source peeking out from under its left pauldron with a soft, blue glow against the red of the floor underneath.

He waited until the rust on its arm had overtaken its shoulder. Then, as he strode forward, he drew his sword. The Stalarmor, now unable to move its left arm with any sort of quick speed, watched as Link delivered a powerful kick to its elbow, launching its gauntlet and part of its rerebrace into the pool on the right. The Stalarmor attempted to retaliate by shoving itself at Link and grabbing his foot with its remaining hand. Link jumped out of its reach and then jumped forward again to hit its left pauldron with a downward strike, dislodging the whole piece from its shoulder. The blue orb of the Stalarmor's life was actually part of the Stalarmor's upper arm bone, protruding from its shoulder opposite of the shoulder joint. Link switched the Lokomo Sword to his right hand and used a wide, circular swing to strike the orb in its rusting resting place.

_Crnch!_ The blade broke the orb just as the Stalarmor latched onto Link's left ankle. But before the Stalarmor could pitch Link aside, its whole body fell lifeless to the floor. Link jerked his ankle out of the Stalarmor's limp grip and backed away. The rusting process had somehow slowed, leaving the Stalarmor's back, left leg, left shoulder, right side, and even part of its jawbone an ugly color. Link waited a moment longer to take a relieved breath and jerked his fist in a satisfied and victorious pump.

"Link!" he heard Irleen call out from behind. He turned to find Layna standing at the base of the wall while Irleen rushed over to him. "Holy _crap_, Link! Are you okay!?"

Link gave a soft nod. "I'm all right," he said. He gave the Stalarmor a glance over his shoulder before adding, "Amazingly."

"No kidding," Irleen replied as Layna approached from behind, awe-filled eyes focused on the lifeless creature. "We just saw that thing rising out of the water! We thought you were in trouble!"

"I kinda was," Link said with a sheepish grin. "I thought it wasn't gonna rust at first, but I guess it just needed time."

"And salt water," Irleen said.

"Huh?"

"Didn't you notice? The air in here's a little salty. It probably caused it to rust faster once it was exposed to air again."

Link sniffed the air and immediately became aware of how similar it smelled to the air when they had been traveling on the _Goddess's Tides_. "Oh, yeah."

"This room holds the ocean water the technoworks gathers. It couldn't have been any _worse_ for that thing."

Link nodded and sheathed his sword. "I was thinking… maybe… that Sorian airman had flooded the… the larger room back there so _this_ Stalarmor would be trapped." He let out a loud breath. "Look, let's get out of here and see what we can do about the technoworks now that we have his harmonica."

"Yeah."


	79. Etudes of Life and Memory

Chapter 79: Etudes of Life and Memory

…

Link, Layna, and Irleen returned to the large control room a few minutes later. Link was feeling tired as he stepped up between the two columns in the control room. He removed the blues harp from his pocket and stared at it for a moment.

It was a long enough moment that Irleen asked, "You… _know_ how to play a harmonica, don't you?"

Link gave her a weary look. Then he placed the blues harp to his lips and played a few notes. Irleen jerked backwards in surprise. Not only did Link seem to have a grasp of how a blues harp worked, the dozen or so notes that he played were actually organized into a decent if somewhat slow tune. He even held the last note and used a hand to create a vibrato. When he glanced up at her again, he gave her a weak grin in an attempt to exert a smug attitude.

"Okay, that…" Irleen started before realizing that she could not find any more words. "I thought you've been an _airman_ most of your life. Where did you learn how to play a harmonica?"

"I learned from some friends who live on these islands," Link answered. "The _Grand Sails_ has taken them to a festival on Castle Island for the past… I think, four years? Anyway, they're a band, and one of them taught me how to play a blues harp during one festival. I don't get to practice very often, but I still remember how to play." He glanced over at the column on his left. "The question is if the technoworks will respond to it."

"It should," Irleen said. "You don't actually have to _use_ magic to repair the technoworks; just _direct_ it. The technoworks will do the rest."

"Then why is it that only Sorian magic users know how to control the technoworks?" Link asked.

"Job security." Link's face blanked at the revelation, finding it to be an absurd excuse that he had not considered. Irleen shook side to side. "I'm _kidding_. The magic users are the ones who put the technoworks together. It's been easier to let them control the technoworks because they understand it, but it doesn't _necessarily_ mean that they're the only ones who know how to control them."

Link shrugged. "If you say so. What notes do I need to play?"

"It's hard to say. Since a magic user's tool can be anything, the technoworks has to figure out _what_ the tool _is_ first. Try going through all the notes you know. Make them long. If you hit the right note, these columns will react."

Link did not know any music notation or even the names of the notes on a blues harp. But he knew that blowing and drawing on the harp produced two different notes. So he started from the lowest note and used a single breath to play a blow note and then inhale for the pull note. He kept his eyes shifting between the columns in expectation of a reaction. By the time he reached the fifth hole, however, he was beginning to wonder if the blues harp really _did_ need to be tuned.

Then he pulled on the seventh hole, and a shift in movement in the corner of his left eye made him pause. The blue particles on the column to his left had stopped falling. He looked to his right and found that the right column had done the same.

"That's it!" Irleen declared. "Keep playing that note, Link."

Link exhaled and played the note as he inhaled. The blue particles on the left column, as he watched it, started pulling themselves together. Link had to pause so he could exhale without playing the wrong note and saw that some of the particles had pulled themselves together to look like Sorian symbols. He continued to play the note, and the particles finally formed what looked like a bulleted list in blue lettering on either column. He was not sure if he was done, so he continued the note until he need to breathe out again.

"Perfect," Irleen told him. She looked between the columns, then she moved to the right one and hovered near the bottom bullet on a six-item list. "Press your finger on this circle. Just a tap."

Link stepped over and touched his forefinger to the column where she told him. The bullet, as well as the lettering next to it, glowed white before the whole list faded out. Link glanced at the other column to find that the list on that side had also disappeared. Instead, a circle of blue light had formed on the floor.

"Whoa…" Irleen awed. "That's interesting…"

Link saw that she was hovering near the hand holding the blues harp, and he lifted it to his face to see it. "Whoa…" he agreed when he saw the emerald strips on the top of the blues harp glowing in a pattern. The whole emerald did not glow at once; instead, only half of the emerald would glow, alternating between the half closest to the mouthpiece and then the opposite half every few notes. He angled the blues harp to show Irleen and asked, "Why's it doing that?"

"With instruments," Irleen explained, "the technoworks provides the note combination it's waiting for. When a Sorian instrument is used for magic, it _always_ has some kind of pattern or design so that the necessary notes will display on the instruments when using the technoworks. Neat, huh?"

Link watched the emeralds through a complete pattern. "So I just have to play the pattern on the blues harp?"

Irleen bobbed up and down. "Yep."

"But how do I know when to blow or draw?"

Irleen paused for a moment. "What?"

"When you play a harmonica, breathing _out_ and breathing _in_ are two different notes. How am I supposed to know which is which?"

"Uh… I… I don't know. Just… wing it. The technoworks won't revert unless you play that single note again. And make sure you stand in the circle; that's where the technoworks expects to hear the music from."

"Never thought I'd be playing for living _rock_…" Link commented under his breath as he stepped into the circle.

"Well, you must've taken up the harmonica for _some_ reason," Irleen joked. "Besides, isn't this fun?" Link allowed himself a half-smile as he watched the pattern play out on the blues harp. He tried to memorize it, tried to imagine how the notes would sound in his head, but he found that, at the end of one pattern, he had missed a small group on notes at the beginning and had to watch the whole thing again. Then he watched the pattern two more times, his hesitation causing Irleen to groan her impatience at him. "Come _on_, Link."

"Sh," he hissed at her. He put the blues harp to his mouth and noticed that he could see some of the emeralds glowing at the bottom of his vision, particularly those not right under his nose. He waited for the pattern to start again and started playing along. He had lost count of how many notes the instrument was asking for, but about halfway through, Link flubbed a note and, realizing it, took the instrument from his mouth and gave an irritated groan. His next attempt at the piece yielded another slip-up. But the third attempt, Link played the whole piece through and glanced around. As he had assumed, the technoworks had not responded, and he thought he knew why. He replayed the piece in his head as he had played it, and he found that even he, an amateur musician, noticed that the melody of the piece sounded a little awkward.

"Well, _that_ didn't work," Irleen griped.

"Hang on, Irleen," Link told her. "I think I know what I did wrong. That didn't sound right; I'm gonna play it again."

Irleen sighed. "If you say so…"

Link played the piece again, this time reversing the notes that he drew and blew. Again, the first place he had messed up tripped him up, but his second attempt was a successful melody which, although still a little strange, sounded better than his first full play through. It was an easy-going, casual tune, something which he had not heard on a harmonica before. Until this piece, he had only heard either an exciting song which often made one want to slap one's knees to the rhythm or a sad solo that used to make Line cry.

When Link paused after the end, he became aware of a crumbling sound nearby and turned around. He watched as the red spot on the floor, the one that the Stalarmor had made during their fight, changed from its pulsing red color to what looked like white stone before it molded to match the nearby tiles' shape, patterns, and coloring, right down to the way the colors shifted. It looked as if the damage had never occurred in the first place. He turned to the column on the right, where he had noticed damage near the bottom. His eyes only caught the aftermath as the white rock shifted to match the column's appearance.

"Link," Irleen said as she looked at the left column. "Keep playing. The technoworks hasn't distributed the command yet."

Link waited for the pattern on the blues harp to restart before he played again. After he finished his second complete attempt, he saw that the columns had begun to glow brighter. His third play almost left him blind from the amount of light, so he had to play the fourth time with his eyes closed. Fortunately, he had already gotten used to the melody and played it flawlessly without looking.

"Okay, Link," Irleen said. "That's it."

Link opened his eyes to find that the entire room had rid itself of the dreary, copper coloring in favor of the bright yellows and oranges and blue particles that they had seen in the entrance chamber. Even the bright, red sections had completely disappeared. He found that, to a small degree, he could almost feel what the technoworks felt. Most of his fatigue had disappeared, and his body did not feel as sore anymore.

"Link, play that note again," Irleen told him. "The one that calls up the list." Link turned to the right column and, after taking a brief pause when he noticed that the harmonica was not glowing anymore, tried to play the note she requested in a single breath. He did not quite make it, only managing to get half of the list composed before he had to breathe out. But he summoned the list with a second sound, and Irleen shifted to the left column. "Hm…"

"What is it?" Link asked.

"I'm trying to think where to find the command to put the Sky Lines back up… Maybe it's _this_ one?" She moved to the other column, and Link followed her with his eyes. She hovered at the top of the list and told him, "Press this one." Link moved to place a finger on the bullet before she blurted, "No, wait! Wait."

"What?"

She gave a frustrated sigh. "I don't know. You keep calling them 'Sky Lines'; I forgot what I _used_ to call them."

"Sorians don't use the word 'Sky Lines'?" Link asked.

"I just started using the word I _hear_ when you say it, so now I can't remember what _I_ used to call them. It's not on the list here, so I have no idea where it would be."

"Wa—… What _did_ you call them?"

"I don't know, but it made a lot more sense than 'Sky Lines'." She moved back to the left column. Then she hovered near the second-to-last item on the list. "Try this one." Link moved over to the other column and, after hesitating in case Irleen changed her mind, pressed his forefinger against the bullet. Instead of disappearing as before, the Sorian lettering rearranged itself into a smaller list. "_There_ it is!" Irleen suddenly declared, making Link start. "Streamways! I can't _believe_ I forgot that!"

Link gave her a confused look. "Do you see it? How do we put them back?"

"Tap that second item."

Link pressed his finger against the column as she had told him, and he noticed the room around them grow a little darker. The bright, warm colors had faded to a dull orange, but the blue particles remained undisturbed as they continued to flow along the technoworks' floor, ceiling, and walls. Link turned to find that the circle on the floor had returned, so he looked at the blues harp. The emeralds were glowing as before, so Link moved back to the circle. Then he quickly asked Irleen, "I _do_ need to play again, right?"

"Yeah, I think so," she said. "This should put the Sky Li—_Streamways_ back in place."

Link shot her a confused look at her sudden need to correct herself before he settled his eyes on the blues harp to memorize the pattern. This pattern turned out to be a little longer than the first piece, and Link's first two attempts were met with failure when he flubbed a quick transition from a low to a very high note. He messed up the third attempt when, anticipating the transition he had tripped over, attempted the transition in the wrong place much earlier in the piece. When the fourth came about, his frustration saw to it that he completely forgot about the tricky transition and trailed the emeralds by about two notes. He had to pause so that he could memorize the pattern again.

Then he played. The piece, in its entirety, was a little more serious. It started with a low melody and, at the transition that Link had kept making a mistake on, maintained that somber feel just through the length of the higher notes he had to play. The piece ended with a repeat of part of the low melody at the beginning, and then it started over. Link played it twice more, and he noticed that a couple of the notes had varied from before, forcing him to catch the odd notes. He did not stop until the end of the third play.

And he only stopped because the floor began to shake. His eyes refocused themselves on the wall ahead of him just in time to see the blue particles fade from the wall. He widened his stance to keep from falling and called out, "Irleen, what's going on!?"

"What?" Irleen asked.

"The island's shaking!" Link quickly glanced over at Layna just to make sure he was not the only one feeling the quake. Layna had tensed, knees bent as if to spring at the first sign of trouble with one of her throwing blades held between two fingers.

Then the shaking stopped, and the room returned to its original lighting. However, Link noticed that the blue particles were absent from their surroundings except for the raining particles on the columns. Link glanced around only to see that the technoworks had hardly been disturbed. He remembered Leynne mentioning an earthquake at the same moment the Sky Lines were supposed to have disappeared and asked, "So… did we do it?"

"I think that did it," Irleen agreed. "We should…"

Link noticed her staring at the wall. "What is it?"

"There's… something in one of the above rooms," she responded, her voice sounding a little worried. "Inside the technoworks."

Link glanced around as if to find an answer. Then he suggested, "Maybe… the technoworks sees the Sorian airman's body?"

"Necrosis wouldn't let the technoworks see that. There's something _inside_ the technoworks' structure itself."

He shrugged. "Okay, let's go take a look, then."

…

After ensuring that the technoworks was functioning correctly, Link and Layna walked side-by-side behind Irleen as she appeared to follow something in the technoworks that they could not see. From the junction, they took the ladder to the floor above and eventually found themselves standing in the middle of the floor of the barracks they had located earlier. Or, more accurately, just off-center the middle of the room. A solid circle of white light occupied the middle of the floor in a space that they had not noticed had been brushed free of debris. Link and Layna puzzled at it for a moment.

The moment ended when Irleen said, "Oh, my…" Her voice sounded shocked, and Link would have asked her about it if she had not next told him, "Link, take out the harmonica."

"What for?" Link asked, already digging into his pocket.

"Just do it. Play that single note, the one the technoworks respond to." Link did just as she asked, holding the note as long as he could.

This caused something unexpected to happen. Specks of light floated up from the circle and appeared to build something from the floor up. The process was fast, and Link recognized the pair of Sorian trousers he had left behind in the junction along with a pair of bare feet. He had to pause when the image was built to the waist. He continued, and the image completed a bare-chested Sorian male probably in his late twenties. His plumage was bright red with a dull layer of pink closer to his scalp, and the feathers on his left wing were the same white color as the wing Link had found with the crates. In his hands was the same blues harp that Link held, cupped between his frozen fingers as if he had been playing it when he stopped in time.

Link glanced at Irleen and asked, "Is this… who I _think_ it is?"

"Airman Kaheel," Irleen replied. "He must have left this message. Check the harmonica; there should be a way to view it."

Link found that a single emerald on the blues harp pulsed and decided to play the corresponding note.

The image of Airman Kaheel shifted and lowered the blues harp from his mouth. When he opened his eyes, Link saw a clear, sad expression in them which hinted that whatever message he had left was not going to be very pleasant.

He seemed to hesitate, toeing the ground before he spoke. "Kàhīla táwa," he said. "_Rapùcwáh Ħōntìnico_ natī Kòrōla Hōwàl kīnù tōkwi táwa. Káááá… Kàtlácīn kátàh ō."

"Sh," Irleen quickly hissed at Link just as he opened his mouth to ask something. He originally planned to ask why he was spontaneously hearing Sorian while still having her translator gem in his pocket, but he decided against it as he watched the image's eyes wander the ground in a moment of silence.

Airman Kaheel gave a heavy sigh. "Cìpákwáhtū nūkaħátinat. Kil Tānòcokīn nùtci, ōtàn lì ta. Àt kátlicá ahà ō. Ìp ikòn táp káħòtuhan pòt. Káhì Còntáwih Ħōntáwà tòkwá kátànut, ħàl kàtcītu hàtòt. Káhát kácīt atác, tiháħin kálīh pa." The airman paused and took in a deep breath. Link could tell that he was about to go into a long talk; he had seen that sort of look from superiors a number of times when they had started to lecture him and Line.

"_Rapùcwáh Ħōntìnico_ _Cònhu Pakànùnico_ cū tìpàħátinat cìt kōnwi hì Hálta Pálīt klánōtanhu pòt. Pāpìna, Kōtoħa… Tùpìna… Lākán cū tlārùkatìnat. Káhì nacwī Hīlīħán itì rùkatìnat. Klātopīc Cūnìnincùha ħōnrotà ħitácatìnat… Kòrōla Hōwàl kīt hì 'Tlānapītix' ħa witat. Káhì ħōnnolòk kárōl.

"Hòt ħakáwìh itì. Rītò àt Hīlīħán tuwìk kīc ìt Cūnìnincùha àt ħōnrotà cū káħàħátinat… Káħàħátinat, àt káħàħátinhu cìt kácīt. Cìt kákùwàhu, Tānòcokīn Toròlcita ħacàtī kàtùtàri ħàhu. Luc ònwi tùħu káħanuli, ħàl kil Toròlcita towul tlāħitùn, Hīlīħán pat tūri ħōnrì. Luc… kīt hì káwit nòt. Ħōtnùl ō.

"Tiháħin kálīh, àt kápáħō Hīlīħán ròl ta ħanùl kácīh. Ìp nòt lòn kápà ahà. Hòt itì káħanuli ta ō." Airman Kaheel, now wearing a determined scowl, brought his blues harp back to his mouth and played a pair of notes. The image disappeared back into the circle on the floor, and the room fell silent.

Link waited for a moment before asking Irleen, "Was that… a last message from him?"

"Yes," Irleen replied in a grim tone. "And I think I understand what happened. He told the Stalarmors how to disable the Sky Lines to buy time for the Hylians here. Then… he-he said that there was one last thing he could do, something he wouldn't regret. I think he deliberately used his trousers to block the drain outside so that one of the Stalarmors would be trapped below. And the Stalarmors in the control rooms… they weren't busting the place apart because they were trying to figure out how to free their friend."

"He tried until the end," Link reasoned.

Irleen bobbed up and down. "He had no idea how much help he was to us. Link, when we get back to my people… we have to bring someone here so that we can extract this message."

Link nodded and said in a quieter voice, "Okay. Do you…?"

"No, I'm fine. We need to get going. There may be more Sorians that we can help."

…

The trio emerged from the waterfall into an almost black night. The last traces of the sun had disappeared past the horizon, leaving only a half-moon shining down on them from above. In lieu of trying to climb down the cliff, Link decided on a path northwest around the waterfall, where he eventually hoped to find the edge of the island. Layna disappeared into the trees the moment Link had started around the side of the cliff nearby, and he simply took this as Layna employing her usual methods. He believed, after all, that if someone other than the _Island Symphony_ responded to his signal, he would have a substantially unpleasant surprise waiting. Still, even after locating the western edge of the island, he decided that he should also show that he was ready for a fight if necessary.

The edge he found would have been impossible to notice without the nearby grass reflecting moonlight. It had not occurred to him that he might simply fall over if he wandered around in the dark until he realized that the grass had ended and immediately stopped. He did not have much in the way of means to tell where the edge was, so, with some lighting assistance from Irleen, he loaded a shell into his flare gun and sent a bright green flash, a signal of safety, sailing into the darkness beyond the grass. The flare was quite disorienting, and Link backed closer to the trees as his eyes tried to cope with the sudden onset of light. Then, he drew his bow as well as an arrow and sat on the ground. He did not know how long it would take for the _Island Symphony_ to respond, but the agreement was to wait about an hour (which he would have to guess at since he did not have a watch) before he fired another flare to try attracting their attention again. If the second attempt failed, Link and Leynne agreed that the _Island Symphony_ would chance docking and wait to see if Link returned. Meanwhile, Link had to be on the lookout in case the _Moon's Shadow_ happened to see him signal. He doubted the crew would recognize it, but it was not the _crew_ Link feared. Captain North was less likely to be fooled by their methods.

No one knew how long they had been waiting. Link began to pray that he would not have to sleep in the middle of the forest, as he was sure those clicking noises he occasionally heard in the distance were some of Sagacity Island's nocturnal hunters.

"So," Irleen said, the sudden onset of her voice causing Link to start. "I'm… guessing you'd like to know what that message was all about."

"Oh, so you _do_ know I couldn't understand it," Link said.

"The gem only translates _me_. Even if we met another Sorian, we would need another gem meant to translate for _him_ only."

Link nodded his understanding. "I guess… he was miserable because of the Stalarmors?"

"No, I think it was a little deeper than that. I think Kaheel was miserable because of _himself_. Captain Koroul… The captain told him that… that those that died when the _Smiling Gunner_ first attacked were lucky. Kaheel was beginning to understand him, and I think I get the idea, too."

He twisted his face into a confused frown, although this was barely visible to Irleen since she was hovering about an arm's length away from him. "What _is_ the idea?" he asked.

"Dead, the crew of the _Horizon's Eye_ is useless to Cunimincus. But alive… Being alive was _torture_ to Kaheel. Cunimincus used him and probably _others_ to attack the technoworks out here. He _turned_ them against the creations of their ancestors. Do you know what that _does_ to a person, Link?"

Link tried to imagine being in Kaheel's place. Kaheel had been taught to control the technoworks so that he could use them, that was how Link understood things. But to have that training turned _against_ him and other Sorians… Link had a little trouble understanding the nightmarish part. So he thought how his own training, his knowledge of airships, could be turned against him. And he thought what it would be like if pirates had taken over his ship. If he had not died in the beginning, they could use him to continue to sail the ship. It would lead the ship to a service of harassing other vessels with Link forever held at death's blade and bidding. But, in the end, Link decided he just could not sympathize. Maybe it was just his lack of experience, but Link assumed that, if someone _were_ to try using him to battle other, innocent ships, Link would retaliate until he either took the ship or died in the process.

So Link just shook his head. "I wish I could," he told Irleen. "He looked like he'd been through a lot."

"Probably about as much as us," she said. "Captured, stuffed into a box… having a _wing_ removed, and essentially being used as a tool to the eventual fall of this island. If he hadn't trapped that Stalarmor at the lowest level, it's likely that they would have bashed the technoworks into enough pieces that it wouldn't be able to hold off necrosis. I… I wish he could've survived long enough for us to save him."

Link sighed, not sure what he should say next. This talk about Airman Kaheel was beginning to make him depressed, so he opted for a change in subject and asked, "So, where do we go next?"

"Huh? Oh. Uh…" Irleen turned in different directions as she thought. "I'm sure I said it before, but I believe the larger islands are the ones that the Sky Lines can be controlled from. So from here, the next island we should explore should be about the same size as this one."

"That should beeeee… Might Island," Link replied. "Do you think, if we _did_ restore the nearby Sky Lines, that one will take us there?"

"Realistically, I wouldn't count on it."

Link nodded. "It would be nice, though. From here, we're probably looking at over a _week_ to get there."

"Well, at least your crew likes you."

He offered himself a sarcastic chuckle. "Yeah, the problem is they might _hate_ each other."

Irleen paused before asking, "How long have we been waiting?"

Link frowned and glanced at the edge of the island. "I'm not sure. Think I should fire another one?"

"Hang on," Irleen told him. Then she rose straight up into the air above the treetops, far enough that Link lost her among the stars. She returned half a minute later, although she had to fly back to the edge of the island to find him. "There's a ship slowly rising further along the edge. And it has lights on."

Link rose to his feet and nocked the arrow he held. Although he _had_ ordered that the lights be turned on once he signaled, Link did not dare discount the possibility of it being any other ship. "Was it the _Symphony_?"

"I couldn't tell; it's too dark."

"Which way?"

"Follow me."

Link nodded. "Keep near the trees; I really don't wanna fall off."

"I _know_," she replied in an irritated tone.

She led him through the trees, staying near enough to the edge that both of them could see out into the open sky. In a few minutes, Link spotted a lit form in the open air. The vessel had put distance between itself and the shore, but the facts that the hull was parallel to the shore and the bow pointed almost due south told Link that the ship _was_ examining the shore; any other vessel here probably would have been pointing north toward Timbre Island. The lighting along the bulwark was too inadequate for Link to see much of the ship.

Then, he discovered as he got as close to the ship as possible that it was indeed the _Island Symphony_, her identity given away by the reflection of crew-held lanterns off the oddly arranged sails. Link stowed his bow and loaded his flare gun with another green shell. He fired it at an angle away from the ship but at level so that they might see where it had come from. To his confusion, someone fired a similar flare from the deck before the ship turned to approach.

Moments later, Link grasped Lwamm's hand and was pulled onto the port, forward cargo hatch. Irleen fluttered in behind him, and, when Link turned back to the island to call Layna aboard, he was startled by the fact that she already stood behind him. He gestured her to follow as he went up to the weather deck, leaving Lwamm to close the hatch.

On the deck, the first person he met was Dubbl. She saluted (using the wrong hand) and said, "You hafe letu'ned, Kyabtin."

Link, taking this as a form of "welcome back" from the Gelto, dismissed her salute. "Dubbl, is Leynne on-deck?"

She nodded. "Yes, Kyabtin. And we not fought."

He gave a slow nod, not having considered the possibility before he had left. He turned and indicated Layna with a finger. "Tell Layna that she can go get some rest now. She deserves it. I'm going to speak with Leynne."

"Yes, Kyabtin," she replied.

Link left the Gelto alone and stepped onto the forecastle. He was mildly surprised to see that Gold was still on the wheel while Leynne stood further toward the bow, appearing to ponder the stars above.

Gold glanced at him and called to Leynne, "Cap'n on deck."

Leynne looked at Link and said, "Welcome back."

"Thanks," Link replied as he took two steps toward him. "Where'd that other flare come from?"

Leynne turned to reveal what almost looked like a holster on his right hip. "Biluf improvised anotheh flah gun foh us to use," he explained. "She used a few materials from ouh supplies to put togetheh a bahrel and a stock, and she used whateveh chemicals she had left to make at least one set of shells. Dholit tells me that, if we can get heh moh supplies at the next island, she can make moh shells. And, if we'h going to be communicating like this, we may need a lot. I figuh that we can treat most of the signals from the ship as meaning the same as those that come from you, but that's something we can figuh out lateh."

Link nodded. "I like it; remind me at the next stop."

"Speaking of which. Wheh _will_ we be going next?"

"Right. I need you to quickly plot a course to Might Island. How long do you think we can last on our current rations?"

Leynne scrunched his face as he thought. "It may be a stretch, but I imagine we might be able to last a couple weeks; we've really been consuming less than what we put in."

Link indicated for Leynne to follow him. "Mister Gold, take us around the island; we'll be heading northeast from here."

"Aye aye, Cap'n," Gold said as he started turning the wheel.

"So what happened?" Leynne asked when he and Link reached the weather deck. "You've been gone foh houhs."

"There was a bit of navigating to do," Link said. "First we had to find an opening to the technoworks, then we had to find our way _through_ them. Cunimincus' sailors didn't help things."

"Sounds bad."

"Living skeletons coated in iron," Irleen spoke up, poking out around Link's left ear. "Add to that the fact that they wore armor, and things got a little ugly."

"We thi… nk…" Link trailed off when he noticed large clumps of dirt in the middle of the deck. He stopped and pointed. "What's all that?"

"Oh, that?" Leynne asked. "Well, apparently, theh's a cehtain hazahd to hiding undehneath an island. It was probably oveh an houh ago, but stuff just suddenly fell from the undehside."

"I bet that fell off when we were trying to put the Sky Lines back," Irleen said. "Link said he felt the island shake."

Link gave a gentle nod and started walking again. "We'll worry about cleaning all that off later. How are _you_ doing? It must be after midnight."

"Not quite, I think," Leynne replied as he followed. "But I _was_ hoping you'd be back at a decent time."

"I just need you to plot our new course, then I'll let you get to sleep."

"No objections heh," Leynne said as he suppressed a yawn. "I suppose I can always sleep in once we'h out to… What would you call it up heh? Out to sky? Out to aih?"

Link shrugged. "I think we usually just say 'out'."

"Simple, though not quite the inventive colloquial I'd imagined."

Link smiled as he opened his cabin door. "You said we have enough supplies for a couple weeks?"

Leynne paused as he watched Link move over to the chart on the table and tug the overhead light on before closing the cabin door. "I've been keeping an eye on ouh supplies since ouh frantic escape to Thicket Island. I've done the arithmetic in my head. In fact, I tend to think we'h a little oveh-stocked, seeing as how small the crew is."

"Well, we're gonna have to test that," Link replied as he watched Leynne set to work on the table. "Might Island is gonna be a long trip."

"I can see what you mean, moh than _twice_ the distance of any of ouh previous jouhneys." He paused as he measured a few things out. "Assuming this map is to-scale."

"Any problems while we were gone?"

Leynne scrunched his face. "Nothing in pahticulah," he responded after some thought. "I think Biluf threatened to bust Sello's skull open at one point, but that was just because she caught him swiping some of heh chemical supplies. Helo told me that the Goron food souhce is a little low, but he took some of the rocks that hit the deck, so they _might_ be all right foh now. Oh, we _did_ spot a couple of ships while we waited."

"A couple?" Link asked, looking a little concerned while Irleen popped out from under his hat.

"Cale and Twali saw one each. They didn't seem interested in _us_, though. Neither made contact. I don't know if eitheh of them weh the _Moon's Shadow_, but the lack of shackles on us seems to say that it wasn't very likely."

Link nodded. "Dubbl says you two didn't fight this time."

"Actually, I'd ratheh say we _ignohed_ each otheh, but it wohked out foh the best. Though, I doubt if she _still_ likes me giving heh ohdehs."

"Hopefully, it won't last for much longer," Link said. Then he grinned and added, "This next trip out should give you two plenty of time to ignore each other."

Leynne chuckled. "I've got ouh new couhse."

Link nodded. "Okay. Go ahead and get the course to Gold. Then get some sleep. Maybe arrange to have someone wake you tomorrow."

"Of couhse," Leynne told him. "Will you be going right to sleep?"

"With as long a day as _we_'ve had?" Irleen finally spoke up as she settled into her apartment above Link's bed.

After casting her humored look, he shook his head and said, "I might stay up for a bit, but yeah, I'll be going to bed soon myself."

"See you in the mohning then," Leynne said as he walked to the door. He paused after opening it and added, "If it isn't already."

Link waited for the door to shut before he moved over to his footlocker and started removing his gear. "Some day, huh?" he asked Irleen.

"I've been on some emotional rides before," she answered, "but today… I don't know. I can't really say it's the worst day I've ever had, but it definitely ranks somewhere in the top five. I feel miserable, and I can't really say why anymore."

"I don't blame you," Link said. "I can't tell what exhausted me more: all the fighting or all the stuff we learned about what's happened since the Sky Lines disappeared."

"I'm _never_ gonna get that word out of my vocabulary. When I get back home, people are gonna wonder what I'm talking about when I say 'Sky Lines'." She then fluttered out of the bed and into Link's view. "You know, it's just occurred to me that not _once_, in everything Airman Kaheel had said, did he _ever_ mention the fact that he was missing a wing."

Link closed the footlocker after dropping his boomerang in. "I guess… when you're slowly dying and seeing other people's worlds about to fall apart, missing a limb is the last thing he was thinking about. I hope the other Sorians out here are just as good at sabotaging Cunimincus."

"Yeah…"

Link removed his tunic and cap and left them on the footlocker before he moved over to his desk and sat down. He opened his journal, but he just could not decide on what he wanted to write in it first. For what felt like almost an hour, he sat under the dim light of his cabin's lone bulb and tried to find the words he wanted to use to remember the day's treasure trove of information. In addition, he felt that he should memorialize Airman Kaheel in some way. Irleen's obsessing over his efforts made him feel like he should at least acknowledge that their success in the Sagacity Technoworks was partially his doing. Still, he was not sure how he should write it out. Between the complexities of the day and his own exhaustion, he began to feel that the task of filling out his journal was too tedious and difficult.

He jerked out of a drowsy slump when someone knocked on his cabin door some time later. After blinking the sleepiness out of his eyes, he called to the knocker, "Come in."

The door opened, and Dubbl leaned in with her hand still on the knob. "I solly, Kyabtin. I woke?"

Link shook his head. "No, it's all right. Do you need something?"

"I zink you should see somezing," she told him. Link's curiosity at her calm voice shoved aside his fatigue, and he stood up and followed her onto the deck.

The first thing he noticed after stepping outside was lights off the starboard bow, the southern edge of Sagacity Island. However, Dubbl turned to port and made him follow her onto the quarterdeck. Link noticed that there were no lights in this area, whether by design or if they had just been turned off, he really couldn't tell. She held up an arm to indicate the empty air off to port.

It was difficult to see at first because there was still ambient light from the deck below. But he saw it after his eyes had finished adjusting.

A Sky Line. In the blackest of night was the best time to see its luminescent body of particles sparkle brighter than the stars, its huge form narrow from the distance but still quite visible. He rested his hands on the bulwark and leaned forward as if to get a better look. The sight of it made him want to cry in relief and shout in triumph at the same time. He _did_ feel tears well up, but that might have just been the breeze drying out his eyes.

After what felt like a lifetime, Link stood up straight and turned to Dubbl. "Thanks for showing me," he said.

"You' welcome," Dubbl replied with a nod.

Link returned to his cabin soon after and sat back down at his desk. It was only for a moment to write a single line in his journal before he went to bed.

~~Day 50 (Command, Day 13)

~~In memory of Airman Kaheel of the Horizon's Eye, I report that the Sky Lines around Sagacity Island are back.


	80. One Week of Weird

Chapter 80: One Week of Weird

…

~~Day 51 (Command, Day 14)

~~I slept in a bit, along with most of the day shift on deck. Layna was the worst, and no one wanted to wake her because they were afraid she would slit their throat. Lwamm didn't seem to mind covering for her, although she was the first one to try to wake Layna up, and she won't tell anyone what happened. I suspect that, while Layna is dangerous to people when she's awake, she's even more deadly when she's trying to sleep. I would've tried, but I had only woken up about half an hour before and didn't hear about it until after she came on duty. To tell the truth, I'm a little afraid of her.

~~Most of the day was spent looking at clear skies again. No ships in sight, and I think we've lost track of the Moon's Shadow. I hope this means they aren't following us. The wind hasn't let us run the sails open all day; in fact, a couple of times, Leynne had to tack just to make sure we were still traveling toward Might Island. Tonight, we're sailing close hauled, but at least we're still moving. Still, Leynne had to correct our course. I don't see why the wind isn't behaving. As we were going north, the wind was with us, but now, it's as if the wind is trying to push us back to the south. Maybe it's an effect of only part of the Sky Lines being active; I don't really know.

~~I don't know who to (maybe just myself), but I feel like I should explain last night's entry. We found a message from Airman Kaheel, the Sorian that the Stalarmors were using to find and manipulate the technoworks under Sagacity Island. The poor man was hungry, tired, hurt, and determined not to let himself be used. At least, that was how I interpreted it. Irleen's still taking his death hard, and I'm beginning to wonder if she really did know him. Sh

_Kon kon_.

Link looked up from his journal, mildly surprised that someone would be so casually knocking on his door at a rather late hour. "Come in," he called.

The door opened, and Dholit was the first inside. Link was taken aback to see that she was not wearing her usual smile. If anything, she looked genuinely mad. Dubbl followed, her face the same as Dholit's. But Link heard cracking when Dubbl's boots stopped clapping against the deck, and he realized that she was popping her knuckles with a thumb, one finger at a time.

The third to enter was Layna, head down and expression difficult to read. Dubbl closed the door was a resounding slam that caused her to start. Link slowly stood up as the air in the room seemed to become heavy. He was beginning to worry that he had somehow angered the Gelto, in which case Layna's presence made some kind of sense.

Dholit crossed her arms and told him, "We need to talk."

"Uh," was all Link could manage, completely bewildered by the presentation.

"What's going on?" Irleen asked with a drowsy drawl as she got up from her bed.

"We know ze zing happened on ze island," Dubbl said.

Link blinked in confusion and shared a look with Irleen. "What-what 'thing'?" he asked.

"We know she abandoned you," Dholit said. "We know she left you alone when you weh attacked."

Link looked between the three Gelto for a moment. "Wha… what do you mean?"

"The last creatuahs you fought, those… Stalahmohs, was it?" Dholit said. "We discovahed that she wandehed off befoah you weh attacked by it."

He stood confused for a moment as he recalled the event. Abandoned? Had… had Layna really abandoned him to that creature? "I-I don't understand," he said. "Did she… did she do it on purpose?"

"She neglected heh duty," Dholit said. "It's just as deadly as running from it."

Link exchanged looks with Irleen again. "It was just a slip-up," Irleen said. "It happens."

"Wait a minu—_what_ duty?" Link asked.

"He' duty, plotect _you_," Dubbl said, the force in her voice causing Layna to start again. "She not plotect you."

"Well, how much did she tell you?" Irleen asked.

"She left both of you in a room while she exploahed some kind of ovahhead area," Dholit said, her head tilting as she recalled a few details that she was trying to translate on the spot. "She heahd sounds and thought it was you until Ihleen found heh and stahted shouting at heh. It isn't supposed to take the full length of an assault foh heh to realize that Ihleen's trying to say that you'h in trouble."

Link twisted his mouth and reached into his pocket. "Irleen?" he said as he withdrew her translator gem. "When I put your gem down, say my name."

"Sure," Irleen said. Link carefully put the gem on his desk. "Līnca." Both Dholit and Dubbl put on puzzled looks.

Link then picked the gem up and pocketed it. "Thanks, Irleen," he told her with a nod. Then he addressed the Gelto, "I got tossed into a nearby room; Irleen wasn't anywhere near me. Layna migh—"

"Sssh!" Dubbl immediately hissed. Then she snapped at Layna, "Nad'ayjothan!" Layna shivered and seemed to put more effort into looking down at the deck.

"What?" Irleen asked, backing away a fraction. "What is it?"

"A Gilto who has disgraced hehself doesn't have heh name spoken until the offense is dismissed," Dholit said. Link halfway expected a playful smile or smart remark to follow, but that was the extent of her comment.

So Link cleared his throat so that he had a brief moment to remember what he had been saying. "She might've had an idea if she was hearing _Hylian_, but Irleen speaks a completely different language. If she isn't close to whoever holds her gem, all anyone hears is the Sorian language."

"Fay Irliyn soynaygothak 'anik 'adhofnwin max?" Dubbl asked, her voice low as if she was worried Irleen might overhear.

"Zhidi lwaynaygithak Gilto 'anik 'al soyxaylokw," Dholit replied, this time allowing a hint of a smile. "Nwaki 'addic zhidi 'adhoysnin 'inoy." Dubbl looked away, her eyes trying not to find their way toward Irleen.

"Is there… anything else?" Link asked, wondering what prompted them to switch languages.

Dholit turned back to him, her scowl returning. "We understand now that Ihleen could not communicate with heh," she said, "but she still left you behind."

Link took a bit of time to think before he spoke. "We were looking for the source of a loud sound when we entered that room. She was checking the overhead area while I was looking at a nearby hallway. _I_ was the one who went ahead without her. If I had waited, it might not have happened."

"Zat not he' duty," Dubbl said.

"Wait a minute, wait," Irleen spoke up. "Aside from Link being _captain_, why do you think he needs to be protected? You _do_ realize you're talking about a boy who took down monsters ten times his own size, right?"

"Impressive, we admit," Dholit said. "But Layna _still_ has a duty."

"And if Link _ordered_ you to drop it, would you?"

Dubbl and Dholit shared a stupefied look with each other. Link, however, was worried. Having not needed to push his authority around, he was not sure if he could actually _order_ Dubbl and Dholit to ignore the situation.

It was something he wanted to avoid, so he spoke up, "Look, the attack was _my_ fault. She _was_ looking out for me, but can you honestly say that she's always going to be around to protect me? What if she had found a Stalarmor while she was exploring that overhead area, and then I was _still_ attacked? She probably would have never known. Would you _still_ be bringing this to my attention?"

"Facts ah facts, My Captain," Dholit told him. "The hypothetical doesn't exist foh heh. Only reality."

"Well, in _reality_, Layna _was_ looking out for Link," Irleen said, her tone hostile. "She made sure nothing _fell_ on him, like those big feet that Stalarmor had." She turned to Link, her tone changing to curious. "Did you see how big that thing's feet were? If that thing had fallen on you, we'd be scraping you off the floor with a shovel. It… probably wouldn't be pretty." She shivered. "And the _smell_…" She stopped thinking about whatever gruesome image was going through her mind when she noticed that Link, Dubbl, and Dholit were staring at her. "Uh… my point. Link survived. End of story. She did a good job. I'm… gonna shut my mouth and go back to sleep now. But, you know, keep going. Don't mind me." Then she hesitated a moment before she zipped back to her bed.

"Hmm…" Dholit spoke up after a moment of awkward silence. "Somehow… I didn't think Irleen was so imaginative. In… such a strange way."

Dubbl glared at Dholit and said, "'Inu nadlwaynaygithak."

"Are we… gonna continue this conversation?" Link asked.

Dholit gave Layna a thoughtful glance. "Well, if Ihleen backs up youh claim, then theah is only one thing left to do," she said. She followed it with a sigh and explained, "She will have to be punished foh lying to us. My Captain, would you like to administah discipline this time?"

Link found himself unsure how he should respond. He thought that Layna would be receiving punishment because they _couldn't_ prove that she had been doing her job. What was supposed to be the response to a situation which even the ever-smiling _Dholit_ had taken seriously? He droned for a moment until he decided to say, "Why don't… I let you take care of it? It-it kinda… doesn't feel right."

"Of coahse, My Captain," Dholit said as her usual grin formed. "Layna, taycoban 'inoy."

Layna looked up at Link with joy in her eyes. Then she put on a horrified look before Dubbl took her arm and pulled her to the open door. The sight made Link cringe. What had he just sentenced her to?

Link heard Leynne, somewhere behind the door, say something to Dubbl. Her response was to take the doorknob and shove the outward-swinging door. _Pom!_ "Agh!" Leynne hollered. He said something else, but the door was already closed, muffling his remark.

Link dropped back into his chair. He glanced up at Irleen, and then down at his journal. After an exhausted sigh, he picked his pen up again.

~~She's fine. They're all fine. Just a little crazy.

~~With the Sky Lines back, I hope that ships will return to traveling like normal. I wish we could use them, but we still seem to be destined to take the long way. We're probably better off; the lack of Sky Lines is the only things preventing Skyrider ships from finding us.

…

~~Day 52 (Command, Day 15)

~~Leynne had a large mark in the middle of his forehead. He explained that, last night, Dubbl had hit him with the door to my cabin after he gloated about being right. I asked him if he'd like me to talk to her again, but he admits that he had it coming for being a prick. Layna is back in her routine, although she seems to prefer avoiding Dholit when she can. It's beginning to make me wonder what exactly Dholit does to people that makes them afraid of her.

~~Conditions have improved a bit. We've managed to keep a straight course toward Might Island while reaching. It's not the ideal speed, but it'll do.

~~I must admit that I've had some question as to what happened to the Moon's Shadow. I know we probably lost Captain North when the Island Symphony was hidden under the island, but does that mean he stayed there at Sagacity Island? Or did they move on to Timbre Island? Or maybe even Might Island? With the Sky Lines back, maybe North decided to return to Castle Island and get some reinforcements. It would give us a lead, but it would also mean we'd have to outrun more ships.

~~I think I'm just making myself worry.

…

"Well, that's the last of the rations we stahted with," Leynne said as he tossed the empty ration sack into the crate the crew had been using as a trash receptacle, having forgotten to bring along trash cans when they started out. "Good riddance, too. I was beginning to hate theih taste."

"Looks like someone's already decided to do something about it," Link commented as he pushed open a crate lid that had already been loosened. He peered inside before reaching in to grab two bags of rations. "Part of this crate is empty."

"And I've been made to suffeh," Leynne grumbled as he accepted one ration from Link. "At least I won't have to live with the taste of jehky, nuts, and dried fruit." He opened the sack and peered inside under the single light bulb overhead. "What's this?"

"Jerky, nuts, and dried fruit," Link replied as he opened his own.

Leynne crushed the mouth of the bag between his hands. "Lovely."

"Lo—It's something _different_," Link said as he took out a piece of jerky. "The southern islands use a different process for making jerky. It tastes a little sweeter."

Both of them took a bite of jerky from their rations. Then they both exchanged disgusted looks before forcing themselves to swallow. Leynne scrapped his tongue with his upper teeth before saying, "That was _sweet_?"

"Yeah, that _did_ taste pretty bitter," Link admitted. He turned back to the crate and glanced at one side. "This _is_ a crate we picked up from Sagacity Island. It shouldn't taste _this_ bad."

"As much as I hate to point it out, it _does_." Leynne examined his piece of jerky for a few seconds. "Maybe it's an effect of the Sky Lines being absent."

"Maybe," Link agreed. "I wonder why no one's come complaining about them. Someone's _clearly_ been eating out of this crate for a while."

"Maybe one of the engineering crew?" Leynne suggested, tossing his ration on the wooden countertop behind him. He picked up a tin cup and took a sip of grog. Then he stuck his tongue out in another show of revulsion. "I don't know _who_ in theih right mind broke into this crate, but I'm suh he's not in his right mind anymoh."

Link was about to add commentary to the statement, but he was interrupted when he realized that someone was rushing toward the deck from the stairs with footfalls heavy enough to be heard from the galley. Both he and Leynne watched the far side of the deck until a large bag of orange jumped out of the starboard stairwell and landed with a painful-sounding _thud_ on the open deck.

"Ah," Leynne commented as Sello slowly rose from the deck. "Speaking of those _not_ in theih right mind…"

"Go stand in front of that barrel," Link told Leynne in a low voice, indicating the lidded barrel on the far side of the countertop from Leynne.

"What foh?"

"That grog is still raw; we don't want him to drink it or it'll kill him."

Leynne shrugged and muttered as he moved, "I highly doubt it, but…"

"Whoa!" Sello said after finally standing straight up, which was followed by him flailing as he staggered. "Have ya ever been where for da one I dink?"

"Was that even _bad_ Hylian?" Leynne asked.

Link resisted the urge to smile as he stepped forward and asked, "Did you need something, Sello?"

"Juz scootin' ma boots an'—…" Sello froze when he finally glanced over at Link. His eyes grew wide, and, before Link could react, Sello was charging at him across the deck. "NOOOOOOO!"

"AaaahhhHHHH," Link started shouting when he realized that pain was on its way, his volume rising as Sello got closer.

_Whup!_

"Gah!"

_THUMP!_

"Sello!" Leynne snapped.

Sello sat up and grabbed Link's ration. "Sello…" Link groaned as he tried to keep his hold on the bag.

"_My_ horse!" Sello shouted as he jerked the bag around to wrench it from Link's grip.

"Sello!" Leynne snapped again. "Get off him!"

"Let go!" Link shouted.

But Sello prevailed and rose to his feet with the ration in his hands (although the contents had spilled on the floor during the struggle). "Ha _hah_!" he declared. "Socks and a box of yellow! I AM SEL-LOOOOOOOO!"

Link rose and watched as Sello raided their trash crate of a large number of empty ration sacks. He moved across the galley and asked Leynne, "What do you think he's doing?"

"To tell the truth, I've given up wondering," Leynne replied. They watched Sello then cram all of his stolen items into the open ration crate. "I suppose this explains who opened the crate…"

"Yeah," Link agreed as Sello started pushing the crate, a wooden cube as high as his waist, across the deck. Link had to speak over the noise Sello created to say, "Someone not in his right mind."

Leynne shook his head. "Somehow, it isn't very funny."

Sello stopped at the top of the stairs and spun around. "Tooty-fruity!" he said, pointing an accusing finger at them. "You remember those beans. Dipstick. And smooch." He moved to the side of the crate opposite the stairs and shoved it down to the next deck. _Bam! Bam!_ Sello then followed the box down and, from the ensuing noise, most likely repeated the process as he descended.

Link sighed and shrugged at Leynne. "Oh, well. I wasn't very hungry anyway."

"We _can_ leave those to Sello," Leynne said, "but we'd have to stretch ouhselves a little thin."

"That's fine. Those things were _nasty_. It's probably a good thing only _Sello_ seems to like them."

"Now, the _rations_, I might undehstand," Leynne said as he pointed a finger at the stairs. "_Might_. But why'd he take stuff from the refuse?"

Link shrugged. "Who knows?" He paused and watched Leynne pick up the ration he had left on the countertop. "You're still gonna eat that?"

"I just want to make suh it'll be wohth it letting him have that whole crate," Leynne answered as he dug a hand inside. He pulled out a rectangular lump of black and white marbling, puzzled, and showed it to Link. "What's this?"

"IIIII… gave up wondering that _years_ ago. Just throw it away."

"What is it?" Leynne asked. "A rock?"

"Maybe we should give it to Helo and find out."

The door to the galley suddenly slammed open, startling both of them. They looked over to find Sello standing in the doorway, huffing as if he had just been running around below them. Sello stared at Leynne, causing Leynne to realize that he was holding one of the same kinds of rations that he had just wrestled away from Link. Before Leynne could get a word out, Sello had already tackled him.

…

~~Day 53 (Command, Day 16)

~~Surrendered a whole crate of rations to Sello, mostly out of fear that he'd beat the stuffing out of us. He must have been wondering where the crate disappeared because Leynne and I had just brought up from the deck below, where we've been storing our spare parts and some of our extra ration crates. We'll have to keep a better watch on the rations. And maybe Sello, too. I couldn't tell if he was drunk or not; he smells the same no matter what. But his rambling made him sound pretty bad. I wonder if he knows what's been going on.

~~We finally caught a break today. The wind shifted to the northeast and let us run with both the main and outboard sails open. It lasted all afternoon before we had to return to reaching, but at least it's made this trip a little shorter. Still no sign of any other ships out here. My belief at this point is that other vessels haven't been traveling between Sagacity and Might Islands because of their distance. Since both islands are really good at supporting themselves, it's likely that most of the local captains have just kept moored while waiting for the Sky Lines to return. Although, now that I've thought about it, that would have been over two weeks ago. So, maybe there just isn't much shipping between the two islands. I don't know. It's late. I'm going to bed.

…

~~Day 54 (Command, Day 17)

~~Things were a little more normal today. We had the locking mechanism from one of the wenches break, and Leynne had to replace it before we could raise the port foresail again. We're still reaching, so we needed that sail up in order to maintain speed. He must have anticipated this because he had a few spare parts on hand, and he actually got it done pretty fast. I'm glad he could do it so quick. Hopefully, when we have a larger crew, he'll show them how to fix some of the complex things onboard. I can't even begin to imagine what they all put into this ship.

~~We finally exchanged greetings with another ship heading toward Sagacity Island. Not much was said, especially since we don't have a set of signal flags. It was a Zephyr Sails airship, so I'm glad that's all that got exchanged. I can only imagine the response the Gelto might have if they had started hollering cusswords at us. Half of their deck crew might've been killed. The fact that we've finally sighted a vessel seems to indicate that trading is still going on, although probably at a reduced rate. It would have to be goods that can't expire; there's very little chance that fresh fruits and vegetables would survive as long of a journey as it is to Sagacity Island from Might Island.

…

"I want to assure you that we are not simply traveling on a whim, Link," Zelda told him, turning so she could lean against the rear wall. "There is indeed a purpose for this… task."

"I had no doubt of that," Link said.

Then he stopped and looked around. When he realized that he was sitting in his cabin on the _Island Sonata_ again, he shook his head. "_Wow_, that's confusing," he said to himself.

"I apologize, Link," Zelda told him. "I am afraid that I can only make the process work if I can picture you in a familiar setting. It's how I've come to figure out this new talent." Link stood up from the chair and rounded the desk. He looked at her hard for a moment. This caused her to put on a worried frown. "What is it?"

"It's just… it's been over two weeks since we last talked," he told her. "Princess… I can't be sure this is really happening. Irleen told me this kind of communication is _impossible_."

"She's making you doubt my words…" She cast her eyes to the floor for a moment. Then she looked back up and asked, "What can I tell you to prove it?"

"I-I don't know," Link said. "Something only you would know but I _wouldn't_. Something I would have to check."

"That's actually quite an idea, Link," she told him. "The question remains how you could check, though. As I understood, you cannot go near Castle Island without attracting my doppelganger's attention." Link started scratching his head as he thought. But Zelda came up with a solution just a moment later, her voice bright with enthusiasm. "My parents."

"Huh?" Link asked.

"You could ask my parents," Zelda repeated. "You _are_ still looking for them, correct?"

Link shrugged. "Yeah, but it'll still take time. We're trying to reach Might Island now." Zelda pushed away from the wall and turned so that Link could not see her face. Link tried to lean to one side to see her face and almost hit his head on the calling tubes to his left.

When she turned back around, Link noticed that her cheeks were a little flush. "On my eighth birthday, I received a toy cucco. It had a blue comb and gold tail feathers. His eyes looked like little chocolates, so I called him 'Mister Choco'. I-I have since stopped playing with him, but… if you ask my parents, I'm sure they will tell you what I've told you."

Link nodded. "Okay. Okay, I think I can remember all that."

"It might… It might be better if you write it down," she told him. She gave a small, sad laugh. "It's so strange. I'm trapped on a demon commander's airship, and I… I have to tell you something so embarrassing…" She had a healthier laugh. "I-I am sorry, Link. I… suppose I _do_ owe you for having embarrassed you by discovering the, um… the dresses."

Link felt his face heating up and tried to laugh at it. Unfortunately, the sound that came out was a nervous chuckle. "Do you… mind if I explain that, at least?"

She nodded. "If you are comfortable with it."

Link crossed his arms and sat on the front edge of his desk. "Line and I—this was while we were airmen under Captain Alfonzo… We had to find an engineer's mate who hadn't reported in on the final day of the Founding Festival. We spent the whole morning and… I _think_ part of the afternoon looking for this guy; he'd been drinking since the first day and went from bar to bar. When we finally found him, Line and I had made a list of the things he was doing the whole time.

"Well… a couple days later, Line tells some other airmen on the _Grand Sails_, and I guess word got back to this engineer's mate. He took our uniforms and left us the dresses. We had to wear them for duty, and we found out that he was taking pictures of us while we were at work. So… we decided to get even by shaving and polishing his head."

Zelda quickly put a hand over her mouth, but Link could still hear her muffled laughter. He waited a moment, and she calmed down enough to say, "You—you must have been quite crafty to have accomplished something so elaborate."

Link shrugged. "We found out he was a _very_ heavy sleeper. We cut all his hair off, but another airman volunteered to shave the rest of it. He must have been angry at us because he showed pictures of us after movie night."

"Oh, dear…"

"Yeeeeah, everything went downhill from there. We got in a fight, Captain Alfonzo caught us. The engineer's mate was fired on the spot, and Line and I got assigned to the company office for three months with only half our pay. It was probably the worst we've ever been in trouble."

"I've often imagined Captain Alfonzo to be a fair commanding officer."

Link pushed away from the deck and turned toward the door. "Maybe, but there were times when it seemed like he hated us. Lieutenant Luke, though, he was a pretty fun guy. When we hadn't bothered him."

"Lieutenant Luke? As in the current _Captain_ Luke?"

Link nodded. "Yeah, he commands the _Summer Breeze_ now. He invited us to serve under him, but we decided to stay with Captain Alfonzo. As much as I liked him, Captain Alfonzo… I don't know, I guess I was just used to the crew. I think Line's excuse was better."

"What was that? I would think Captain Luke would have been just as used to both of you."

Link turned and placed his hands on the short edge of his desk. "Line said, 'Alfonzo may be mean and loud, but that's saved us _both_ from being fired out of a cannon'."

Zelda giggled. "He _did_ appear to have quite the sense of humor."

He could not help grinning. "Yeah, but he was actually being serious when he said that."

She froze with a shocked look on her face. "Oh."

He shook his head. "It only happened once." He paused. "Or-or twice. I-I… can't remember."

She put her hands up to cover her smile. "I-I'm sorry, Link. It-it should not be so funny…"

"Iuu gouen ooh to ih."

That previous statement would not have sounded so muffled if Link's pillow had not been in his mouth. Without warning, he had awoken in his bed on the _Island Symphony_ with the corner of his pillow clenched between his teeth. He slowly removed the pillow as he recalled the dream. As soon as he remembered her talking about her toy cucco, he got up from his bed.

Or rather, he _tried_. Not realizing how close he was to the edge, he made to roll onto his back and slipped off the edge. _Ka-bump._ The sound of him hitting the deck caused Irleen to snort and groan something incoherent. Link stood up and stepped over to his desk while shaking the pain out of his arm. He tugged on the pull string hanging above his desk to turn on the light. After flipping his journal open to the last page he had written on, he picked up his pen and scribbled a note on the page.

~~Ask about toy cucco.

As he waited for the ink to soak into the page, he decided to scribble another note.

~~Try not to talk with a pillow in my mouth if she does it again. It's kind of embarrassing.

…

~~Day 55 (Command, Day 18)

~~Sello's couch is gone again. No one seems to care that a piece of furniture just seems to disappear from the ship at his whim. And I can't blame them; it's just Sello.

~~For years, I've wondered what the weird rocks in ration packs are. I have to admit I'm mildly surprised to hear from Helo that they actually are rocks. Unfortunately, I've forgotten what kind he said, but he claims that they are actually tasty. To a Goron. I've informed the crew to set aside the rocks in their rations for them, but it still confuses me why people have been putting these stupid rocks in our rations. I've toyed with the idea that they are supposed to be emergency ammunition.

~~Still reaching, but at least all our sails are still up. Leynne took a moment after his shift to double-check the other mechanisms and even peeked under the deck. Saw another vessel, too, but we didn't make contact.

…

~~Day 56 (Command, Day 19)

~~Sello's couch is back. And I'm beginning to wonder just where he puts it.

~~Irleen's been irritated all day with having to stay in my cabin. I asked Leynne if it would be possible to give her access to the rest of the ship from my room, and he agreed that he might be able to put in a small tube to the deck below, but it would have to wait until we reach Might Island because he doesn't have any sort of drill or spare piping.

~~I found out that Lwamm and Twali like to use the hold for running before they show up for duty. And I found this out because Lwamm ran into me while I was investigating the sounds they were making. Not much more was said because I was more inclined to return to my cabin and relax. She landed on my right arm, and it really hurts.

~~The wind shifted enough that we were able to make another run with all sails open. No other vessels in sight. I think I understand why no one wants to travel like this. It's kinda boring.

…

~~Day 57 (Command, Day 20)

~~Sello set part of the engine room on fire.


	81. One Week of Worry

Chapter 81: One Week of Worry

…

~~Sello was putting more coal into the engine when, according to Lawrence and Helo, something spat out of the engine and set the nearby deck on fire. I guess we found out what he did with the chemicals he swiped from Biluf, although I can't help wondering what their purpose would be inside the engine. Leynne thinks he may be trying a new form of combustion so that he can cut down on the amount of fuel used just to keep the ballast heated. It would probably be good for us; nearly a week sailing toward Might Island, and half of our coal is gone. With the Sky Lines, that reserve should've lasted us nearly a month. Unfortunately, throwing Biluf's chemistry set into the engine doesn't seem to have done the trick. Not to mention that it's too volatile. We're probably lucky that he could only get a small amount. Having the Island Symphony burn up because of Sello's whimsical experimentation would be kind of embarrassing.

~~Our fuel shortage may be due in part to Gold running the engine at night. No one realized it until tonight, when I noticed that I could make out the main propeller spinning out through the windows in my cabin. The wind, for the past four nights, had died out in the middle of the night, after most of the day shift had already gone to bed. He explained that he noticed the ship's weathervane would occasionally whip around like the air was playing with it, although he couldn't notice much wind flow on the deck. I didn't fault him for it; if he hadn't run the engine, we would probably be further behind in reaching Might Island. The coal is going to cost, though, and the ship's current bank only has enough to buy one, maybe two loads. We've used about ten loads since setting out from Sagacity Island with a full supply.

~~Today and for a good part of the evening, we've had a fairly strong wind. We're still reaching, but if we can get this kind of movement more often, we might be able to make Might Island before we start falling out of the sky. Because once we lose the ability to control the ballast, we might need to go all the way to the surface. And I don't know if we'll ever get back up again.

…

~~Day 58 (Command, Day 21)

~~Lawrence and Harley came to me this morning and expressed their concerns that we'll run out of fuel before we reach Might Island. I told them that we're trying to avoid using the engine to drive us and, if it comes to it, we'll tear apart the cutter and start using our crates (which we're really suppose to save) as emergency fuel. And we'd start pulling off pieces of the ship itself if we had to. They left satisfied. Earlier this evening, I asked Leynne to draw up some plans in case it came to stripping out non-essential parts of the ship and using them for fuel. I've made it as clear as possible that our empty storage crates will go first. If it's possible to save the cutter, I want to. And, if it comes to it, Leynne believes we can afford to sacrifice some of our speed by felling the two main masts and cutting them apart. The problem is that if it comes to it, all of the standing rigging will have to be changed around. It would be a risky affair, so I've spoken with Dubbl about what we'll have to do. She says that we can rearrange the rigging if we have to, but we'll have to place more anchor points on the deck and the bulwark since it would be difficult to distribute the strain of the standing rigging between the masts, as they are now. We have the tools for it, but I really hope it doesn't come to it.

~~Leynne is estimating that we still have one full week before we make it to Might Island, but he mentioned that he doesn't expect these maps to be very accurate. I agreed with him since I know they're inaccurate. Given the general layout of the maps he purchased at Castle Island, I'm pretty sure they're just the old maps with the missing Sky Lines removed. General maps of the kingdom have never been accurate enough to sail by unless you're using the Sky Lines. We need maps that detail the regions of Hyrule because those have been measured out. That, and, being probably over three weeks since the Sky Lines were turned off, I think there's a chance that the islands may have drifted away from each other, just like Irleen said.

~~We managed to run all sails open again for the afternoon and into the evening. I've just ordered the sails back to reaching since the wind shifted on us again. This allows us to make some good sailing. I just hope it's enough to make it to Might Island before we run out of fuel.

…

~~Day 59 (Command, Day 22)

~~Sello got to the empty crates first. Lawrence and Helo never saw him grab the trash crate we were using, but he had broken it down and thrown it along with the trash into the engine. They found the nails all over the floor. The nice part about this is he's already rationing our remaining fuel supply. Unfortunately, we'll have to pretend that it didn't happen; the dockmaster at Might Island will fine the ship for destroying them. Thankfully, Sello knows how to take care of the evidence. As if we aren't already in trouble. Here I am, fugitive from a fake princess and my own fleet, and I'm worried about being fined for destroying crates. At the end of the week, we'll be lucky if we don't get captured or shot down or just plain fall out of the sky.

~~We got enough wind to run all sails open again early this morning and well into the afternoon. As we haven't encountered ships lately, I'm thinking that, if the pattern of the wind lately is an indication, ships sailing in our direction are probably going toward Timbre Island instead of trying to beat their way to Sagacity Island. It kinda makes me wonder how sailors were able to tolerate traveling like this for all of these years. I'm beginning to get impatient, and I think the crew is as well.

…

"So what do you think?"

Link puzzled at the sheet of paper that Leynne had laid on the desk before him. Rough sketches and outlines covered its surface, trying to illustrate what Leynne had in mind for making an air launch out of Rosaline's donated cutter. Of first note was that Leynne's plan involved only three ballast tanks, while even the smallest of air-capable boats had four. He had decided to lay them out in a triangular shape with, as he had already explained, the largest tank at the bow and two smaller tanks, with maybe eighty percent of the capacity of the larger tank, on either side at the stern. Second, Leynne explained that he wanted to try talking Sello into designing an engine small enough to fit in the boat and capable of powering itself by wind. This, he had decided, would be separate from a heat source also powered by wind, which would use a combination of friction and a small combustible fuel source to provide a constant, controllable supply of heat to the ballast tanks. It all sounded quite well thought-out.

The problem was, though, that Leynne had lost Link halfway through explaining the reasoning (and, mostly, the math) behind differentiating the size of this weird concept for a ballast system. It gave him a small headache. It also felt a little weird having Leynne consult _him_ on an idea. Link could rig a ship, he could sail a ship, and he could run a ship. But building a ship fell beyond Link's understanding. It was not something airmen studied; only shipwrights ever really understood every spar and bulkhead's purpose. A captain was only supposed to recognize his own ship inside and out, a feat Link was still trying to figure out; the construction quirks of his own ship were not helping.

Leynne caught the uncomfortable look on his face and said, "I've lost you somewheh. Haven't I?"

Link shrugged. "Yeah, kinda."

"Sohry. I've been considering the process since we've been afloat. I think I might've had many changes of idea on the subject."

"At least it's keeping you busy," Irleen spoke up from her perch on the table next to him.

Leynne cast her a cross look. "You make me sound like Sello."

"Well," Link said, "while I wouldn't mind you experimenting on the cutter, we're not exactly in the best position to afford the materials."

"No need to wohry," Leynne said. "I've already a solution. Afteh all, I'm not exactly running out of ideas. And, in this case, it'll help us all keep afloat."

"More inventions you're gonna sell?" Irleen asked.

"Of couhse," Leynne said with a nod. "Granted, I don't have the same contacts as I had in the Forest Realm, but it isn't hahd to find a place to staht. If I can have a day oh two to myself on Might Island, it's possible that I could get the kind of funding we'll need to continue ouh cuhrent entehprise."

"Enterprise?" Irleen replied. "We're trying to save the kingdom, maybe even the _world_, from a tyrant. You make that sound like a _business_."

Leynne shrugged. "Well, you have to admit, it _is_ a bit of a business foh Link."

"I'd like to give you a day, Leynne," Link said. "I really would. But we don't know how we'll be moving once we get to Might Island. And the _Symphony_ needs a commander in case anything happens."

"We have Dholit." Leynne's response was met with silence and deliberate staring from both Link and Irleen. Their meaning was not lost on Leynne, who looked away for a moment in discomfort. "Right. I… I don't know why I said that." He looked back at Link and continued, "Look, I know that we have to keep moving so we remain ahead of the _Moon's Shadow_, but if I could just have a day oh two, I could probably tuhn some of the misfohtune we've been having."

"I have no doubt," Link said. "And, like I said, I'd really like to give you the time you need. I just don't know if we _can_ get it."

Leynne shrugged with his arms open wide. "_Anything_ that'll give me time, I'll take it."

Link pondered the situation for a moment. Then he stood up and walked over to the map table. Irleen immediately picked herself up from the table and remained overhead as Link studied the map. He tried to recall the Sky Lines around Might Island. He considered that he might be able to better hide the _Island Symphony_ if he could activate the Sky Lines around Might Island just as he had done on Sagacity Island. If so, it would open a few more options for them. It would also make it easy for their pursuers to comb the skies, but it would be a problem they would deal with anyway once the Sky Lines were back in place.

So he nodded and pointed to a small island near Might Island. "Here's Tabletop Island. There's not really a whole lot here, so there wouldn't be a reason for the _Symphony_ to go there."

Leynne gave him a grin. "Meaning it would be a good place to hide," he reasoned.

Link nodded. "It'd make a good fall-back point if we find out the _Moon's Shadow_ beat us to Might Island. And it's due nor—_south_ of Might Island, so if we have to leave, we could probably travel a day in either direction, and then turn straight north back to Might. And that's just one of the out-of-the-way islands we can get to. If we can get the Sky Lines around Might Island to return just like back on Sagacity, there's…" Link had to stretch to point at a corner of the map. "Right here, there's Timbre Island. We can duck there for maybe half a day, then probably sail back to Sagacity for half a day, and _then_ return to Might."

"With a screwball route like that, it just might throw off that other captain," Irleen said. "Who would expect you to return to where you started?"

"That's assuming Captain Nohth knows wheh we've been," Leynne said. "So fah, it's been a logical jump from island to island. He must know we eventually need to stop."

"I wonder if he knows how close he came," Irleen said with a giggle as she glanced at Link.

Link recalled passing Captain North on the streets of East Iron Island and shook his head. "I… don't want to think about it. But Leynne, if we can afford to, we might be able to buy you some time. In the meantime, though, once we reach Might Island, we need to arrange for more fuel and rations fast." He hesitated. "Look, I hate to ask—"

"I've already explained that I've a stake in this as well," Leynne said. "That said, we may have to do a bit of budgeting. I've been comparing the cost of supplies between Thicket, Ihon, and Sagacity, and I don't think I'll be able to affohd to _fully_ resupply the ship."

"If we can afford to leave you a couple of days, we shouldn't have to," Link said.

Leynne nodded, catching Link's meaning. "Right, if I'm successful with whateveh time you can give me, we could fully resupply _aftehwahd_."

"Biluf is going to need some more materials as well," Link added. "So after we arrange for supplies, do you think you'll have enough to get what she needs?"

"Between the cost of fuel and rations, _if_ I've calculated them right, I believe so. It'll be tight, though."

"Whatever you can do."

…

~~Day 60 (Command, Day 23)

~~It's just occurred to me it's been two months since I started this journal, two months since the Smiling Gunner shot the Island Sonata out of the sky. It feels so strange. The month I've been on the surface, time just seemed to go so slow. Then, coming back up here, it's like time just got away. It's probably because of the tedium that's developed in the days since we fled from Castle Island. Aside from what happened on Sagacity Island, there hasn't really been much to do. Since we're keeping out of range of the Moon's Shadow, most of the crew has had to find something to keep themselves busy on-duty and off. It probably doesn't help that there isn't much to do while on-duty. Twali and Cale keep themselves busy with lookout and Leynne and Gold always have the helm. But the rest of the deck crew, well—Lwamm likes to do pull-ups in the doorway to the boat deck and occasionally climbs the rigging. Layna always seems to be glaring at something, sometimes on the deck and sometimes in the open air. Dholit thinks that she's working to memorize the sounds on the ship so she can react if something happens to be wrong. Dholit follows me around like she's waiting for me to give her an order or something. Sometimes I have to go below just to get away from her; she knows she has to stay on the weather deck. Biluf talks to herself. At least, I think she does; she's aware that no one but the other Gelto understand her.

~~Off-duty, things get a little awkward. Dholit

Link stopped and glanced over at his bed. He had not made it in a while, so some of the sheets were pushed up against the bulkhead. At least, he _thought_ he might have pushed them against the bulkhead. Moving quietly, he stood up from the chair and slid over to the bed. He then suddenly ripped the covers away from the bed and found nothing waiting for him.

"Nīk napa ō, Līnca…" Irleen groaned from the edge of her own bed.

Although Link did not understand her, he took the sentiment from her tone and threw the covers back onto the bed. Then he moved to his desk and sat back down in the chair. He wondered at the drawers under the bed for a moment before continuing to write.

~~has hidden herself in my bedroom just to ambush me before I go to sleep. Layna, Twali, and Lwamm tend to work out before and sometimes after their shifts. There's generally no telling what Biluf does, but she tends to go to the boat deck a lot, probably to use her chemistry set. Dubbl, Cale, and Gold seem to be the only ones who go straight to their berths.

~~I've been a little restless myself. I think it's mostly because there's really no telling at this point whether we'll reach Might Island or not. Leynne approached me today with plans to convert the cutter we got from Rosaline into a usable air launch. We have an idea of what we can do about our lack of supplies and funding, but we're really pushing ourselves at this point. I keep thinking how much easier things would be with the Sky Lines around. With the supplies we brought up, we could've run circles around the kingdom in the month we've been up here. As things are now, though, it's like we're slowly starving to death.

~~No, I can't think like that. Captain Alfonzo once told me that if a person uses the words "starving to death", then he becomes useless. I can't afford to be useless, not now. There's too many things that have to be done.

…

~~Day 61 (Command, Day 24)

~~I decided on a change in duties today just to keep people from performing the same thing over and over again. I did it mostly because it would help break up this feeling I've been getting that the crew is suddenly going to go crazy (not that it isn't possible they already have). I also thought that it would be better if, in case something horrible happened and Leynne or Gold weren't available, others could man the helm in an emergency. So I put Leynne and Gold on deck patrol, shifted Biluf and Lwamm to lookouts, and put Cale and Twali on the helm. I've been considering permanently removing Leynne from the helm and leaving him to deck patrol since it shouldn't be his constant responsibility to man it. He's supposed to be my second-in-command, after all. He needs to be more aware of the ship than just the helm. I told him as much, and he argued that he was only supposed to be temporary second anyway. He seems to prefer manning the wheel, but I explained my reasons to him. For a moment, I thought he was going to punch me, but he just calmed down and accepted it. I asked him why the sudden hostility when he had appeared a little enthusiastic when we talked yesterday. I had not realized that he was losing sleep, and it was rubbing on his nerves a bit. I suggested that he go to bed earlier and trying to get a little more sack time. He said he's tried it, but he can't help shaking the feeling that something bad is going to happen to us once we reach Might Island. We just sort of left the conversation there. I can't blame him, though. Without knowing where the Moon's Shadow disappeared to, it is possible that they may have headed us off.

~~Cale decided to use some of his off-duty time to learn a bit more Sorian from Irleen. The last I heard of the session, she was shouting at him about pronunciation. I myself have been trying to learn a bit of Geltoan. Dholit tried to translate a few of my commands, but I just can't seem to remember the words. And the way Geltoan is spoken, it felt like I was going to rub my throat raw with all the pronunciations I couldn't get. It's something I should learn. It would be nice to be able to tell the Gelto something without having Dholit or Dubbl (especially Dholit) translate it for them.

~~We spent most of the day reaching. I'm hoping that, if we can get a good wind behind us, we might make it before the end of our second week out here. The engine crew is getting worried about our fuel, although Sello is still trying to stretch it out by burning empty ration packs. I've even noticed that a case of the alcohol we bought for him has gone missing, but I don't really think that means much.

…

~~Day 62 (Command, Day 25)

~~I maintained the duty roster I made yesterday so that some of the crew had time to get use to other duties. I thought about bringing up some of the engine crew, but I decided I'm not going to unless they ask. So far, Lawrence, Lidago, Helo, and Harley don't seem to be bothered by the lack of sunlight, although I did see Harley this evening before his shift began. He was on the forecastle chatting with Cale for a bit. I hadn't thought about it, but it appears that Harley had joined my crew in the heat of passion. He had just broken up with his fiancée before the call went out for volunteers to come out to Fishington and help build the ship. He explained to Cale that it had been pretty ugly and he didn't want to be anywhere near her for fear that they would actually kill each other. Cale commented that he felt a little sorry for Harley, but I guess Harley told him that it was the best thing that could've happened. He wanted to get away from her, so he was willing to take a post on the Island Symphony. And he seems to have hated both times I gave the crew the chance to leave because it made him feel like he was being forced to go back to her. Now that I think about it, he did sound kind of eager to overthrow the fake Zelda a couple weeks ago.

~~We got a running wind this afternoon, but it maybe lasted for just a couple of hours. Leynne wanted to try lowering the ship on a hunch that the winds below us might offer something different, but I didn't want to chance that we might find a worse wind than what we've been following. I saw him still on-deck before I decided to turn in for the night. But I can't be sure what he was doing.

…

~~Day 63 (Command, Day 26)

~~Finally! After almost two weeks of switching back and forth, we finally had a whole day of northeasterly wind to push us toward Might Island at a full run. This surely should've shaved time off our journey. And it's definitely welcome. I don't know how we got so lucky, but I hope our luck will last into tomorrow. It would be great to see Might Island on the horizon in the morning.

~~The crewmen I switched around seem to be taking to their jobs quite nicely, and that was what I was hoping for. If we don't make it to Might Island tomorrow morning, I think I'll shift them around again, get other people used to the helm and lookout.

~~Leynne raised a few questions today which I actually hadn't considered. His main concern was that, while the Moon's Shadow was chasing us from the western islands, it was possible that more ships were approaching us from the east. He has a point, and I told him that it was possible that they were. When he asked how we might avoid running into another Skyrider vessel, I pointed out that Might Island not only has two docking areas, but plenty of mountainous areas which we could use to hide behind if we need to leave or pick up someone away from the docks. When he brought up the idea that someone might see us just as we're approaching, I told him that the moment we see the island, we can increase the ballast and rise so that we can get a look at the docks without anyone being able to observe the Island Symphony. When he pointed out how suspicious that would look, I had to agree with him, but I also said that some captains do that to keep an eye out for rival vessels.

…

~~Day 64 (Command, Day 27)

~~Our luck held out, and we ran up until the early evening before the wind shifted and forced us to return to reaching. I explained this to the crew, and it was nice to see their spirits lifting a bit. We still haven't made it to Might Island, but we're so much closer now. It's saved us another day of fuel since we haven't had to use the engine for propulsion. As for rations, well, we're still having to stretch them out. The engine crew won't eat the rations Sello stole, and our current supply only tastes mildly better than that. It feels like it's been forever since I last had a decent ration from this area of the kingdom.

~~The discussion I had with Cale about Harley a couple days ago sort of inspired me today. After Dholit was done at lookout (I had rotated the deck crew again), I asked her about the other Gelto on the ship. She explained to me that Gelto like to be around warriors that pull off incredible feats. They mostly hope that being part of my crew will let them see some action. They already know about my fight with the Malgyorg in the Sand Realm. Actually, she told me that some of the stories around me have been exaggerated. One story, which she heard from Lwamm, goes that I punched a bunch of smaller Malgyorg out of the desert and used their noses to make a pair of gloves so that I could punch through the big Malgyorg's thick skin and rip its heart out. Twali seems to think that I used the smaller Malgyorg to make a bow and some arrows so that I could shoot its eyes out and then slash its belly open with my sword, which I suppose is close enough to the truth. Biluf's version, though, seemed to involve me shooting a cannon full of chemicals into its mouth and making it explode into a humongous ball of purple smoke (and she was very adamant about the color of the smoke). She couldn't get a story from Layna, but she did say that Layna is actually a little afraid of me. I really can't understand why; I think everyone onboard is afraid of her!

~~I can't help feeling a little optimistic right now. Maybe it's just the fact that nothing's tried to kill me in two weeks. I know it'll probably change once we reach Might Island, but, for now, I think I'll just sit back and enjoy it.


	82. Cheating

Chapter 82: Cheating

…

~~Day 65 (Command, Day 28)

~~We saw light on the horizon tonight and corrected our course. It turns out we've probably gone a little further south than we needed. I also ordered everyone to their previous duty stations and had Gold increase the ballast so that we're above the level of the island. I also told Lwamm (through Dubbl, of course) to stay on the bow and keep track of the island since Gold can't see it from the wheel. I decided to go ahead and get some sleep, and we should have the island close enough in the morning to tell if there are any Skyrider ships looking for us. The day shift is gonna be relieved when we dock. Hopefully, we'll have a bit of time before we have to hide the ship to get done what needs to be done. The main thing, of course, being supplies.

~~Other than that, today was actually pretty quiet. Cale got sick (probably from a bad ration), and he threw up in the head. It must not have been that bad if he had time to run from beside the aft capstans to the bow. I thought he just might pitch himself overboard and kinda chased him. But he's fine. I told him to take it easy.

…

Link had a hard time sleeping, though. He spent part of the night staring up at the deckhead visible from Irleen's natural light. His biggest concern was the feeling of paranoia he suddenly had. Now that his fears of running out of fuel had been alleviated, he worried that one of his crew would burst through the door at any moment to tell him that a Skyrider ship was coming. It made him want to stay awake and alert in case it happened. Even as he drifted off a couple of times, he jerked awake and maintained vigilance on the ceiling. The third time, however, he finally fell asleep.

He woke up early in the morning, just as the sun was giving color to the sky. After relieving himself and dressing, he stepped out onto the deck. The sun had yet to rise beyond the forecastle, leaving most of the weather deck in the shade. The night shift had yet to be relieved, Dubbl walking around the main deck while Lwamm seemed to stalk the forecastle around Gold. However, Link saw that Leynne was awake, leaning on the bulwark just aft of the port stairs with his head turned forward. All of the sails were leaning to port, indicating to Link that the ship was sailing at almost a beam reach to the wind. The wind must have shifted north again.

He stifled a yawn and approached Leynne. Leynne heard his boots against the deck and stood up, although he did not turn to Link right away. This allowed Link to speak first. "You're not still having trouble sleeping, are you?" he asked.

Leynne turned around and leaned his rear against the bulwark. "Hahdly, actually," he replied. "I went to sleep eahly, and I just woke up eahly. You… don't look so well rested, though."

"Yeah, I didn't really get much sleep," Link admitted, running a hand through his hair. "Are we close enough to see land?"

Leynne leaned further over to glance out at the island. "Mountains. Just like you said." He turned back to Link. "I can't help noticing that most otheh islands we've seen thus fah have been relatively flat. Any pahticulah reason?"

Link shrugged. "They've been like that as far as _I've_ known."

Leynne nodded. "So what do we do now?"

"Let's go look for people who want to shoot us down," Link replied as he waved to Dubbl, who, while standing on the starboard side, had turned to observe their conversation.

"Nice to know youh lack of sleep hasn't affected youh sense of humoh," Leynne remarked with a grin.

"You thought that was funny?" Link asked while managing to keep a straight face. "I was being serious."

"Hence why it's funny." _That_ comment caused Link to crack a smile at him.

"Yes, Kyabtin?" Dubbl asked as she stopped next to him.

"Would you send Twali up to the front of the ship?" Link asked her. "We need to borrow the duoscope."

"Yes, Kyabtin," she answered with a nod. She glanced at Leynne for a moment before turning to walk toward the stern.

Link, having caught the strange, brief moment of contemplation from her, looked back to find Leynne watching her walk away. Like her, he seemed to be staring at her with a preoccupied expression, and Link cleared his throat to regain Leynne's attention. "Is… something going on?" he asked.

Leynne tried to pass his staring off as a lapse in attention and gave Link a stumped glance. "Why do you ask?"

"You were staring at Dubbl."

Leynne shrugged. "So?"

"Are you… _interested_ in her?"

Leynne pushed away from the bulwark. "On a professional level mostly. And, you have to admit, she does come across as _chahming_ when she isn't being _violent_." Then he turned to Link and crossed his arms. "Ah you suggesting that I'm _falling_ foh heh?"

Link was a little taken aback by Leynne's defensive tone, soft and subtle as it was. "Wha—I-I was just… just asking a question. I mean… it's none of my business. But… you know… it _would_ be nice if you guys got along a little better."

"We've been handling ouhselves just fine."

That seemed to finalize the subject, although Link could not help feeling that Leynne wanted to argue more. He gave a nervous grin and glanced over the side. "Hey, look, it's an island," he remarked in the only kind of casual, faux excitement that was meant to change an awkward subject. Pointing at the bow, he added, "Let's go have a look up front."

They stepped up onto the forecastle and exchanged greetings with Gold. Then they stepped onto the beakhead. Leynne waited and watched as Link dropped to his knees and pulled himself onto the net anchored between the bowsprit and the exterior hull behind them. Leynne, opting for a position that was not as risky, grabbed one of the nearby forestays and placed one foot on the bowsprit next to Link. "Initial assessment?" he asked.

"Huh?" Link asked over his shoulder.

"How does it look from heh?" Leynne replied.

"Oh." Link looked back out at the island ahead of them. "So farrrr… there's a lot of ships down there. A bit of activity, but it looks like mainly junks at work down there."

"'Junks'?" Leynne asked.

"Small boats or ships with batten sails. The Sky Lines like to tear them apart, but they're good as small cargo haulers around islands. The ones here are generally used to transport mining products to the port for sale."

"Ah."

"I suppose there're Skyrider ships out here, but… I can't really tell like this."

"Kyabtin?" Both Link and Leynne glanced backwards to find Twali standing on the beakhead next to the heads. She offered out the duoscope, and Leynne accepted it and passed it to Link.

"Thanks, Twali," Link told her. Then he turned and, placing the duoscope over his eyes, examined Might Island again. "Hmm. That's… really not what I was expecting."

"What is it?" Leynne asked.

"Not a black flag in sight." Although he did not have a clear view of the entirety of Might Island's southern docks, his initial findings told him that, somehow, the Skyriders had yet to appear at this island. This, Link could tell because all of the flags of the nearby vessels were all sporting their original, unique banners. Not one of them had so much as a black field, and Link found this quite encouraging. If anything, no one would pay them any sort of unusual attention if they docked on the southwest side. He tried to get a look at the people wandering around the nearby docks, but despite spotting people wearing black clothing, it really was not very conclusive that they were Skyriders from this distance. It was not as if black was an uncommon color. He turned and told Leynne, "I think, if we just stay on this side for now, we'll be fine. We can get supplies on this side, and then you guys can probably leave me here so I can find the technoworks under the island."

Leynne crossed his arms. "I don't know about this, Link," he said in a grim tone. "By all accounts, theh _should_ be Skyrideh vessels heh as well."

"If there are, they're probably on the other side of the island. I'm sure we're in the clear for now, but it's not like we're just going to jump into this blindly."

"I wasn't saying that. I'm just a little concehned. You know, like when something seems _too_ easy?" Link turned to him with his mouth open, but Leynne held up a hand to stop him. "I undehstand you'h trying to be optimistic. But at least _one_ of us should be paranoid. Don't you think?"

Link frowned as he thought. "Well… yeah, that's part of a second-in-command's _job_."

Leynne's frown grew annoyed. "Now you'h just making fun of me."

"Heh, no," Link told him as he handed him the duoscope. "I'll get you a manual while we're in town. It says so on the first page: paranoid. Right underneath the line 'Friend to the crew'."

That caused Leynne to give a brief burst of laughter as he recalled just how "friendly" a certain member of the crew had been with him. He handed the duoscope back to Twali. "So what would you like to do, _Captain_?" he asked.

"We'll dock," Link said, grinning at Leynne's mockery as he pushed up from the net. "The first sight of Skyriders, we'll bolt for Tabletop Island and see what supplies we can get from there." He and Leynne stepped away from the bowsprit. "We have to try."

"Right," Leynne said. "Just let me handle the supplies and the paranoia."

Link narrowed his eyes at Leynne as he asked, still grinning, "You _sure_ you don't wanna be second?"

"Hah!" Leynne cawed as he stepped past a confused-looking Twali. "With every bone in my ass!" Link was not entirely certain of the sentiment behind Leynne's parting remark, but he took the good humor to mean he still had a second-in-command.

…

It was mid-morning when the _Island Symphony_ finally docked at the western end of Might Island's southern docks. By then, both deck shifts were awake, and the night shift, eager to see shore as much as everyone else, did not immediately disappear below for their off-duty free time. Harley was also on-deck to look around, although he explained to Link that the Gorons wanted to make sure their source of food was not forgotten as well, lest they start eating the coal the engine used for fuel. Link was naturally a little embarrassed that he had forgotten about his Goron crew and passed the word along to Leynne, who had to disappear and work out the math between the ship's and his own funds to see what they could purchase.

When he returned to the deck about five minutes after the ship was moored, Link called the deck crew together to discuss their plans for disembarking. He was the first person Link called attention to when, seeing Leynne jogging toward the gangplank, he asked, "What did you get?"

"Well…" Leynne said, trailing off while he finished joining the rest of the crew. "As you can imagine, it _does_ cut into ouh overall supplies, but not by much. Without checking prices, I _believe_ we can affohd the Gorons' daily weight in rock foh a week, just as requested. Considering we have moh fuel and rations than what I had been expecting, though, I'd say ouh cuhrent resouhces can supplant the difference."

"That s'pose tae be an answer?" Gold asked.

Leynne gave him an irritated glare. "It _means_ we can affohd it."

"Why you not say _zat_?" Dubbl asked him.

"Well, I'll tell you this then," Leynne told her, turning to her and crossing his arms. "If I have to answeh a question around you again, I'll just say 'yes' and 'no'. Faih?"

Dubbl also crossed her arms and turned to him with her own glare on her face. "Waba sasoyalak max, _sanway_?" she asked in a challenging voice.

"If you wanna f—" Leynne began, holding up a finger to point in her face.

"Guys!" Link snapped at them. "Leynne. Dubbl. Come on, not now."

"Yeah, c'mon," Gold said, nudging Leynne's shoulder with a fist. "We got stuff tae do."

"You can talk," Irleen, hovering over Dholit's head, spoke up. "You _started_ it."

"Guys, listen to me, please," Link said. "We may only have a few hours before trouble shows up, and we need that time to get everything we need before we have to hide the _Symphony_. Leynne, as the one with the money, you'll be picking up our supplies as well as getting the things that Biluf needs." Link fished his wallet out of his pocket and handed it over. "That has the ship's funds. Use those up first."

Leynne stared at the wallet for a moment. "You… have a pink wallet?" The question produced a snigger from Irleen, Harley, and Gold.

"It was a _gift_," Link told them in a defensive tone. Then he turned to Dholit. "Did you get a list from Biluf?"

"Ah," Dholit replied, looking a little embarrassed. "Well, I failed to mention the falling out that's been had between myself and sciences _outside_ of human natuah, My Captain." She turned aside and leaned out her hip as if inviting someone to stare at her rear end (which Gold obliged since he was standing right next to her). She made a hook with one finger and touched it to her lower lip while lowering her face so she could give Link an upward stare. "I can only offah myself foh punishment."

"Yep," Irleen spoke up, "_still_ don't want to know where Link found you."

"Uh… no, that's okay, Dholit," Link told her in discomfort. "Um… I'm sure _Biluf_ can remember what she needs, right?"

"I suppose," Dholit said with a nod as she relaxed her pose.

"You _and_ Biluf will be going with Leynne then," Link said.

"Oy, Cap'n," Harley spoke up. "Wha' 'bou' a bi' o' shore time for the res' o' the crew?"

Link frowned at him. "It'll be a little tricky…" He gave it some thought and then decided. "I'll let you guys go in shifts; we can't afford to have too much of the deck crew missing. Anyone wanna go with Harley?"

There was a period of silence after Dholit finished her translation to the Gelto. He partially understood the Gelto's hesitation; it might be difficult for them to walk around in a town when they could not even talk to the person they were exploring with. For a moment, Link was concerned that he would have to tell Harley to just hang around the ship until Gold raised his hand. "I'll go with 'im, Cap'n," he told Link.

Link nodded at him. "Okay. As for the rest of you, if you want to go ashore, wait for Gold and Harley to get back. I'm sure you can figure out who will go after that on your own. The next people to go ashore need to go in _pairs only_. Guys, try not to take too long. Maybe an hour and a half?"

Gold nodded. "We can do that."

"Yeah, sure," Harley agreed.

"If _anyone_ has to go inside," Link said, his voice taking on a stricter tone, "make sure that you have someone remain _outside_."

"What foh?" Cale asked.

"Because if the Skyridehs show up," Leynne explained, "we'll have to regroup quickly."

"Dubbl and I are both carrying flare guns," Link continued. "Dubbl will remain here and keep an eye on the ship with the rest of the deck crew. Now, if anyone happens to see an airman wearing a black tunic…" He paused and tugged on the front of his tunic for emphasis. "… and possibly wearing a weapon, either find me or report back to the ship. If anything happens, if anyone recognizes us or the ship, two blue flares will be fired into the air, one right after the other. If you see _two blue_ flares, all crew need to finish their business and hustle back to the _Symphony_ as soon as possible. That's why someone in a group has to be outside at all times."

"Wha' if we see jus' _one_ flare?" Harley asked.

"Find its source and see what it is," Link said.

"What if it's not _blue_?" Cale asked.

"If it happens to be green, then it's a false alahm," Leynne said. "If it happens to be _any_ otheh coloh, that means we've likely been discovehed and ah undeh attack. And _that_ means that youh new priority is to get back to the ship."

"It's the simplest way to explain the flares," Link said. "Any other signals likely mean that something's gone wrong."

"Like Sello setting fire to the ship again."

Link gave Irleen an annoyed glance. "Right. Layna?"

"Right behind you, My Captain," Dholit said.

Link glanced over his shoulder and found himself only mildly surprised to see that she was standing there, already in her black outfit. "I assume she's going with me."

"It's heh standing ohdahs," Dholit replied.

"Why you going, Kyabtin?" Dubbl asked.

"I'm going to the dockmaster to see if there _have_ been any Skyrider vessels here," Link explained. "I want to see if maybe the _Moon's Shadow_ passed by. If so, they might have actually overshot us and went on to the next island. Does anyone _not_ understand the signals?" Link paused and watched glances pass around his crew while Dholit finished her translation. When no one spoke up, Link nodded. "Okay then. We're trying not to take too long, so keep business as short as possible. Dubbl, you have the ship."

"Yes, Kyabtin," Dubbl replied, saluting.

Link dismissed the salute. "Let's go." He turned with the intention of stepping past Layna, but, instead, he found that she had already disappeared.

After walking to the end of the gangplank, Link and Irleen (and presumably Layna), along with Leynne, Dholit, and Biluf, turned toward the more populated areas near the middle of the docks while Gold and Harley continued straight ahead toward a market street. There was a bit of chatter with Link's group until Leynne, Dholit, and Biluf broke off after Link pointed out an appropriate supply store for Leynne to look at. Conversation between Link and Irleen had died down to her pointing out things to him and asking for an explanation. Of course, there was not as much Link needed to explain since she was becoming familiar with some of the usual workings of sailing. It turned out to mostly be questions about some of the strange items that Hylians had brought up with them, the strange foods which Irleen was sure had never appeared on Forelight Island before.

Link was a little surprised to realize how comfortable he was. He knew he should have been paying more attention to his surroundings since he never knew when a Skyrider might call attention to his green tunic. He had not even thought about grabbing one of his swords. But he _was_ carrying Irleen's bomb gem, a decent means of defense if he needed it. The flare gun on his second belt, although holstered on the small of his back, could also be used as a weapon. For safety, though, the gun was empty and the shells all arranged on his belt as they should be. He had considered leaving behind the belt he had received with his tunic and just wearing the gun belt, but it had not been a conscious decision when he was getting dressed. He might have to try it, though, if only to cast off a little more of the Skyrider Captain likeness he wore.

Although appearing to be a port with the usual amenities of business, he _did_ notice that something seemed a bit off from the last time he had been on Might Island. As he approached the middle section of the southern docks, he noticed that there were actually a lot of families in the area. Children were usually warned to stay away from the docks; even _he_ had been warned a few times when he was younger, although the people doing the warning had not realized that he was an airman at the time. To see a family just wandering the docks without even boarding a ship was a little peculiar. He was also aware that some of the warehouses in this area had their larger doors closed with occasionally a small wooden or metal fence in the way. He found it curious, as security was very rarely much beyond a former airman wielding a plank with _maybe_ a handle. If that was not enough, by the time he saw the dockmaster's office, he also saw a number of tents and shoddy-looking buildings taking up what was supposed to be a wide-open marketplace in the port's plaza. He paused outside the office door as he watched a mother and two children go inside the closest of the tents and not come back out as fast as he had expected.

"Something wrong, Link?" Irleen asked.

"I'm not sure," Link replied. He waited a moment to see if the mother and children would step back out, believing that they had just stepped into a shop. The children emerged, one holding a ball, and they began to play in front of the test as if it was their home. "Weird…"

"What, those kids?" Irleen asked. "What's weird about them?"

"They jus—" But Link cut himself off there. He was about to tell her that they should not have been playing in the dock area like that, or even in the middle of a marketplace. He decided against it, however, mostly because he remembered that they were short on time and dismissed it as him being distracted. "Never mind," he told her. "Let's get this over with."

Upon stepping inside the office, Link's nostrils were filled with an amazingly pungent stench. The source was a strand of raw garlic bulbs that had been nailed to the doorframe. Link stared at it for a moment, finding the garlic's presence to be probably the strangest thing he had noticed thus far about the island. He could not even think of a reasonable explanation for this.

"Sorry about the garlic," said a middle-aged man sitting at the desk on the far side of the front room.

Link glanced at the balding man wearing a dirty, blue shirt. "I try not to judge," Link said, his nose wrinkling at the garlic, "but… this is just…"

The man nodded his understanding of Link's inability to complete his sentence. "I know. You just get in?"

"Yeah, not too long ago," Link said as he walked further into the room.

"You a crewman?"

"Uh… yeah, something like that."

The man pointed at a thick shelf next to Link. "Logbook's right there."

Link turned and found that there was indeed an open logbook. "Oh. Thanks." He picked up the pen set next to the book and decided to fill in the _Horizon's Eye_'s information again.

"Where'd ya come from?"

Link sighed. "Two-week trip from Sagacity Island. Do you mind if I look through here a minute? I just want to see if another ship I know came through here."

"Go ahead," the man said as he rose from his chair. "Two weeks out of Sagacity, huh?"

"Yeah," Link said with a weak laugh. "My ship's pretty strapped for supplies." Two pages in, and he found what he was looking for. The _Moon's Shadow_. So it _had_ headed them off, and by a whole day; the logbook had been signed _yesterday_ morning. The fact that there had been no sign of the ship near where the _Island Symphony_ had docked looked all the more promising. He turned a couple more pages to see if he could find any other Skyrider vessels.

"What ship are ya lookin' for? Maybe I can help."

Link shook his head. "No, I found it. They came through here yesterday."

"The _Moon's Shadow_?"

Link suddenly felt his heart bang against his chest, and Irleen turned away from the window in the door to look at the office man. She and Link exchanged glances before Link turned the logbook back to its current page. Then, trying to reign in his surprise, he turned to the man. "What makes you say that?" he asked, his voice even and controlled.

"The captain, Captainnnn… North, maybe?" the man said. "Yeah, him. He came in and asked me'a keep an eye out for a young man wearin' green. Said he'd probably be comin' in today."

"And what did he want you to do?" Link asked, fearing the worst; the _Moon's Shadow_ was _still here_, and Captain North had set up a trap for him. If so, Link would have to fire off flares and run back to the ship as fast as possible before the Skyriders could be alerted.

"Well," the man said as he leaned over and pulled open a drawer. "If I met the young man, I was toldda give him this." Link watched the man pull an envelope from the drawer and show it to him. Then the man turned it to read the single word on the front. "It's addressedda 'Link'."

Link managed to calm down a bit. It was no surprise North knew his name; he recalled that the airmen searching for them on East Iron Island had used it. It was a curious move by Captain North. Did it mean that North was leaving him a message just in case Link had not arrived yet? Or was the captain trying to mess with Link's head? He would not know until he got that letter. So he decided to play it smooth, try to act like the knowledge of the letter was no big deal while acknowledging that the fact that North had left it for him was a big deal. "Yeah, that's me, actually," he said as he strode up to the desk. He held out a hand. "Link of the _Island Symphony_, right?" His brain suddenly snapped at him that he had used the wrong name. North would only know Link's ship as the _Island Sonata_, having no means of correcting this.

"Yep, that's _you_ then," the man said as he handed over the letter.

All types of warning signals flooded Link's mind, and he bowed his head as if to contemplate the name scrawled on the front so he could hide the look of absolute horror on his face. He was busted. He was busted, and he did not know _how_. North could not recognize him passing on a street lit with lamps, but he knew the _correct_ name of Link's _ship_? With care, trying to avoid letting his hands shake too much, he opened the envelope and pulled out a single page. His breathing ceased as he read an elegantly-written letter. He reread it again, and then once more. For a moment, the man wondered if Link's crumpling the letter between his fingers meant that he had just received some bad news. Irleen even pulled away from the window, her position blinding her to Link's reaction.

"Thank you," Link finally said in an even voice. He folded the letter and slipped it back into its envelope. Then he turned as he slipped it into his pocket. Irleen, just about to ask what was going on, had to dodge out of the way as Link marched past her and out the door, forcing her to chase him before she became trapped in the office.

She saw him draw the flare gun and load a shell into it. "Link?" she asked.

_FZZZZZZZzzzzzz!_ Irleen was startled by Link as he aimed the pistol over his head and fired it with much less care than he had shown before. Irleen looked up just as the trail of smoke burst into a soft, blue light just barely distinguishable from the late morning sky.

"Link, what's going on?" she asked in a more urgent tone while she watched him load a second shell.

"North has us," Link said just before firing the second blue flare into the air.

…

"'—To Captain Link of the _Island Symphony_,

"'—Your presence is required by request of Her Highness Princess Zelda of Hyrule. As you are no doubt aware, you are currently a wanted criminal due to stand trial for treason against the Royal Family. As a member of Her Highness's Royal Navy, I am under orders, along with three other vessels, to locate and arrest you on these charges in Her Highness's name or see to it that your vessel is destroyed. I am not unreasonable with my orders and would much prefer that the former of these two eventualities occur.

"'—I commend you on your ability to elude even my sight. Not knowing much beyond a vague description of you and your vessel has caused my crew much frustration, and I find myself believing that you have not been relying purely on luck. That said, you have made a grievous error in judgment, and the only way in which you may atone for it is with your surrender.

"'—As you read this letter, I have with me a person who has foolishly provided patronage to your activity. The young woman is a college student by the name of Lilly. Her capture appears to have been a feat of coincidence. Two of my airmen sighted her on Sagacity Island and found it suspicious that she suddenly appeared after having only been sighted on East Iron Island the evening before we left. Her interrogation has revealed important facts about you, your crew, and your vessel.

"'—I do not hold this young woman with malice. However, your lack of cooperation in this matter will result in her eventual transportation to Castle Island for trial on charges of conspiracy to commit treason, an offense punishable by death just as if the charge was treason itself. As I intend for this matter to be solved between us alone, I have sent the other vessels searching for you to the neighboring islands in case you decide to expose your cold heart to this young woman.

"'—My vessel awaits you on Tabletop Island. There, you, your second-in-command, and a third airman (by the young woman's request, this third airman has been named Airman Cale) will disembark and meet us in the old governor's mansion in the middle of the island. I will have no tricks pulled on me, Captain Link. Excepting those named above, your crew will remain with your ship while we negotiate your surrender. Any attempts to save the young woman will result in her premature and undoubtedly tragic execution. The use of any dock other than the area farthest south of the island will see your vessel blown out from beneath your feet. Do not approach my vessel, and do not sail over the island, as either act will result in an attack. I know that you will reach Might Island promptly. You have four days to appear on Tabletop Island. Fail to do so, and the young woman will suffer for your evil intentions.

"'—I do not like the circumstances of our meeting, nor do I take pleasure in the fact that your capture has necessitated interference in this young woman's life. But know that I will carry out my orders at the cost of my insubstantial discomfort.

"Signed 'Captain North, Her Royal Highness's vessel _Moon's Shadow_'." Link then set the letter down on his desk and glanced around his cabin. Cale had collapsed on his bed at the mention of Lilly's name, and Link could not help feeling sorry for him. He was sure that they had shared some personal moments with each other while she had been aboard. Irleen hovered over Cale as if to jump in if Cale reacted unexpectedly. Dholit leaned on the bedpost to Cale's left, arms crossed and a particularly irate look on her face. Gold stood between Link and the door, also with his arms crossed but with an uncomfortable expression aimed at the floor. Leynne leaned his thigh against the map table, arms crossed as well and with a frustrated glare aimed at Link.

He was the first to speak. "Faihly well-written foh a hostage takeh," he said, his sincerity colored by a touch of venom.

"I'd _definitely_ call that some pre'y shi'y luck," Gold commented.

"This is indeed an upsetting situation," Dholit agreed. "I find myself ratheh _appalled_ at this action. Not only is it a cheat to the situation, it is pahticulahly insulting to myself as a _woman_."

"I don't think Captain Nohth took heh gendeh into mind when they caught heh," Leynne commented. "Man _oh_ woman, theh's a faihly even chance he would have taken them."

"A _Gelto_ woman would die befoah making hehself a liability," she told him with such force that Link thought she would attack Leynne. The amount of passion she was showing made him all the more concerned. "This is just _absuhd_!"

"It's…" Attention turned to Cale as he bent over and grasped the sides of his head. "It's not _faih_. Why did it have to be _Lilly_?"

"Just take it easy, Cale," Irleen told him, settling onto his shoulder. "Link will do something. Right, Link?"

Link gave the letter a depressed look. Captain North had orchestrated probably the one thing that would give him pause in his need to evade capture. He had never considered the danger he might have been putting Lilly in, never thought that she would be tied to Link and the _Island Symphony_ in any way. It must have been an _astounding_ coincidence that North's airmen remembered her from the bar or that she just happened to be spotted by those two airmen from the bar, and on one of the largest islands in the _kingdom_. Cale was right, it was not fair. As he stared at the letter, he found himself becoming angrier. They were _this_ far from restoring the Sky Lines. _This_ far from removing the fake Zelda. Link crumpled the letter in his hands. Then he slammed it on the desk and stood up, startling the airmen around him. He spun and stepped over to the window. He looked beyond the frosted glass out to Tabletop Island, watching as Captain North's aged and battered form held Lilly from behind and stared at him in expectation of a stupid move. So _this_ was what it was like to be North's target.

Some time was spent in silence as the present crew seemed to try to find an acceptable solution. Link nearly forgot that they were still in the room until Gold stepped up beside him. "Cap'n," he addressed him in a low voice. Link gave him a side-glance before focusing on the window again. Gold stood as if to block everyone else from seeing Link. "Thought yeh'd like tae 'ear it out loud… Yeh _know_ yeh've got another option, right?" Link's eyes turned to him again, and he used his silence as a signal for Gold to keep talking. "There's the chance this 'Cap'n North' is bluffin'. Think 'bout it. It doesn't make _sense_. 'E _knows_ the girl's got nothin' tae do with us, 'e's _gotta_. Would 'e _really_ risk losin' us and 'avin' 'er executed just 'cause yeh don't buy this threat?"

"No!" Both Link and Gold were startled by Cale's outraged cry and turned to find him standing again. Irleen zipped away from him and over to Leynne. Link watched as Cale's fists shook. He had never seen the librarian angry before. But he realized the possibility as he continued, "You can't just _sacrifice_ heh because you think it's a _bluff_! What the hell is _wrong_ with you!?"

"Cale, just calm down," Leynne spoke up, his tone even and one hand held up as if to stop him.

But Link was in agreement with Cale. It was a risk he was not willing to take on the hunch that North was bluffing. He could remember stories of how North dealt with people and vessels being openly hostile to Skyriders, how those who would survive whatever carnage he decided to deal either spent the rest of their days locked in their homes or went insane and disappeared (often with the implications of taking what other airmen so gruesomely called the "Long Dive"). Why would a man with that kind of reputation bother trying to bluff Link into surrender when a genuine threat would have an effect more fitting with his known history?

"Look," Gold said, his tone calm as he intended to explain his reasoning to Cale. But that was as far as he spoke when Link quickly latched onto his bicep to stop him. Gold glanced down at him in confusion. "What is it, Cap'n?"

Link had come to a decision. It was the only decision he could make, the only one left to him. In a calm, almost hollow voice, he asked, "Leynne, did you arrange for supplies?"

Leynne and Dholit exchanged a glance before Leynne replied, "Yes, I had just paid foh them. We weh discussing delivery when we saw youh signal."

"Go finish the arrangements," Link told him. "Take Mister Gold with you." This prompted Leynne and Gold to exchange looks with each other. Link continued, "Once you get back, plot our course to Tabletop Island. We'll get underway as soon as you're done."

Leynne stood stunned for a moment, unsure how to react. "Yes, sih," he replied absently. He glanced around at the room's other occupants before he decided to exit. Gold followed him out and closed the door.

Link's eyes met Cale's. "Go on back to lookout, Cale," he said.

Cale cast his eyes to the floor, feeling a little ashamed of his outburst. "Yes, saah."

Dholit waited for Cale to shut the door. Then she glared at Link. "You've given up," she accused him in a low voice.

Link returned the glare. But his response was delayed as he tried to think of one. "I will _not_ leave her. Bluff or not."

"That may be so," she said as he returned to his chair, "but ah you willing to sacrifice youh mission foh just one gihl? A gihl, may I add, that has only shown interest foh Cale and _not_ you?"

"Butt out, Dholit," Irleen told her, flying angry circles above the map table. "This is _Link's_ decision."

Link rested his elbows on the table, bowed his head, and gripped his hair between his fingers. "What's the point in trying to _help_ people when it's just gonna hurt them?" he asked in a quiet voice.

"You can't save _everyone_," Dholit told him.

He released his hair and looked up at her, scowling until his brow hurt. "I won't have _anyone_ else killed because of me," he told her. "Lilly's our friend. The Skyriders are my _family_. If you can find a solution to this without killing either of them, then _find_ it. If you can't bear me doing it, then _get off_."

Dholit's face softened, and she raised her head slightly as if contemplating him. Then, with an exaggerated wave of one arm, she bowed to him. "Yes, My Captain." Link was waiting for her to return to her usual attitude. But she instead turned and left the cabin without so much as giving him a second look.

After a moment, Irleen told him, "She's right, you know. You can't save _everyone_."

"I know," Link replied, resting his head on the desk.

But he did not add that, if it came to the choice of sacrificing himself or someone he knew, he would slide the noose around his own neck if he had to. It was the only way he knew how to live. Captain Alfonzo had told him time and time again to be loyal to his friends.

Because you never know when one of them just might save your ass.


	83. Changing the Rules

Chapter 83: Changing the Rules

…

~~Day 66 (Command, Day 29)

~~This morning, we reached Might Island. This afternoon, we set sail for Tabletop Island. Captain North, in his mission to get me, took Lilly, our first passenger, from Sagacity Island while I was in the technoworks. I don't know how he found her, but now he's using her to force us to surrender. What's worse, I can't see any means of getting out of this without someone getting killed. Gold said that North has to be bluffing, and he might let her go if we refuse to answer his demands. Dholit wants us to sacrifice her so that we can keep going on with our "mission". But I can't do either of those things, knowing that someone else is about to die because of me. I lost Albert to Cunimincus because I was too late to warn the Horizon's Eye. I watched Airman Jared die because the fake princess commanded it. She wouldn't have been able to if I had just reached Captain Koroul. I had to witness Airman Kaheel's final message left from before he starved himself to death just to end his suffering. Part of the crew of the Horizon's Eye and the entire crew of the Cloud Moon all died because of me. I wish I had stopped it all. If I had just taken a step back and thought things through a little better—There were so many times I could have said no. I could have asked the princess to wait so we could take her home. I could have told the princess that we don't sail into the Undying Storm for a reason. I could have exposed her before we left Castle Island. I could have gone back and asked Lore to give the letter to someone else. I could have even turned down my promotion to lieutenant. That should have been where I started. Who promotes a fourteen-year-old to a ship's commander? Through that, I've lost my first ship, I've caused the deaths of probably almost fifty people, I've opened the door for a homicidal airship crew to invade the kingdom, and I may have even lost my best friend. Everything's just gone straight to hell!

~~No more. I can't have anyone else die because of me. If I have to take Lilly's place just to stop it, I will. If I had to lose another crewman, I would sooner have it be me. No more. This is how far the killing goes. Not my crew. Not North's crew. Not Lilly. No one else.

~~It ends with me.

…

With the _Island Symphony_ stocked with supplies again, the only things to think about besides duty were the events about to unfold upon the crew's encounter with the _Moon's Shadow_, her battle-scarred captain, and her seasoned crew. Link held no illusions that he could best North in anything, and he understood that was how North had defeated him. For over a day, he and his crew sailed out to Tabletop Island with their spirits crushed. No one spoke about it, but they all knew that Link was on his way to his own execution. The question was if the crew of the _Island Symphony_ would be the next in line for the noose. Link promised himself that, if anything, he would plead for his crew's lives. After all, the Skyriders traditionally placed the criminal actions of a ship and its crew on its commander. Twisted as it was now, Link still held himself to the standards of a Skyrider.

No discussion was had at all concerning Link's invitation to death. Barely more than a word was spoken at one time on the deck. The entire airship suffered the despair together; even the ever-lively Dholit and ever-jolly Sello had lost the will to be themselves. Sello even appeared to take on a more appropriate drunken persona. Link's visit to the engine room the morning following their departure revealed Sello to be passed out in a pile of empty bottles in the corner of the room, leaving Harley and Lidago to tend to the engine. Leynne, Gold, Harley, and Lawrence looked nothing but angry, and Link had the feeling that his acceptance of the need to surrender was the source. The Gelto tried not to get caught looking at him. The only one who did was Layna, who spent the afternoon of their departure and the start of her shift the next day staring at him. He had gotten used to her shy demeanor when not in "emotionless killer" mode, so it felt quite disturbing to him when she would stare at him with a sad expression, like a pet being abandoned by its master. It bothered him so much that, for the better part of the following afternoon, he remained in his cabin.

Irleen was also in a silent mood, even going as far as to pretend that she had been sleeping since their departure. For the afternoon of the following day, Link laid out a number of papers and detailed events in the sky kingdom as he understood them as well as his part in all of it. He made a few copies, although some of them featured fine points that he had forgotten from some of the others, and placed them into hand-made envelopes. The most detailed of these letters, he placed in the bottom of his footlocker with his gear in the hopes that, even if the _Island Symphony_ was sunk, someone might find it while raiding his belongings. Then he settled down and tried to write out a letter to be given to Captain Alfonzo when he inevitably died. He only got as far as "Dear Captain Alfonzo", finding that he could not put together the words he needed to describe the extent of his mistakes.

A knock came at the door, jarring him out of his thoughts. "Link?" Leynne spoke from beyond. "We'h heh."

Link felt like he was coming out of a daze. He set his pen down and stood up from his chair. "I'll be right out," he called to the door. He picked up his journal and the letters to his crew and placed them in one pocket while he dug into his other pocket for the gems he usually kept on him.

"There has to be another way." Link paused with his hand nearly about to set the gems on the desk. "We could tell them you died already. Or-or that you're not the Link they were looking for, that the dockmaster made a mistake. Or—"

"Irleen," he spoke up, finding the calm in his own voice a little troubling. "We're already here." He glanced over to find her still lying in her bed. "And it wouldn't stop them from taking the rest of the crew."

Irleen gave a pause before saying, "It's not fair."

"I know," Link replied. Then he set the gems on the desk. He picked up his flare gun from atop the footlocker and prepared to open the door.

"Katàh kacánih," Irleen said. Link froze in place and listened to her. "Kōnwi hì kòħanōtan kacánih. Kaħác. Cokwi. Kòntáh. Ka… Kacánih…"

The first words were calm. Then she was angry until she broke down in tears. Even without the translator gem, Link knew what she was talking about. Even through all this, he had not forgotten the promise that he had made to her. He could not justify breaking it in this way. And no words he could say would make him feel less guilty about it. So before he pushed open the door, he bowed his head and told her, "I'm sorry." After he stepped outside, he tried to close the door as quietly as possible.

Outside, the sun was still peering over the starboard bulwark, throwing the ship's long shadows across the fragment of landscape that was Tabletop Island. Link felt his stomach turn at the sight of the island. Where he had once seen bright streetlights and tents and shops galore, charred-black remains sat in their place. Most of the buildings appeared to have collapsed at least partially, littering the surface with jagged blades of brick. The island's natural breeze kicked up swirls of ash and dust through the empty streets. Almost all color was gone. Probably the only comfort for him was the lack of bodies.

Leynne was standing at the base of the stairs on the port side, his gaze cast out at the mangled shadow of an abandoned island. He heard Link step up beside him and turned his face to that Link could see his shocked expression. "Of all that which is great and good," he said to Link, "what the hell _happened_ heh?"

Link shook his head. "I don't know," he answered, his voice sounding a little hollow. "It's been half a year since I was last here. This used to be the place Captain Alfonzo would let us take shore leave." He bowed his head and struggled to keep his urge to cry in check. When he was stable, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a letter. "Leynne."

Leynne glanced down to find Link handing the letter over to him. He took it and asked, "What's this?"

"Just in case I can't reason with North," Link said. "It's an account of everything that's happened since I lost the _Sonata_. I… I don't know how, but it might help."

"You want me to cahry this in case something happens to you," he reasoned.

"I made five. One for you, Dholit, Gold, and Layna. The fifth is hidden in my cabin."

"The most likely of us to suhvive," Leynne said, nodding.

"I… don't want to think if it like that, but yeah. You have the brains around here. Gold's an experienced sailor. Layna is—"

"Is a living weapon likely to suhvive," Leynne finished. "And Dholit has the sex appeal." He took in a deep breath. "It's a good plan. I just wish it hadn't come _to_ it."

"We _all_ do." Link and Leynne turned around to find that most of the deck crew, as well as Lidago, Lawrence, and Sello, had gathered behind them. Dholit stood at the front of the group. "Theah's still time to tahn this around," she said.

Link shook his head. "No there isn't." He removed the other letters from his pocket and handed them to Dholit. "One to Layna, one to Gold. Keep the other for yourself. If anything happens, probably the best thing to do is get at least one of these letters to Captain Alfonzo."

"Youh fohmah commandah," Dholit said.

"Shore to ship, ahoy!" someone on the docks hollered. Leynne and Link turned back to find three black-clad airmen standing on the docks closer to the bow, one of them with his hands cupped around his mouth. "State your purpose!"

Link turned back to his crew. "Dholit, have Twali and Lwamm handle the moorings. Lawrence, go forward and tell Gold to stop the ship. Cale, Leynne, with me. Oh, and Dholit?" Dholit, having turned to relay his orders to Twali and Lwamm, paused mid-sentence to glance back at him. "Layna stays here. Don't send her with us. It'll just cause trouble."

Dholit scowled and glanced at Layna, whom Link had noticed was already dressed in her usual black attire. "Fine," she replied in an annoyed tone.

"The rest of you, go back to your duties," Link finished. He waited to watch them disperse. Then he turned and looked down at the airmen on shore, finding that all three had drawn pistols due to the lack of response. So Link hollered down, "Ship to shore, ahoy. This is the _Island Symphony_. I'm Captain Link. We're here to discuss surrender with Captain North."

"Captain Link," the first airman hollered back after exchanging surprised looks with his fellows. "Toss down your mooring lines, and we'll tie them off. But no tricks. You have ten men with muskets aimed at your crew. They've got orders to shoot if anyone tries something."

"Muskets?" Leynne whispered into Link's ear.

Link, upon hearing the word from the airman, located at least two men who already had their muskets trained on them from cover. He pointed to the left, toward the stern, at a skeleton of a brick wall where one of the armed airmen had settled on a knee and aimed at them from a second-story window. "A gun with a long barrel," Link said. "The _Grand Sails_ only had five at a time. The longer barrel is supposed to let the weapon fire farther."

Leynne nodded. "I'm intrigued by the concept, though I can't say I'm happy about having it _pointed_ at me."

"Is theah _any _way to end this all?" Cale asked.

"Reason," Link said. "Our best bet is to convince Captain North that Princess Zelda is a phony."

"That's going to be hahd considering ouh lack of evidence," Leynne pointed out.

"I know," Link said as he watched the airmen on the shore bring out a plank. "It's our only hope, though." Lwamm opened the door in the bulwark, and the airmen lowered the plank into the opening. Link turned for a moment until he found Dholit and Dubbl standing nearby. "Dubbl, you have the ship."

Dubbl nodded. "Yes, Kyabtin."

Link took a moment to put his gun belt on. Then he descended with Leynne and Cale behind him. All three airmen on the shore stood away from the plank with their pistols trained on him. "Stop," one airman, standing directly in front of the plank, demanded once Cale, at the end of the line, set foot on the ground. He nodded at Link's belt. "Gun on your back."

Link held up a hand and slowly moved his other hand behind his back. "It's unloaded," he told them as he drew the gun using his thumb and forefinger. "It's not even made for shooting; it's made for signaling."

"Signaling?" the airman asked.

"Just—" Link stopped talking as he fit the gun into his hand properly and opened the breech, cautious to keep the barrel pointed at the ground so they would not feel compelled to shot him during his demonstration. He removed a shell from the belt next and held the short, fat cylinder of brass colored by a green band at one end for them to see. As he loaded the gun, he noted how interested they looked. It was not much of a surprise; they had never seen a break-action pistol or a shell before. He had had the same reaction when Dholit had demonstrated the pistol before she had given it to him. He kept the gun pointed at the ground as he turned and called to the ship, "Shore to ship, ahoy! I'm firing a flare; ignore it!"

Dubbl appeared at the end of the plank and called back, "Yes, Kyabtin!"

Link then carefully aimed the gun into the air and fired it nearly overhead. _FZZZZZZZzzzzzzz!_ The sound startled the airmen around him, and they looked up at the trail of smoke which burst into a brilliant green light. Although the airmen around them had their attention ensnared by the display, Link, Leynne, and Cale did not chance moving in case one of the musketeers around them decided it was a threat. Instead, Link just dumped the empty shell out of the gun and put the gun back on his belt.

The _tink_ of the shell against the ground snapped the airmen's attention back to Link's trio, and they quickly brought their pistols back up. "Just keep that pistol stashed," the airman in front of him said. "It probably doesn't feel very good to get shot with it anyway."

"I would imagine not…" Leynne remarked under his breath.

"Let's get moving," another airman said. "The captain's gonna get impatient."

One airman led the trio through the streets while the other two followed the group. Link tried his best to recognize some of the nearby buildings, but he found the whole landscape to be far too alien. Either they were walking through a part of the town that Link had never been to before, or whatever fire that had broken out had seriously demolished everything that he could recognize. He heard things shifting around them, and he eventually realized that there were more airmen moving around in the ruins. He guessed that they were the musketeers moving into better positions and keeping an eye out for any of Link's crew following them. Twice, an airman holding a musket stepped out of a side street and exchanged a greeting gesture with the men escorting them. He could see that North was not tempting any sort of mishaps. He began hoping that his crew was as cautious.

Their destination was a burned out husk of a mansion, and that, being the largest building on the island for years which Link had seen on quite a few occasions, was completely unrecognizable. What had once been three floors of town offices and personal living quarters for the rich island governor had been reduced to a two-story monument to combustion. Once white walls had been burned black. As they approached from the front, he saw that the left wing had completely collapsed while the main hall and the right wing were barely still standing. They were led into the main hall through the large gap in the front wall where a door had once been. With this, the group was surrounded by bare walls on either side. Behind the mangled remains of a large staircase at the back of the hall, there were the remains of the interior walls that divided the individual rooms behind the mansion.

And in front of them, just as Link and Leynne remembered seeing him on East Iron Island, was Captain North. He stood directly in front of the staircase with two men flanking him on either side. A fifth man, standing directly next to him, held Lilly from behind by her wrists. All but North had a flintlock pistol drawn, but no one had them raised.

The airmen escorting them came to a stop in the middle of the hall. Leynne stepped up on Link's right while Cale stood at Link's left. "Mark," Captain North called to the airman leading them, his voice grizzled from his advanced age. "Go see to their ship."

"Aye aye, Captain," the man at the front replied with a salute. He turned and walked around the trio and signaled the other two to follow him out.

"Captain Link," North said as he started limping toward them. "Shall we discuss your surrender?"

"He doesn't waste time," Leynne observed in a low voice.

"Just stay here," Link said.

Link started forward and walked until he met North halfway. When they stopped, North took a long moment to contemplate the young man scowling at him. Link was still quite unhappy with the situation, and unhappiness was all he intended to show North. While he only knew the man by reputation, that reputation told Link that his depression at the situation would only make North look down on him further. Link needed whatever strength he could manage to manipulate this negotiation to his advantage.

"I'll give you this, Captain," North finally told him. "You certainly _carry_ yourself like a Skyrider. Even if all you have to show for it is a dirty tunic." He paused as he seemed to realize something. "Much rather like another captain I know. But that's an entirely different matter. As I'm sure you're loath to admit, you're mine. The question is how you would like this to proceed."

Link could not find a smoother way to begin his argument, so he just said, "Captain North. The princess is a fake."

The eyebrow over North's good right eye rose. "Is that so?" he asked, intrigue tinting his voice.

"The real princess is a captive onboard an airship hiding in the Undying Storm," Link explained. "I don't know how, but the crew was able to send this fake princess to take her place."

"Have you any proof of this?"

Link glanced down at the ground in frustration. "No."

North crossed his arms. "Then you'll understand if I don't take your word for it."

"Captain, this has to stop. She and her crewmates are responsible for the Sky Lines disappearing. If you would ju—"

"The subject of the princess's right to you is no longer the subject of discussion, Captain. If I knew you better, _then_ I might entertain the possibility. As you stand now, you have no prerogative to the subject of conversation." Link found himself a little shocked. He did not think his only means of convincing North to release them would have been dismissed so quickly. "And since you're unwilling to begin this negotiation with any sort of initiative, I'll make a proposal. Your entire crew will be taken into custody and transported to Castle Island to stand trial beside you. Your show of good faith will see that young Lilly here will be taken back to Sagacity Island with my apologies."

Link could already feel his strength failing against desperation, but he managed to keep a scowl on his face. "You'd put my crew on trial, too?"

"They deserve their defense just as you."

Link shook his head. "You-you can't!"

"Can't I?"

"Link!" Leynne hollered. Link spun around in surprise. He found that both Leynne and Cale were looking up at something behind them.

To the trio's horror, they saw that someone had fired a red flare into the air.

Link immediately turned back to North. "You're attacking my _crew_!?" he cried out.

"My men have orders to take control of your ship," North replied, his expression unchanged from the emotionless rock he used for a face. "After all, they're just as guilty as you."

"They're _not_!" Link shouted at him. "They're not even from up here! They came from the _surface_!"

"The surface? No one's come up from the surface for _decades_."

Link glared at North. "Look, it doesn't matter _where_ they come from," he said in a more controlled tone. "You _can't_ pin all this on my crew. They wouldn't even _be_ here if I hadn't gotten them involved."

"Then you shouldn't have involved them." North made to turn.

"_I'm_ responsible!" Link shouted at him.

North glanced back at Link. "Indeed you are. What do you intend to do about it?"

"It's always been Skyrider tradition that the responsibility of the crew's actions has always been placed on the _captain_." Link turned and indicated Leynne and Cale. "Just _look_ at them! Do they even _look_ like proper airmen? I had to show them their duties in just a matter of _days_. They don't _know_ any better. They were just following _my_ orders."

"Are you willing to relinquish command to save them?"

Link bowed his head for a moment. Then he put on a determined scowl and looked North in the eye as he replied, "I am."

North turned back to Link and pondered Leynne and Cale for a moment. "I'll give you this, Captain. What you lack in experience, you seem to make up for in passion and loyalty. Call your second forward."

Link turned and gestured. "Leynne."

Both waited until Leynne stepped up beside Link. Then North said, "I'd ask why you'd allow yourself to be commanded by a younger person, but that would only be on a day when I'd be interested in an answer. Despite this fact, I expect you to be reasonable since the lives of your crew are in the balance."

"I can be reasonable," Leynne replied with hate coloring his voice. "I just question if _you_ can be trusted."

North allowed himself a half-grin for a brief moment as he told Link, "Well, he certainly _sounds_ like a second-in-command."

"I was told paranoia was on page one of the manual."

"Aye, that it is. Mister…?"

"Leynne."

"Mister Leynne. Your captain has made a valid argument for your case. I'm not in the habit of punishing crews for following the captain's orders. Nor do I really pleasure myself in taking the lives of women, which, as your friend Lilly has explained, comprises a good bit of your crew."

"I'd keep the sentiment to myself weh I you, Captain," Leynne told him. "They tend to take offense to misogyny."

"Who wouldn't?" North said with a shrug. "Here's a new proposal to you and your crew. We trade this young woman for your captain. Then you, Mister Leynne, take command, and my ship escorts you back to Might Island. There, you and your crew disembark, and we will scuttle your ship."

Leynne's scowl took on another depth. "You'd leave us stranded on Might Island?"

"If you prefer, you can remain _on_ the ship as we scuttle it. Knowing, of course, it's against your captain's wishes."

Leynne directed his scowl to Link as Link glanced up at him. "'Friend to the crew'," he told Link with a different understanding to turn the statement into one of dislike.

"The very same page, Mister Leynne," North told him. "Sometimes, a crew even needs to be saved from their _captain_."

"I'd like a copy of this manual," Leynne said. "Just so I can read up on the hypocrisy of the position befoh I find the need to _buhn_ it."

North's expression remained unchanged at Leynne's contempt as he asked, "Do you agree?"

"I don't agree _with_ it," Leynne said. He glanced at Link before adding, "But if that's what it's come to, I might as well save you the guilt of killing _all_ of us."

"Then return to your crewman," North told him. "And see if you can make him stop fidgeting; it's getting on my nerves."

"All the moh reason foh him to continue," Leynne said just before turning and walking back to Cale's side.

"Captain, I suggest you stand right here," North then told Link. Link turned back to find North returning to his men. He watched North draw the Captain's Saber, and he was surprised to realize that it was a signal for his men to take aim at him. North then spun around and called out, "Captain Link. Since you've decided to relinquish command of your vessel to spare your crew, I require a show of faith. Remove your tunic."

"What!?" Link cried out in shock.

"Remove your tunic," North repeated. "Now."

Link thought it was an unreasonable request until he remembered the significance behind the tunic. For a moment, he stood in place with his hands on his gun belt. Then he slowly undid the gun belt and carefully set it on the ground. Next was his regular belt, which he removed and dropped on top of the gun belt. Then he placed his hands on the collar of his tunic.

"Link…"

He froze in place at the sound of his name so clearly in his ear. This time, there was no doubt who he was hearing. Her voice sounded sad. Was she _watching_ him?

"Captain Link!" North shouted at him, his voice revealing anger.

Link knew what he wanted. But he realized that he could not do it. As desperate as he was to save Lilly and keep his crew from being executed beside him, he just could not do it. He needed the _Island Symphony_. He needed his _crew_. While there were people he could save from the fake princess now, there were _still_ people in danger. Princess Zelda was one of them. What was going to happen to her? What would happen to the _kingdom_ if Cunimincus and his crew were not stopped?

"Captain Link!" North snapped. "Take off the tunic, or my men will execute you _now_."

"Link!" Leynne shouted. "Now would be a _good_ time to tell us what's going on!"

What was going on? What was Link _doing_!? He was perfectly willing to give up his life to his crew. Why was he _hesitating_? With four pistols pointed at him, no less!? This was not a time to grow desperate! He had to get _out_ of this! He had to do _something_!

"Have it your way." Link's eyes grew wide as he saw North raise his saber into the air. Even without recognizing the gesture, Link knew what he was about to do. His heart started pulsing throughout his body. His limbs grew numb. He had to act or be killed. But his weapons were on the ship. His only chance, his flare gun, was on the ground next to him. In the time it would take for him to grab and load it, lead balls would already be flying at him. Even if he could fire the flare gun, he knew he should not; Lilly was still standing next to him. He needed another option, and he needed it in the next split-second it would take for North to signal his men to shoot him.

Then North let out a bark of anger as his back was bent backwards by an arm hooking around his neck. This sound caused his airmen to start and turn to see what was happening. Link stared in bewilderment when he realized that Layna, seeming to have popped up out of nowhere, was holding North's neck to her shoulder while she held one of her small blades to his throat. "Captain!" one of the airmen shouted. All three spun to turn their guns on Layna. The remaining one, standing to Link's far right, however—

"You sonova—" _Fiup!_ "Agh!"

—abandoned his attempt to shoot Link and dropped to the ground with an arrow in his right shoulder. Cussing under his breath, he writhed on the ground as pain from the arrow took his full attention.

"Jason, don't pull it out!" the airman nearest to him shouted.

"Hold your fire, you idiots!" North shouted at his men. "You're gonna hit _me_!"

"But Cap—"

"That's an _order_!" Then he shifted his head so he could look at Link. "So you set a trap, too?" Link stammered, unsure how he should react.

"This isn't a trap!" Link, Leynne, and Cale spun toward the entrance of the burned-out hall to find Dholit slowly strolling toward them. She had switched to what looked like one of Leynne's shirts, a button-down blue shirt with the sleeves torn off, and a pair of black trousers which only seemed to be held up by her waist. Link's whip was clipped to one of the belt loops, and her right hand was petting the head of the dead Rope as if anticipating using it. Her bright red hair had been tied into a single ponytail which sat high at the back of her head. As she stopped next to Leynne and Cale, she called out at him, "This is payback. Your men invaded the _Island Symphony_, and we ah _not_ pleased by this."

"Something tells me _you're_ the one not to show misogyny to," North called back.

"I wish you would," she replied. "My sistahs had to convince me to _not_ have you killed on sight."

"And my crew?"

"Injuahed, but not dead. A broken ahm heah, a gash across the neck theah. They won't bleed to death, not if you abide by _my_ conditions."

"Let me guess," North said as she approached. "Your captain, your crew, and the girl go free, and we leave you to sail away."

At this, Link saw Dholit break into a smile. It was not her usual show of delight. It was a venomous smile which caused a shiver to climb Link's spine. "You captains ah well-educated," she said as she stood by Link. "It almost makes me want to engage you in combat."

"You know we won't stop chasing you," North told her. "Once you try to leave, my men will be after you."

"Oh, I know. But you'll _have_ to stop foh a while. You see, those of youh men who ah injuahed ah hidden in the ruins around ouh ship. In addition, Layna, the lovely little killah holding youh throat, had to put the men you had guahding this place to sleep. And she doesn't like to leave them just lying around. And foh fuhtheh assurance…" She held a finger up to the left side of the mansion's interior. All available eyes looked up to find Biluf and Lwamm sitting atop the wall with a small crate between them.

And in Biluf's hand, an incredible length of fuse already burning its life away, was what looked suspiciously like a stick of explosive wrapped in a discarded ration pack.

"You're gonna blow us _up_!?" one of North's airmen shouted. As if confirmation was needed, Link, Leynne, and Cale all took the shout as a cue to take two steps backwards. Link even took a third step, knowing that he needed much more running distance if Biluf threw it right on top of North's men.

Dholit gave a delighted giggle, again causing Link to shiver. "Oh, only if I don't get what I demand," she told the airman. "Seeing as how I've made it explicit that you'll all _die_ in that eventuality, I question why you'h still holding Lilly."

Link heard North grumble something, and the airman holding Lilly released her. Lilly glanced at the airman for a moment. Then she ran toward Dholit. Link stepped forward to see Dholit draw a knife. "Hold up, Lilly," Dholit told her. Then she stepped behind Lilly and cut the ropes holding her wrists together. "You should probably show some gratitude to young Aihman Cale. While we considahed calling the captain on his bluff, he declahed that he would have no paht of it." Lilly looked over her shoulder at Dholit, who was wearing her whimsical smile again. Then she looked at Link, and he nodded his agreement. Both Dholit and Link watched as Lilly charged across the hall and wrapped her arms around Cale, whose response was a surprised cry.

"Ah, love," Dholit sighed. "How come _you_ nevah show me that soht of affection, Link?"

"Because you're _insane_?" Link replied, his surprise having faded into annoyance (as well as a lack of tact) because her usual demeanor had returned. He bent over and retrieved his belts from the ground.

"Oh, is that so much of a deal-killah?" she asked as he started putting the belts back on.

"Are you satisfied yet?" an airman shouted at them.

Link and Dholit turned around. "Not foh some time, really," she replied. "But let's make suah Twali ovah heah—" She pointed at the area of the wall immediately to Link's left, and he looked over to find Twali perched on top with an arrow nocked and ready to release. "—doesn't have to shoot anyone else. _All_ of you, put youh weapons on the ground." Hesitation floated among the airmen until Captain North threw his sword on the ground. Then, to avoid setting off their pistols, his airmen followed suit by crouching and placing their firearms down. "It's by My Captain's ohdahs that we don't kill you, but don't push us. A lot of youh men ah huht, Captain. You'd do best to have them seen to by a doctah."

"Any more unwelcome advice you'd like to give?" North asked.

"Yeah," Link replied, taking a step forward. "Go back to Castle Island. Ask the princess about the _Smiling Gunner_. Watch how she reacts."

"From one Skyrider to another?"

Link glared for a moment. "Didn't anyone ever wonder what happened to the _Island Sonata_ after it set off from Skyrider Port two months ago?"

"Lost in the Undying Storm from what I heard."

"That vessel was shot down over two months ago. I was its commander." North contemplated Link for a moment. So Link continued, "I took on a job delivering Princess Zelda to Forelight Island. I was formerly a general airman on the _Grand Sails_ under Captain Alfonzo. I served under him for four years."

"Yo—… You're one of _Alfonzo_'s boys?"

"He's the one who put me in for promotion. Ask him if you need to."

"I just might do that."

Link looked to Dholit. "Don't wohry," she told him. "The other three will keep us covered. Layna!"

"Did you _plan_ this?" Link whispered as he watched Layna release Captain North.

"Actually, we just put it togethah afteh Nohth's men tried to take the _Symphony_," she whispered back. She paused to watch Layna cautiously move toward them, Layna's eyes focused on North's airmen. "It wohked out quite well when we took a few things from youh footlockah."

"You're putting that stuff _back_," he told her.

"Aw, too bad," she said as they started walking back to where Leynne, Cale, and Lilly stood. "I rathah like the whip."

"_All_ of it." Link then looked forward to find Leynne staring at Cale and Lilly in clear irritation. Link had to angle his head to look past Lilly, and he found that she and Cale were locked in a very passionate kiss. Link began blushing madly, and he glanced over at Dholit when she made an odd clicking sound with her tongue. Dholit cast him her usual, mischievous grin. "Stop it."

"Ah we free?" Leynne asked.

"Only once we get back to the _Symphony_," Link said. "Cale, Lilly, we need to go."

They waited for a response. Then Leynne, upon noticing Cale's hand slowly sliding down Lilly's back, said in a louder voice, "Cale."

Cale and Lilly immediately separated from each other in surprise. "Y-yes, Leynne?" Cale asked.

"Save it foh when we ah _not_ in mohtal dangeh."

"Go, go," Link urged.

The group hustled toward the entrance, although Layna was gone from sight the last time Link turned to find her. They continued down the main road toward the _Island Symphony_ at a quick pace. Just out of sight of the mansion, they heard jogging and turned to find Lwamm and Biluf approaching. No words were exchanged between them and Dholit, so Link took this to mean that things were still going to plan, although he noticed that they were not carrying the crate or even the stick of explosive.

About a minute later, Twali was charging up the road at them. "Zhayf yiynwo'otak! 'Ak Xili'anu yiynwo'otak!" she cried as she approached. "Tabbuwun! Cayloxwan!"

"Uh oh…" Dholit uttered. She turned to Link and said, "They'h coming. _With_ theih guns."

"What's the plan _now_?" Leynne asked.

"Run," Dholit said.

"W-what?" Cale asked.

Link could hear more footsteps approaching quickly just as Twali dashed past the group. Alarmed, he shouted, "RUN!"

The entire group responded with a mad dash down the road. Almost at the same time, a few sharp cracks sounded from behind them. Link saw a small tuft of dust or two blow out from the nearby walls. Men were also calling out from behind. North's airmen were _definitely_ after them.

Link's need to keep with the group kept his boots from accelerating him. As much as he wanted to get away, he was not going to abandon them. Cale and Lilly were running hand in hand with _Lilly_ actually leading the way. Further on, Link realized that he himself, Lilly, and Twali were the only ones who were not slowing down, both Lilly and Twali having a significant lead on the group while Link actually had to slow so he would not run into Lwamm.

"Link!" Dholit managed between her ragged breathing. "Flah! Huhry!"

Link understood her meaning and pulled his flare gun. The sky had darkened enough that colors were difficult to make out, although their surroundings were still visible against the last remains of twilight. So he chose at random, loaded a shell into the gun, pulled back the hammer, and took aim behind him. Although he could not tell how close North's airmen were, he knew how blinding the flare would be and fired it back down the street. _FZZZZZZzzzzzz!_ Link immediately looked forward and picked up his pace a bit.

"No!" Dholit snapped at him. She had to pause for a moment. "Up! Signal!"

So he had not understood, and he tried not to be too annoyed with himself as he ejected the spent shell. But he figured out that she had intended for him to signal the _Island Symphony_, probably meant to warn whoever was left that they were coming with bad company behind them. Link had caught a glimpse of the flare and seen that it was red, so he chose another flare from the same area of his belt where that one had come from. It would be a fifty-fifty chance it was red or purple, either one meant to express a bad situation with only a difference in the degree of panic. He put the flare in and tried to fire it into the air, but his haste made him overlook pulling the hammer back. He corrected this and aimed above his head again. _FZZZZZzzzzzz!_ They were bathed in red light a second later, making the surroundings all the more visible.

Including them. Two more cracks sounded from behind as well as from somewhere in the ruins nearby. More of North's men were converging on their group, probably men that the Gelto had not found earlier. They must have seen Link's crew, although their shots appeared to have been wasted. Now they would have to either stop and reload and then try to catch up or join the other airmen already in the chase.

A green flare fired into the air from the _Island Symphony_. A signal, hopefully meaning that the ship was still under their control and _not_ that more of North's airmen just happen to get lucky with the safe signal. Twali picked up her speed (which amazed Link considering most of their group was now huffing until their throats started turning raw) and gained a significant lead on them.

When the ship came into view, Link saw that the moorings had been untied and the boarding plank cast aside. Instead, the _Island Symphony_ had been raised so that one of the cargo doors could be opened and set on the edge of the dock. Through the green light of the overhead flare, Link saw Lawrence and Harley suddenly duck against the bulwark with a pair of muskets aimed into the ruins. _Bak! Bak!_ Both muskets fired, eliciting surprised shouting from behind the fleeing crew. Actually hitting anyone would be a surprise in this low light, but Lawrence and Harley, without any shooting practice to begin with, were only trying to startle their pursuers.

Twali was the first to jump onto the ship and spun with an arrow at the ready. She loosed it into the darkness just as Lilly and Cale hopped aboard. Layna flew out of the side and dove into the door behind them. Dubbl appeared from one side of the hull and started hollering something in Geltoan, although the sound of Link's heart pounding in his ears drowned her out. Leynne and Biluf were the next aboard, and Leynne tripped over his own feet and experienced a tumble deep into the hold.

Lwamm, Dholit, and Link were the last ones on. Link grabbed onto one of the support ropes at one end of the door and hollered up at Lawrence and Harley as loud as he could manage, "Raise the ship! Raise it!"

"Gold!" Harley shouted. "Up! Up!"

Both Link and Twali staggered when they felt the ship jerk as it rose, and Lwamm quickly grabbed one of Twali's biceps to keep her from falling overboard. Link turned back and looked over the edge. "Back! Back!" he suddenly declared as two more gunshots rang out. Fortunately, most ship hulls were too thick for pistol rounds. Still, Lwamm, Twali, and he moved off the door, and Dubbl began to close it.

Link then immediately ducked through his crew and ran up the steps as fast as possible. When he reached the weather deck, he found Lawrence and Harley jogging toward him. He turned and jogged over to the forecastle. "Gold!" Link hollered up at him.

"A'oy, Cap'n!" Gold greeted him with a large grin. "Good tae see yeh still livin'!"

Link nodded and gave himself a moment to remember directions. "Turn us due west!" he ordered. "We need to get away from this island!"

"Due west, aye!" Gold replied as he double-checked the control panel. Then he engaged the propeller and turned the wheel to angle the ship to starboard when the propeller began to drive them.

Link sighed as he felt the ship began to move in the desired direction, relief flooding him. Then, remembering his crew below, he ran back to the stairs and descended back into the hold.

He found his crew in various states of relief. Leynne was collapsed on the deck with his arms and legs sprawled out, his rising and falling chest indicating that he still lived. Cale and Lilly were back to making out, although Lilly had let Cale settle against the hull before they started kissing again. Layna sat cross-legged on the deck with her eyes closed, her face a frustrated visage as she tried to control her breathing. Biluf looked like she was trying to fall asleep on the deck, lying on her stomach and her arms folded under her chin as a pillow. Link was concerned about her until she rolled over and stared at the deckhead. Lwamm and Twali were sitting against the door, holding each other's hand while they both tried to calm themselves. Dholit had dropped to her knees near them, clutching her chest as she tried to catch her breath. Dubbl stood behind her, giving her back a sympathetic rub. Lawrence and Harley, having looked in on them, decided to return up to the weather deck. Link himself was leaning on the bulkhead surrounding the stairs, still breathing a little hard but much more recovered compared to most of his crew.

He sighed and addressed them all. "Just so you know, it was against my orders that you came and rescued us," he said. His words caught everyone's attention, although Leynne could not raise his head to look at him. "While no captain likes his crew defying orders… thanks. Thanks for turning a bad situation around for us _all_."

"If My Captain wants to protect us," Dholit said, although her voice was a little hoarse, "we will protect My Captain."

"All the same," Cale spoke up, having finally caught his breath, "let's _nevah_ do that again." This drew a tired giggle from Lilly.

"Whew!" Twali declared. "_Nwaki_ 'ak 'igazh 'inu 'axalokwya."

"Kowi," Lwamm said, "'inan nayx midhujak sazayxwiyk sunway."

"'_Aydhom_," Dubbl told her.

"Kowi, 'inan nayx midhujak saza'dhiym sunway," Lwamm corrected herself.

Twali gave a weak laugh. "'Inu thasofak," she told Lwamm, using their entwined fingers to bump Lwamm's thigh. "'Inu sokwaylya'ak xiban dha' iddaf."

"Nwaki xunwlya'ak," Biluf said. "'Itab 'inu sacanilak. 'Inax, Layna?" Layna did not reply, still sitting with now a calm look on her face. "Layna?" Biluf held up one hand and tapped Layna on the shoulder. Layna fell to one side and remained on the deck. Link jerked with alarm at the sight, but he could still see her chest moving as she breathed. Biluf, having come to the same conclusion as him, said in a surprised tone, "So-soymafolwak!"

Link gave Layna a soft smile. Then he told them, "All of you, get some sleep. I'll see if the engine room crew will fill in for you for tonight."

No one seemed to be in the mood to argue as, one by one, they picked themselves off the deck and wandered either down the stairs (Leynne and Dubbl) or into the berth deck to Link's left (which was the rest of the crew, including Lilly). After everyone was asleep, Link found Lawrence and Harley and asked them if they would mind keeping watch with Link so that everyone else could get some decent rest. They agreed, if only because they were too wide awake from the excitement they had faced that night.

…

~~I've got the best crew ever!


	84. We Built This City On Something Else

Chapter 84: We Built This City On… Something Else

…

~~Day 67 (Command, Day 30)

~~After almost a day moving west, I ordered the Island Symphony to turn south for Might Island again. It'll probably be another day and a half before we get back to the island, but, this time, we have the supplies to handle the wait. In the meantime, we're sailing high so that we might see the Moon's Shadow coming for us before they can catch us.

~~I've told Lilly that, if all goes right in the next few days, we'll have her back on Sagacity Island while we buy time for Leynne to produce some funds. She's asked us if there's something she can do while she's aboard. Unfortunately, I couldn't think of anything. But then she pointed out that she might be able to discover where the King and Queen of Hyrule are or may have gone. So we called Leynne in, and he agreed to take her with him to Might Island. We all reasoned that, if Leynne and Lilly were together, they could watch each other's back.

~~Irleen's been mad at me for most of the morning while I was trying to nap. I know I nearly let her down, and I want to set things up so Captain North can't try this whole situation again. So, after we're through with Might Island, I'm going to ask Lilly to become part of my crew, if only temporarily until we can do something about the Skyriders chasing us. If North expects us to take her right back to Sagacity Island and run into whoever he might've sent over there, I intend to disappoint him. As long as we were last seen moving west, he should be under the impression that that's where we're going.

…

~~Day 68 (Command, Day 31)

~~We've changed direction east so we can return to Might Island. Dholit reminded me that, with so many of his airmen injured thanks to Layna ambushing them as well as the deck crew beating the stuffing out of the boarding party, North will probably be looking for a clinic on Might Island. I tend to agree, especially since a surgeon stationed on an airship is generally unable to take care of more than four men at the same time. The wind has been with us, so we're probably looking at maybe less than a full day of sailing before we sight the island again. Once we have the island in sight, we'll drop below the island and come up on the north side so we can dock where I hope the Moon's Shadow won't dock. I'll be looking at the ships' banners; as far as I've seen, the Skyriders are the only ones who use black banners. From there, finding an opening to the technoworks is going to be interesting. Irleen told me that, while each island is only controlled from one point, there may be two or three different sections in the technoworks. Which means we probably got lucky with Sagacity Island. Might Island, with its mountains and potential for many different places to have the entrance, we need a way to find the right one.

…

"Dubbl, you have the ship. Remember the plan."

Dubbl gave Link a salute. "Yes, Kyabtin." Link dismissed the salute.

"But! My Captain!" Link glanced across the deck just as Dholit emerged from below. He found himself surprised by the fact that her stomach bulged underneath her black slacks and faded-green shirt (clothing which he had never seen before). "My Captain, don't go!" she pleaded with a tone befitting a horrible actress, jogging toward them with her hands held up in a fragile manner. "Please, think of ouh child!"

Link and Leynne stared at her in blatant irritation, expressing their ire for pulling yet another stunt of sheer absurdity and utter pointlessness. Link was trying to interpret this latest act as her means of helping lift the cloud of tension that had engulfed the crew since they had fled Tabletop Island, but her wailing about being pregnant was going to catch attention in a port as small as the northern docks of Might Island. Attention that Link hoped to avoid at all cost (which, at this point, might have needed to include tying Dholit up and leaving her belowdecks; he gave it a moment of honest consideration until he realized that she might actually _enjoy_ it). Dubbl's reaction was complete shock, a mixture of surprise by Dholit's maniacal behavior and panic by the fact that her fellow Gelto and crewmate was somehow spontaneously pregnant. Lilly, leaning aside to get a better look, was losing in her struggle to hold back her laughter at the sight, especially when it seemed to put off those around her.

Irleen, hovering over Link's head, first spoke in response after Dholit stopped to lean against the bulwark near them. "That's not very damn funny," she said in a level and snappy tone.

"Dholit, do we really have time foh this?" Leynne asked.

"Well, in lieu of otheh ohdahs," Dholit explained, her expression returning to her usual smirk, "I find being entahtainment to be a useful outlet foh my imagination."

"Really?" Irleen asked. "Because you're a _horrible_ actress."

"Irleen," Link said, trying not to bring his tone too high.

Dholit huffed, although the offense she appeared to have taken might have just been as exaggerated as her outburst. She tugged the front of her shirt out from the slacks' waistband. "Then I shall endeavoh to improve while My Captain is gone."

"Is that my pillow?" Leynne asked after Dholit removed the object she had hidden under the shirt.

"Could be," she answered as she pressed the pillow to the side of her face. She wore an expression of bliss for a moment, and then she asked, "Would you like it back?"

"Not in the least," Leynne replied. "I'll just buy anotheh one."

"Dholit…" Link groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I only wanted to wish you well," she told him, hands raised in innocence. "I just… couldn't resist."

"_Try_," Leynne told her.

"Except you," she said, pointing at Leynne. "I wish you to fall into a hole and not come back out." Leynne responded with an impatient sound and started down the gangplank.

Link turned to follow him and stopped when he saw a bright grin on Lilly's face. "What are you smiling about?" he asked her in perhaps more annoyance than he intended to show.

"I like this crew," she said, bouncing on her feet. "It's like a big family."

"Maybe," Irleen said, "but a couple of the kids could use a good _spanking_."

"I volunteah," Dholit immediately said, one hand raised in the air.

"Oh, shut up."

"Get the ship moving as soon as I'm ashore," Link told Dubbl. "We might be able to return to the docks here, but don't count on it. Keep all eyes open."

"Yes, Kyabtin," she replied.

"Dholit…" He paused, one hand raised and clenched as he looked for an appropriate command. "Don't drive the rest of the crew nuts."

"Aye aye, My Captain," Dholit answered with a less bubbly tone. Link then indicated the plank to Lilly, and both descended with Irleen floating above their heads.

The port on the north side of Might Island looked like those of the south side, except most of the buildings were built much closer together. No one painted murals on the warehouses in this area. Instead, some warehouses had a smaller second story built above, usually dedicated living quarters for an owner's family or rented out as apartments. Despite Link's concerns, at the western end of the port, there was not nearly enough foot traffic to provide caution against. A few rival airmen here and there mingling with the locals seemed more inclined to ignore Link than anything else. Of course, Link had probably made himself a little more conspicuous by wearing the same brown robes he had worn on East Iron Island, but he had reasoned that people were a lot less likely to remember a blond kid wandering around in rags than a blond kid wearing a green tunic with a number of weapons attached to him. The Lokomo Sword stood out either way, making Link look as if his left shoulder began directly behind his ear. But if anyone was going to catch attention, it was most likely to be Leynne. Despite giving up his nicer clothes for a plain, blue shirt and brown cargo trousers, he had decided to make a show of protection by having one of the _Moon's Shadow_'s stolen muskets strapped to the outside of his grey backpack. Naturally, they did not have any means of loading the weapon, so Leynne had already decided that, if anything, it would make a decent club.

Of course, if _Layna_ was around, anyone noticing them was just as likely to disappear for the rest of the day.

When they came to the central plaza dividing the port in half, Link was amazed to find that it was just as congested and unkempt as the southern port. Even the rows between offices and warehouses had been stuffed with tents and lean-tos to provide shelters for what appeared to be a whole array of needs. Some of them looked like family homes with children playing as if in front of their own houses. Others sported various types of signage. Barely any effort had been made to leave walking space in the plaza itself. People were using the central fountain as a source of clean water. And Link could not help noticing that a couple of the docks had been repurposed with outhouses and reinforced with overhead structures and sailing rigging. He stopped just outside the thickest cluster of tents as he pondered their surroundings.

This attracted Leynne and Lilly's attention, and they stopped a couple steps later. "What is it?" Leynne asked, giving Link a concerned look.

Link shook his head. "I don't know, I just don't like this," he replied.

"Well, we _are_ wandering around an island while being chased by a captain who is _probably_ a little angry with us," Irleen said as she dropped in front of him.

"No, it's not that," Link told her. He glanced between Lilly and Leynne for a moment. "Don't you think it's odd how cluttered it is around here for a large island?"

"I come from the suhface, Link," Leynne replied. "The fact that I'm on an island floating in the _sky_ is pretty odd."

"I never _seen_ this island before," Lilly pointed out. "But it _does_ look weird."

"I noticed it was the same way when we docked on the other side a few days ago," Link continued. "The city on this island _should_ have enough space for all the people who live on it; there are entire _regions_ of this island which haven't been built on yet."

Leynne nodded his reasoning. "So why would the local population push out into the pohts?" he said in an interpretation of the question Link was attempting to pose.

"Right."

"You feel the peoples out here got somethin'na do with recent events," Lilly concluded.

"I suppose it isn't unreasonable," Leynne said as he looked at the nearby tents. "Do the islands heh have any local publications? Any media?"

"Should be newspapers," Lilly said. "Anyone see a newsstand?"

"Ihleen?" Leynne asked.

"Right, like _I_ know what a newsstand looks like," Irleen replied in a touchy voice.

"Easy, Irleen," Link said. "It was just a thought. Let's try moving down the main road here." He indicated the wider space between the buildings looming over the tents. "Even if we _can't_ find a newsstand, we just might find out what's going on further in."

"Wait a moment, Link," Leynne said, holding up a hand as Link turned. "We might want to avoid the main road. If Captain Nohth is heh, we should take the _side_ streets to avoid meeting any of his crew. _Especially_ now that he knows what we look like."

"Wait, do _either_ of ya know how'a navigate around here?" Lilly asked.

Leynne pointed one hand as he replied, "Nohth. South. And we each have a compass."

She gave him a sarcastic smile. "Why don't we use a side street just back that way?" she said, pointing back the direction they had come. "One that _isn't_ full of peoples?"

It seemed like a reasonable idea, especially since Lilly seemed more at-home in the streets than either of them. She found them a side road which did not have as many tents blocking the way, and they progressed south toward the middle of the island. The buildings grew from three to four stories, and the street they took grew a little narrower. Foot traffic was lighter, and all four strangers noticed that most people appeared to be in a hurry. Link waited to see if any of the buildings had been abandoned, thinking it might be a sufficient clue to matters on the island.

He did not get the opportunity when Lilly stopped them in the middle of the road with a call of, "Wait a moment, you guys." They stopped and watched her jog for another side street of decent size. She stopped at newsstand sitting in a spot that made it difficult to notice from the direction they were moving, hidden around a corner of a street angled slightly toward the north. She talked with the young man sitting behind the stand. All three became intrigued when she put a hand over her mouth in a show of surprise. Then the young man ducked beneath the stand and produced a newspaper. No money switched hands as he gave Lilly the paper, and she folded it under one arm and jogged back to them.

"Monsters," she said as she offered Leynne the newspaper.

"Monsters?" Link asked while Irleen watched Leynne unfold the paper.

Lilly nodded. "The peoples here feel that's what they gotta been runnin' inna."

"Look at that," Leynne murmured to himself. He shared a glance with Link before tilting the paper to show Link. "Front page."

"How about _reading_ it?" Irleen said.

Link hissed at her to be silent just before Leynne cleared his throat. "'—Poht authority has agreed today to make available all space possible foh the residents and business ownehs of the central paht of Might Island wishing to leave the island but being unable to do so immediately.

"'—Dockmasteh Baht has already asked foh any vessel willing to make the two-week jouhney to Sagacity, Timbeh, oh West Ihn Island to make space on theih vessels foh the thousands of residents recently tehrorized out of theih homes. A suggestion to remove some residents to Tabletop Island has also been made by the city council, although most speculation indicates that, due to the recent ahrest of pirate activity on the island as well as the Skyridehs' evacuation and destruction of the island, the city council will vote against the suggestion in open chambehs in the days to come.'"

"Wait, the _Skyriders_ destroyed Tabletop Island?" Link asked, tilting the paper toward him again.

"The Skyriders gotta been searching for pirates this whole time," Lilly explained. "I didn't meanna actually _ask_ it, but Captain North told me that he and his crew evacuated the innocent populationna Might Island and torched Tabletop. He said the _mayor_ of Tabletop was even in on the pirate attacks."

There was a significant pause in their chatter before Irleen, in a flat voice, remarked, "Yikes."

Link shook his head. "That… that can't be," he said. "The Skyriders have _never_ gone after pirates. Their first duty is to fellow ships."

Lilly shrugged. "Thin's changed, Captain."

Link wrinkled his nose. Then he told Leynne, "Keep on reading."

"'—This call foh evacuation of the central pahts of the island has come about due to recent encountehs with mysterious, night-dwelling monstehs roaming the area. Ten people have been confihmed dead while fifteen othehs have gone missing and ah cuhrently presumed dead. Among those missing is the son of Might Island's assistant govehnoh Bahrett.

"'—Both the dockmasteh and the city council have publically advised the population to avoid the central areas of Might Island during the houhs of eight o'clock in the evening to five o'clock the next day. An official request foh presence of the Knights of Hyrule is to be dispatched tomohrow mohning.

"'—In addition to attacks on people, locals to the dangerous areas have noticed that a numbeh of local grocehs and butcheh shops have been vandalized. An estimated twenty-five thousand rupees in meat goods have been repohted stolen to the community leadehs of the central areas, most believed to have been in connection to the attacks. As these vandals have elected to break into these establishments, it is recommended that anyone still owning a grocery stoh oh butchery in the central area make ahrangements to have theih goods moved to a safeh location.'"

Leynne paused to search through the pages. When he came upon a continuation of the story, he took a moment to skim it. "This is interesting. '—In the case of attacks on locals, the fihst attack is believed to coincide with the disappearance of the Sky Lines around Might Island, an event which had been preceded by an eahthquake the likes of which have neveh been encountehed befoh. All three events took place roughly three weeks ago, and the city council has expressed concehn that these events ah somehow related to each otheh.'"

"_Three_ weeks ago?" Link asked. "That can't be right; the Sky Lines have been missing for _much_ longer than that."

"It's an old paper, Captain," Lilly said. "That's why I got it for free. It dates back over a month ago, so the events match."

"I thought you said the creatuhs you encountehed on Sagacity weh all… what did you call them? Stalahmohs?" Leynne said. "From what I'd gathehed, they wehn't interested in the local population."

"They wouldn't be unless they needed to _eat_," Irleen said. "This sounds like something else. Keeping in mind that it's not like Cunimincus employed _just_ Stalarmors."

"_Eat_!?" Lilly declared. Then she glanced around quickly to see if anyone else had heard her. Her voice dropped to a hushed panic as she asked, "You mean peoples are being _eaten_ here?"

"Why else would Cunimincus' crew mess with Hylians?" Irleen said. "And when the local Hylians evacuated the area they were hunting, they started feeding on the meat and other food that's been left behind."

"Cunimincus and his crew have been trapped in the Undying Storm for _hundreds_ of years," Link pointed out. "How have they survived without eating their own _crew_?"

"I'm sure I said it before somewhere," Irleen said. "When the Sorians before sealed Cunimincus inside, they sealed him against _time itself_. No need to eat, no need to sleep, no need to… to _poo_…"

Link then remembered something from one of the dreams that he thought Zelda might have taken over. What had it been? She had not felt hunger or fatigue, she merely existed? If that was it, then maybe the same had been true for Cunimincus and his crew. And, once they were outside the storm, they _had_ to eat. The Stalarmors probably had not had that problem, being dead in the first place. He imagined how it might have felt not needing to eat for such a long time and then spontaneously requiring food again, and this caused him to miss what Leynne had said next.

"Look, that's how the legend goes," Irleen snapped at him in a loud voice. "I don't care how _unreasonable_ it sounds. Magic _doesn't_ reason at _all_!"

"Okay, okay," Link said with a tone intended to sooth her. "Just calm down. Irleen is our expert on this, so we should listen to what she has to say about it."

"I don't need _anyone_ to defend me," she told him.

"Just—Just take it easy, Irleen," Link said. "We believe you on the matter. The question is what we do now. What could be out here?"

"I don't know," Irleen admitted, her voice lower in intensity. "I would have to see it to tell you what it is."

"But theh's no doubt that, wheh Cunimincus' crew is, the entrance to the technowohks is bound to be neahby," Leynne reasoned.

"Yeah, maybe," she said. "It would make sense. Cunimincus' crew would want to stay close to the technoworks' control room. We know they found it because the Sky Lines are gone."

"You would just have to follow them back to the technowohks," Leynne said.

Link put on a thoughtful frown. "It's risky, but it also sounds like a good lead. Irleen and I will go to the central part of the island and look for the technoworks. Leynne, Lilly, you should see if you can track down whatever you need to get us some funds. We don't know how long we'll be gone, but, if we don't find the technoworks, we'll meet up at the plaza on the north side. The fountain would be the best place. If we aren't there by… I don't know, maybe midnight, just see if you can find a place to stay and continue on tomorrow morning."

"And, from theh, stick to the original plan," Leynne concluded. "Right?"

Link nodded. "Good luck."

"You, too," Lilly said.

…

Link and Irleen continued toward the central area of the island, where the buildings numbered at least seven stories in height. As he had expected, the streets were mostly abandoned. Carts ferrying people and possibly goods drove toward the northern docks, and Link took them to be people moving things from the area. After a few hours, the streets were completely empty, giving the buildings surrounding him a haunted feeling as he looked around. He eventually happened upon grocery stores and butcheries which had had their doors demolished and their store-front windows smashed to pieces. Debris covered the road, bones (which he hoped were cow or moink) and trash giving Link the feeling that he did not want to be here. But it _was_ here that he decided to remove his robe so that he had a decent chance of reaching for his sword in case of trouble, rolling his rags and tucking them under his right arm so he could drop them at a moment's notice.

Nothing appeared, and Link found from a clock in a nearby grocery store that it was still a couple of hours before eight o'clock, the time in which these monsters were supposed to appear. So he explored the grocery store. He was mildly surprised to see that the once-fresh fruits and vegetables had been left to rot by both the monsters and the store owner. The meat, however, had been partially ransacked. Two large bodies of beef had been left hanging on a rack in the back of the store, and paper-wrapped cuts of salted moink had yet to be disturbed from their place on the shelves. The almost bare ribs littering the floor indicated that this store had been found, and Link decided to wait here, sure that one of these creatures would be likely to show up to finish off at least the beef that had been left in the open. So Link found the stairs and decided to find a higher vantage point. The second floor turned out to be an office. The third floor was some kind of den or lounge with couches and large, bag-like cushions strewn all over the floor. One couch sat under the window, and Link found that, lying in it, he had a good view of the street below while not being immediately noticeable unless someone decided to look up. So, after deciding to relieve the destroyed store of a bag of nuts, he and Irleen waited in the lounge for the two hours they needed.

After Link finished the nuts, he allowed his mind to wander. He eventually came to ponder Irleen's behavior lately. He realized that she had not spoken much with him since Link decided to surrender to North on Tabletop Island. And he had noticed that most of her speech today had been riddled with sarcasm and bitterness the likes of which he and Line would share with each other when they were mad at one another. His eyes wandered to her sitting on one of the bag-chairs near his feet.

"You're mad at me," Link said. "Aren't you?"

Through almost an hour of quiet and patient waiting, Irleen had been lost in her own thoughts. So her initial response was, in a confused voice, "What?" Link did not respond, but she immediately caught on to his meaning. "Oh. Yeah. Maybe." Then she sighed. "I don't know, Link."

"I know I promised to take you home," he said. "And I'm sorry I almost didn't."

"No," she said immediately. "Don't be, Link." She sighed again and lifted away from the chair. "Link, you and I've been together for over two months now, right?"

Link nodded. "Yeah, something like that."

"Well, as much as I want to get home… I think I should've known that something like that might happen. I'd like to think we know each other well enough. And I should know that you'd risk your life for someone you barely even know. I mean… well, look at _me_! We only met, what, a _week_ before I found you again? And you agreed to find a way to get back up to the sky for _my_ sake when you could have easily made a living with Meilont. Who but _you_ would do that? I should know that you would risk your life to save Lilly. I ju—… Yeah, I was angry. I don't know if it was at you or just everything.

"I think a part of me wanted you to leave Lilly behind. I wanted you to call North's bluff and continue on to the technoworks here. I'm… not sure if I understood everything that was going on, but I didn't want you to stop. I guess I was just being selfish.

"These past few days… I don't know. I thought you made a stupid decision to just drop everything and surrender. It's like you gave up. You didn't even _try_ to think of a plan."

"I know," he said. "At the time… I didn't know what to do. I guess I sort of decided to just surrender myself, maybe see if I can talk Captain North out of arresting me. It didn't work, really. But maybe we'll see, now that he at least knows _part_ of my story. We'll just have to see how much he believes."

"I've been so angry with you," she said, "I don't think I heard how you got back to the ship."

Link allowed himself a half-grin. "That was Dholit and the Gelto. I guess North's men were going to secure the ship, and the Gelto attacked them. Then they showed up at the meeting and… you know, I think they bluffed _North_. I mean, I don't doubt Layna would've slit his throat, but it looked like Biluf didn't actually explosives with her. She had a box, but I didn't see it later, and nothing really exploded."

"Sounds like a bluff."

"Then we had to run back to the ship. I guess North was trying to capture us before he had to spend time finding all the airmen the Gelto knocked out and hid. Guns firing around us, men chasing us… I don't think _any_ of us had ever run like that before. You know, in those last moments, I think North was trying to break me."

"_Break_ you? You mean mentally? How?"

Link tugged on the front of his tunic. "He… wanted me to take this off. As a show of faith. But… I just _couldn't_. I think, in those last moments before the Gelto showed up… I guess I just decided not to do it anymore. I got lucky again. If the Gelto hadn't shown up, I'd've probably been shot. I guess we _both_ have the Gelto to thank."

Irleen gave a half-hearted laugh. "Maybe. But I _still_ don't want to know where you found Dholit."

…

_Tunk._

The sound jarred Link out of his nap. It sounded close, and he tried to look around the dark room for the source. Then he glanced out the window.

He immediately snapped to full awareness and slid out of sight of the window. "Irleen," he whispered at the glowing ball on bag-chair near him as he hunched down behind the couch. "Irleen, wake up."

"Huh-blah?" Irleen replied.

"Wake up," Link repeated. "C'mon, they're here."

"Who's here?"

"Cunimincus' crew."

In the next second, Irleen jumped into the air and shook from side to side, her motion creating an audible ring like a small bell. "Oh, crap," she declared.

"Shh," Link hissed at her, one finger over his mouth for emphasis. Irleen replied by ducking low to the floor. Link then stood up on the couch and peered past the side of the window at the street below.

Through the purple darkness of shadows cast by the evening sun, Link could see movement on the street. He was not sure what to make of it; his first glance had been quick and confusing even as he had snapped to complete consciousness. His second glance was not any better. At best, he could make out unusually long, hunched-over forms with definite sight of a tail. There were three of them in the road, the closest one also appearing to be particularly larger. The other two further down the road looked like they dragged some kind of wooden sled already sporting a small mound of stolen meat.

"Lizalfos," Irleen hissed. Link turned to find her peeking out the window from the opposite corner from him. "No wonder meat's been disappearing so much. These things could clear a _village_ and still be hungry. This big one here is a Dinolfos. Their hides are tough. Both are hard to sneak up on; they've got a better range of sight than either of us."

"Well, we need to follow it," he pointed out. "Ideas?"

"We should probably wait until they start moving back to the technoworks," she told him. "The Lizalfos are nasty to deal with. Big, strong… they even breathe fire."

"And they use it to fire their guns," Link said.

Irleen stared at him for a moment. "Yeah," she said. "How did you know that?"

"I-I'm not sure," Link said. "I thought I heard it somewhere before. I don't know who from."

"Well, you're right," she continued. "They carry pistols."

Link nodded. "Like when we found the _Horizon's Eye_. There were holes in the deck. Bullet holes."

"Keep quiet," Irleen said. "We'll wait until it takes the stuff downstairs and starts to leave. We'll really need to be careful; they're supposed to get pretty vicious if they don't like you."

Link nodded and waited by the window until the Dinolfos below stepped into the grocery store. The vacant second floor made it difficult for Link to hear any sound beneath him, so he just waited some more. At one point, he looked at the nearby rooftops for Layna, wondering if she was the one who had woke him up by throwing something at the window. Irleen ducked out of sight so that her glow would not give them away as light continued to fade. Then, he began to worry, especially since he realized that he had left the door to the stairwell open. The Dinolfos was taking longer than expected, and Link moved to the other side of the lounge with his sword drawn.

"Link," Irleen whispered. "Link, it's leaving."

Link crossed the lounge again and peered outside. The Dinolfos had placed one of the carcasses on its back and was walking down the street back to its companions, who had further added to the sled. "C'mon," Link told her.

He hurried downstairs as quietly as possible. The Dinolfos had probably taken its time because it had been snacking on the packages of moink, their wrappings left all over the floor. He carefully moved around them and slid up to the broken window. The Dinolfos was a couple blocks away, its back completely hidden by the cow carcass. Link waited until it rejoined its companions so that none of them would spot him moving down the street. When they were close enough together, Link thought he heard them talking to each other. The grunts and the growls almost sounded like actual language.

So he asked, "What's that sound their making? It sounds like words."

"Esmond," Irleen replied.

"Esmond?"

"It's the language Cunimincus uses on his ship. I'm sure you realize how difficult it is to order people around when they don't even speak the same language as you."

"Oh." He peered around the corner again and saw that they were on the move south. The sled scraped heavily against the flat stone of the road, making it ideal for Link to follow without being heard.

Link ducked out of the grocery store and followed the creatures by quickly running from building to building and keeping out of sight for as much as he could. When they took a right turn, he immediately dove into the next street and crossed to another street paralleling the first road. He thought he might have lost them doing this, but he heard the sled scraping farther down and hid behind a building just as they stepped into view again. Fearing he might lose them again, he chanced moving closer. Then he panicked when they took another right turn and ducked behind a streetlamp since it was the closest hiding place he could reach. To his relief, he had not exposed himself and dashed for the next crossroad to catch up.

"Link, wait!" Irleen called out as Link was halfway down the road. He stopped and turned back to find her hovering near the entrance of an alley. "Over here! Look!"

Concerned, Link drew his sword and jogged back to the mouth of the alley. He stepped up to the nearby wall and peered around as he had been doing. He saw what Irleen was referring to. The Lizalfos had turned into the alley farther down from him. He waited a moment to see if they would be turning in a moment onto the next street.

Instead, they descended. It was a sight that surprised Link, not having expected them to spontaneously disappear into the ground. Link was unsure of the structure underneath the city, but he reminded himself of the secret tunnel under Hyrule Castle. There must have been a similar tunnel up ahead, probably something that led to the technoworks. After giving Irleen a signal to follow, he replaced his sword and jogged down the alley.

As he got closer, he found that one of the rough granite slabs which served as the level surface inside the alley had been lifted out of the ground. Then, he found himself stopping at the top of a gentle slope of bare rock descending underneath the alley. The slab above the opening had been partially smashed apart before it had been lifted, and its fragments littered the slope. A pair of trashcans had been jammed into either side of the slab to keep it from closing. From where he stood, Link could not see any light from inside.

"This must be it," Irleen said. "Not quite what I was expecting. I guess the residents here just built over the technoworks' entrance without even _knowing_ what they were covering."

"And the Lizalfos found it anyway," Link said. "Think they have a Sorian with them?"

"If they do, he's probably really sick. A Sorian can't live on meat like them."

Link nodded and made to turn as he called out, "Lay—yikes!" He jumped and nearly slipped on the edge of the slope when he found Layna already standing behind him. Annoyed, he sighed and said, "I really, _really_ wish you wouldn't do that."

Layna tilted her head in confusion. "Kyabtin?"

Link indicated the slope in front of them. "Let's go." Layna gave a sharp nod and started down.


	85. The Might Technoworks

Chapter 85: The Might Technoworks

…

It was only a few seconds after emerging from the dark tunnel into the light of the technoworks that Link could tell that this experience was going to be quite different from his adventure on Sagacity Island. The primary indicator was the smell. Whatever the Lizalfos and Dinolfos were doing down here, it left a musty smell beginning right where the tunnel ended and the familiar yellow-orange of the technoworks began. The tunnel seemed to travel in a regular slope for a while, leading Link to believe that they may have actually ended up on the south side of the island. When he looked back up, the faint light of the tunnel's exit had disappeared in the distance and darkness of night. He had been afraid of getting caught by a Lizalfos trailing behind them, but their way had been uninterrupted. The only sounds Link had heard were his boots scraping rock as well as Irleen's wings gently stroking the air; Layna, despite leading just in front of him, seemed completely incapable of making any noise. He suspected that it was another facet of whatever kind of training she had received.

The first part of the technoworks they encountered was a corridor angled just a bit more downward compared to the tunnel. The tiles on the floor and ceiling were arranged in a checker pattern just like those in the other technoworks. Alongside the familiar square-spiral design, the opposing tiles sported jagged patterns as if they had been smashed. Interestingly, though, the cracks on these tiles seemed to continue to the next tiles in the pattern, and Link found that, if he angled his sight closer to the floor, he could see the cracks fan out from a central point just in front of where the corridor began. The walls were square tiles which spanned the height of the corridor, each one sporting a set of four, debossed triangles forming a square with an X at the center. Link would have a nice opinion of the design if it had not been for all of the dirt that had been tracked in from the tunnel. Even a little more worrying, Link could make out furrows where the creatures' sled had passed, the technoworks sporting two lines of red-orange pulsing where it had been injured.

Layna ventured forward first, and Link followed with Irleen hovering over his head. She moved cautiously, and Link tried not to make much noise as he stepped. When she reached the level landing at the end, she held up a hand to stop Link as she peered around the corner to the left. Then she waved. Link followed her around to find that the corner was actually quite slim, and there was another downward corridor on the other side of the wall.

Even more interesting was the doorway about halfway down. Layna made the same motions of stopping and peering around the corner while Link looked further down the corridor. But then she shifted to the other side of the doorway and invited Link to look inside.

Link recognized the room as a local dormitory. The walls had square-shaped holes both across from the doorway and on either side. In contrast to the dormitory on Sagacity Island, Link found that the doorway was at the _top_ of the room with a ladder at his feet. He angled his head around and saw that there appeared to be a number of items at the bottom. He met Layna's eyes and pointed inside. She nodded and, after replacing the blades she had been hiding in her palms, began down the ladder.

"We're going _in_ there?" Irleen asked in a low voice. "It's a dead end."

"There's a bunch of stuff down there," Link replied in a similar voice. "I'm just curious; we won't be there for long."

Link then followed Layna down into the room. On the floor, he found that most of the items were actually scrap metal. Trash cans, carriage parts, metal roofing shingles, window frames, toys… Link was amazed that they had even stolen a streetlight and left it lying on the floor next to one wall. For the mess that the Lizalfos had left, they had at least attempted some kind of organization. A path had been cleared out to the middle of the room. In the middle sat a number of wooden items: old crates, pieces of bookshelves, chairs, and small tables mostly. Behind that was a small, burnt-out campfire with a number of tools left on the floor. Link picked up one while Layna slowly stalked across the room, clicking a pair of her blades together.

"What is _wrong_ with these guys?" Irleen asked as she wandered around the room. "This is a total _mess_. Are they just stealing anything that isn't anchored down?"

Link nodded at the streetlight. "I'm pretty sure _that_ was anchored down."

"Yeah, I'd like to know how they got _that_ around the corner. _Look_ at this! At least the Stalarmors just _smashed_ everything up. This is a _nightmare_!"

Link opened the tool he was holding, which was a long, flat pair of metal handles attached together with a hinge. Inside, there was a small ball of metal which Link was able to pop out of place just by prodding it with a finger. He picked it up between his thumb and forefinger and examined it. "I don't think they're doing this just to be mean," he told Irleen.

"Why? What is that?"

"Well, if I'm guessing right, they're using a bunch of this metal scrap to make ammunition. I haven't used a gun other than this flare gun, but this kind of looks like a bullet for a pistol or a musket." He gestured at the floor around him with the mold. "I think all these tools here are designed to melt down metal and then pour into this thing."

"And… that big thing over there?" she asked, gesturing at the streetlight.

Link shrugged. "I'm just guessing, but I think they're planning to scrape the paint off of it; it's lead-based."

"Don't you Hylians know that stuff is dangerous for you?"

Link paused his examination of the bullet. Then he shrugged again. "I guess that's why it's used to make bullets."

"Ap—…" was all Irleen could respond with, having realized Link's point. She sighed. "Right, what _was_ I thinking?"

Link replaced the bullet and set the mold back on the ground. Next, he picked up a sack and peered inside. "You know, I bet Leynne could use some of these for that musket. He'd have to re-melt it, but at least he might be able to load it for his own protection."

Layna, having wandered back toward the ladder, suddenly froze in place just outside of Link's vision. "Kyabtin," she said. Link glanced over at her in response, intending to ask her what was wrong despite the fact that she could not respond.

Then he heard voices from above. "Uh oh," Irleen uttered.

"Hide," Link said barely a second before all three bolted. Irleen followed Link to the wall right of the ladder and followed him inside. Layna, however, dove into the first hole on the opposite side of the room, closest to the ladder. Both had to squeeze against the side of the small cavities in order to avoid being immediately visible. Irleen hid in the corner above Link's head just behind the opening in the hopes that her light would not give them away. Link realized that he was still holding the bag of ammunition and tossed it toward his feet to get rid of it.

_Tump. Tump._ Link carefully leaned forward so that one eye could glance back into the room. Two. They looked to be about as large as any adult Link had met. Their bodies were covered in green, tough-looking scales. They also wore loincloths which looked like they were made from feathers. One wore a shirt with the front open, showing a yellow chest and belly, and had a pair of bowl-shaped pauldrons strapped to its shoulders. The other only wore a pauldron on its right shoulder. However, its left forearm was covered by a thick-looking iron gauntlet sporting a number of scratches and dents. It wore a sleeveless shirt stained different, pastel shades of red and yellow. Link could see that both of them wore belts with a small sack strung to one side and a flintlock pistol on the other. At least, they _appeared_ to be flintlocks, but it looked as if some of the components were missing. Link remembered his comment earlier about them using their breath to fire their weapons; it was possible that that was the reason they looked only half-built.

"Mbagwa bexh ngwamaxt apaxh smexh!" Link heard the one with the two pauldrons snap. "Xhoihdwix! Ndihjax zoxh! Njogh sokwe, ghih mbagwash sabe ngale sugh bvax tahxhspughn!"

"Haihlinqa zoxh!" the other declared. "Sahgh pighsowexh vaagh! Bexht bvax ngaoxgh ngale zoxh!?"

The first one reached around and tapped the other's shoulder. "Sahgh jahghtahxhtog. Asu njihjgwoxh Haihlinqih."

"Bvax xiwaxht Zhoghwih," the other said as they stopped near the dead campfire. "Poxjexh, aghanwa sahgh pighaxgh."

"Vaagh!" the first said as it plopped down on one side of the campfire.

Link watched the other one pick up a board from their scrap pile and hold it to its open mouth. Link thought it heard it gag before orange flames spewed from its gaping maw. With about as much concern as it had shown for its own hand, it threw the now-burning board on the dead pile and took a moment to throw on a few more pieces of wood. Its carelessness caused its partner to hiss. It returned this hiss before moving to the other side of the fire. "Xhaghis vaagh asu bahxght bwevxh," it said to itself.

"Kaghbwenjwafaighe vaagh," the other one complained at him.

As they continued to banter back and forth, Link asked in a whisper, "Do you know what they're saying?"

"There's probably only ever been one Sorian to get close enough to learn Esmond," Irleen answered. "As I heard it, Cunimincus tossed him to the surface without his wings. So… no, not really."

"Good, so I'm not the only one lost," he said. "Did you see where Layna went?"

"I think she's on the other side of the room."

"Ahxgh, fix!" the Lizalfos wearing the gauntlet snapped. "Phogh aswuk imbex nogh?"

"Phogh twaxh zoxh?" the other snapped at him.

"Aghanwa asu swetahbet phogh _bexh_, fix nwadexh!"

"What's going on?" Irleen asked.

Link peered above the opening to find both Lizalfos standing and locked in a staring contest. "I don't know," he replied. "I think they're fighting about something."

"That doesn't tell us much; Lizalfos _always_ fight." Link snorted in response.

And he watched both Lizalfos break their contest to look in his direction. Link immediately ducked back out of sight and succeeded in clocking his skull against the inside of the berth. He bit his lower lip to keep from shouting in pain and cringed, realizing that he most likely just gave himself away. Irleen pressed herself against the corner as best as she could, trying to will her light dim.

He heard one of the Lizalfos snort. "Bexht mainahxh?" it asked.

The other snorted, and Link was suddenly afraid that they might be able to smell him. "Odax," came the response, the voice curious. "Twaxh imbex bexh? Kozh?"

"Kahjes." Link gulped; that last word sounded a little sinister to him. "Haihlin."

"Haihlin," the other repeated, sounding just as eager. Link felt his stomach fall through as he realized that what they were saying sounded worryingly like "Hylian". The berth was cramped, and he did not want to move due to the slim chance that they would not immediately find him inside this berth. He could not pull his sword or his bow, and the only thing he was not lying on was the boomerang behind his back. As carefully as he could, he tugged open the flap and slowly drew the boomerang.

_Tink. Tink._ Link blinked in surprise. Then he realized that Layna was clicking her blades from her own hiding spot. She was luring them away!

"Bexh imbex twaxh?" one of the Lizalfos asked.

The other one gave a chuckle. "Lahjexht mainahxh asu."

Link peered out again. Both Lizalfos had their backs turned to him, and he was just in time to see that the Lizalfos wearing two pauldrons was giving his companion a side-glare. "Bvax exh mbeg," he replied in an irritated tone.

"Pwezh ighet? Sahgh mwes!" With that, the Lizalfos wearing the gauntlet drew its pistol into its bare hand and breathed on it. Link saw a portion of the gun near the breach light, and it slowly stalked toward where it heard Layna tapping her blades. Link's heart pounded in his chest. He was concerned that Layna might actually get killed. In fact, he thought those very words, and he realized that he was thinking about the same Gelto who had held taken _Captain North_ _hostage_. He had to consider that she might have a plan, so he had to think in the few seconds that it was taking the Lizalfos to approach her hiding place. It seemed likely that, being in such an enclosed space, it would be difficult to throw any of her blades. Considering how good she was at arranging a close strike, she was probably waiting to spring an attack once the Lizalfos was in range.

Which would probably leave the other Lizalfos to him. His sword would be perfect. But would he be ab—

"GAAAAXH!" The shrill sound snapped Link out of his thoughts, and he pushed himself up to look into the room.

Layna was not in immediate sight. However, her handiwork was evident as the gauntleted Lizalfos retreated from the berth she was hiding in. It screamed out again as crimson blood flew from the eye it covered due to its flailing. It dropped its pistol to press its uncovered hand against the wound. Then it tripped over a broken window frame and fell onto a pile of metal shingles. Its partner was visibly startled, fumbling and dropping its own pistol on the floor.

"SHAHDE! SHAHDE!" the gauntleted one screamed. "Shahde imbex! Tahnwigh, tahnwigh!"

At the same time Link decided to jump out of the berth, Layna also emerged. She jumped onto the wounded Lizalfos' back and, without hesitation, slid her closed fist against the side of the Lizalfos' neck. The Lizalfos screamed and rolled in an attempt to shake her off. But Layna was already off, and she swung her fist into the Lizalfos' throat hard. The Lizalfos' scream turned into gurgling after she ripped her hand upwards, launching a spurt of blood into the air.

The second Lizalfos glanced back to find Link standing behind him. It gulped, and Link realized it had turned a determined eye to him. Link froze, realizing that it was readying a breath of fire. Irleen's voice expressed everything Link was thinking when she uttered, "Uh oh."

Then a flash of silver shot past its neck, and a gash opened across its throat. This caused it to hiccup, and flame spurted from both its mouth and the opening in its throat. Link glanced at Layna to see her arm held straight out in front of her, indicating that she must have just thrown one of her circular blades.

What happened next was almost a flash to Link. The Lizalfos had disappeared from in front of him, crossed the room dangerously close to Layna, and was part-way up the ladder to the room above. Layna had thrown another of her blades in the escape, causing a bleeding wound in its calf. This had done little to deter it, but the coughing he could hear told Link that it was seriously injured, probably from having fire spill out of an open wound. Layna flung another blade at it, but her steep angle only resulted in a blade slashing open the back of its shirt with no visible wound being made.

Link remembered that the boomerang was still in his hand, and he opened it with his thumb. He lofted it so he could catch it by one arm. Using his right arm to sight the throw, he aimed at the ladder above the Lizalfos. His voice came out in a hefty grunt as he threw overhand, whipping his hand backwards on release so that the boomerang had a strong spin. The boomerang rose, rose, and rose high into the air, faster than the Lizalfos could climb. _Pah!_ One arm struck the back of the Lizalfos' head, and the force behind it caused the Lizalfos' neck to snap forward so that its face hit the rung in front of it. The Lizalfos, disoriented from both strikes, lost its grip and fell to the floor from what must have been almost four stories. It screamed out as loud as possible.

_Bagh!_ Link felt the floor jump under his feet when the Lizalfos hit with a disturbing bounce. He also thought he might have heard a crunch somewhere in the sound. The Lizalfos reached out for a moment, voice choking as if it was trying to speak.

Then it fell limp.

Link sighed out in relief and doubled over for a moment. "Wow…" he mumbled to himself. "That… that was _close_."

"No kidding," Irleen said. "Nice throw, Link."

"Thanks, but I think _Layna_ has the better throw. That thing would've _toasted_ me if she hadn't cut its throat."

"Kyabtin?" Link looked up to find Layna standing in front of him. Her eyes were filled with concern, and she asked, "Kyabtin, waba yixwickak max?"

Link held up a hand. "I'm fine, I'm fine, Layna," he told her. He held up a thumb and said, "Good job. You saved my ass." When Layna gave the thumb a confused look, he just dropped it and added, "Yeah, thank you, crewman-who-doesn't-understand-me."

"She'll get the idea," Irleen said. "All you have to do is smile."

Link stood to his full height to stretch out his back. "I don't think I can right now." He pointed a finger between himself and Layna, and then indicated the ladder. "Let's get out of here."

"Don't forget your boomerang."

…

Link and Layna took a few moments to stash the Lizalfos' bodies in a berth and recovered their weapons before leaving the room. Layna, through her usual body language, insisted that she examine the corridor at the top, probably in case the Lizalfos' calls had been heard. It left Link to contemplate the blood pooled and smeared across the floor. It made him a little sick, but when he remembered that the Lizalfos may have been eating the residents of Might Island, it steeled his stomach and made him lose the smidgen of pity he had developed. Still, the sight was disturbing, especially the spatter Layna had caused on the wall. If she could do that kind of harm, what would she have done to Captain North and his men? He would have to have Dholit or Dubbl remind her to not kill Skyriders.

When it was clear, Link climbed up the ladder and began following Layna down the corridor. The next landing at the end of the sloped corridor brought them to another corner with yet another corridor to the right. This one was level, and it brought them to a small chamber where the Lizalfos they had seen above had left their sled, which turned out to be little more than wooden slats crudely secured to a pair of runners. There was no meat in sight, not even the beef that the Dinolfos had been carrying. However, Link noticed Layna focusing on the floor and realized that some of the juices from the meat had trickled while it had been carried further on. The other exit to the chamber led to another small chamber with a ladder probably just a story shorter than the ladder to the dormitory.

While he watched Layna climb down, he tugged on the front of his tunic. "Is it a little warm to you?" he asked Irleen.

"Oh, good, so I'm _not_ imagining that," Irleen replied. "You don't have that Yook thing, do you?"

"It's colder up here," Link said. "I didn't think I'd need it. What's causing that?"

"I'm not sure. I know that the technoworks provide heat to the _outside_ of itself to help promote plant growth on the surface. It's also a good way to regulate the temperature on the inside. But… I don't think the heat's supposed to come back inside." She paused for a moment. "Maybe the Lizalfos somehow did it. Being lizards, they probably prefer the heat."

Link nodded, and then he started climbing down into a large chamber after Layna gave him a wave. The environment of the chamber went unnoticed until Link's feet touched the floor.

Then he saw something he had not been expecting. What Link had initially thought were tiles in the walls turned out to be large, cube-shaped blocks of technoworks. This was revealed by the five tiles that had been pulled out from the room's walls. The cubes that were detached from the walls glowed pink and did not have the familiar blue particles flowing over them. Link first thought this was necrosis, just as on Sagacity Island, but he realized that, as he approached one with his hand extended, the flat surfaces of the cubes, which should have been recessed into the walls, were the sources of all the heat.

"Oh, man, this is wild," Irleen said in an amazed tone.

"What, them pulling the technoworks apart?" Link asked, dropping his arm to his side. "Because _I'd_ call that pretty wild."

"These cubes can't be exposed like this," Irleen said as she watched Layna move around the room. "All this heat… it's a wonder that the technoworks haven't _cooked_ themselves out of the sky yet."

"What, this is _bad_ for the technoworks? Isn't the technoworks _causing_ this heat?"

"It's a product of the processes the technoworks use to extract what they need from sea water. Small, it's manageable. But something the size of an island creates a _lot_ of heat. You could probably even use it to melt steel. Exposing the technoworks to a lot of heat, though, is a good way to start necrosis."

Link indicated the nearest block. "This is necrosis?"

"No, that's just the heat from the technoworks. That's also the _exposed_ parts of the technoworks. It means that these blocks are disconnected from the rest of the structure. In time, they'll probably go dormant. The problem is the blocks still _connected_ to the main structure. They _won't_ go dormant because they're still receiving nourishment from the rest, meaning that all the heat _they_ put out will continue. If the Lizalfos take it apart anymore, the heat's gonna build up until it triggers necrosis in this area."

"Could the island remain floating even _if_ this area died?"

"It depends on how far the necrosis goes. If one, maybe two rooms went, the rest of the structure above us will probably hold. But if this whole area is flooded with heat, all support is going to fail. The island could split. It could probably take out a good bit of the surface structure above us."

"The buildings," Link reasoned, horror in his voice. He took in a breath and asked, "Why is Cunimincus' crew doing everything they can to bring these islands _down_? It's gonna wind up killing them, _too_."

"From what I've seen, it's largely ignorance. The Stalarmors weren't worried about killing themselves because they were already dead. But the Lizalfos… I'd say they like the heat so much that they'd open all the heat sources they can find until this island breaks."

"How long would you say we have?"

"Don't touch the pink," Irleen said as Link reached a hand out again. "It'll burn you. I would say it's just a matter of days, maybe weeks. It depends on how long these blocks will provide heat until they go dormant, and I really don't know how long that takes. But we'll need to move these blocks back into position and then tell the technoworks to reconnect them."

"How?"

"Reconnecting them will be easy once we find the control room. But we'll need some means of moving them. It won't be easy. You can only push them from one side, and they probably weigh twenty times your weight."

"Maybe Layna could help." Link glanced around, but he was immediately aware that Layna was nowhere in sight. "Where'd she go?"

"Uuuh…" Irleen droned as she looked about. "I don't know. I got distracted talking to you."

"Kyabtin."

"YAA—hk!" Link's shout was cut off by one hand pressing against his mouth while another hand placed pressure against the base of his throat, cutting off Link's airway. It was for a brief moment, and Link immediately took in a breath once the pressure released. The other hand lifted away, and he spun to find that Layna had been the one to silence him. She had the blank look on her face, the one that said she had taken on her deathly serious attitude. She patted her lips with one hand, and, giving her sudden need to silence Link, he took it as a sign that he needed to be quiet.

"What's going on?" Irleen asked.

Layna held up four fingers. Then she pointed to a corner of the room, a corner from which a block had been dragged out far enough that Link could see the cavity beyond. And he saw that the cavity was actually larger than the block. He saw that someone had placed wooden boards and metal slats across it, some of them looking like piles of roofing shingles. The wood, in direct contact with the pink technoworks on the floor, looked to have been well-burnt. Beyond that, he saw the regular, orange-and-yellow face of a wall. It must have been another corridor, and he realized that Layna had just come back from there. And she might have found more Lizalfos.

Nodding, Link drew the Lokomo Sword and followed her over. He was reluctant to cross the improvised bridge, such was the incredible heat coming off the exposed areas of the technoworks. But after walking across, he found that he was right about finding another corridor. It was taller than most of the other corridors he had seen, and the left side was obstructed by one of the technoworks blocks being pulled almost all the way out, leaving a very thin gap between the block and opposite wall. The right side of the corridor was clear and seemed to stretch for quite some distance before ending in a doorway. Halfway in that direction, he could see an opening on the left where a block had been removed.

And, importantly, he could hear voices. Nothing was close enough for him to hear anything clearly (which was a blessing, he decided, as it would have meant that the conversation he had just had with Irleen would have alerted them), and he thought he could hear something else in between the bouts of talking.

Layna waved at them to follow, and they walked to the opening in the wall. The Lizalfos had left another improvised bridge to cross the gap between floors. They used this, and Link found that they had stepped into another chamber of similar size to the one previous, right down to the five cubes pulled out of the wall. Layna checked around the cube for a moment, then she signaled Link again. They rounded the cube and found a doorway into a much larger room. Link just about entered the doorway, but Layna grabbed the sleeve of his body suit and pulled him to one side. She patted her lips again and then pointed to her ear. Link listened, realizing that the sound was coming from the other room. Layna then held up four fingers to him and pointed into the room. Her movements became slow and low as she slid into the doorway, holding his sleeve so that he would come along. She checked the room before she pulled him to a pair of cubes sitting just a couple strides away with their cold sides facing the doorway. Layna placed her back against the cube and glanced around the side. Link decided to look around the other side.

A brown Dinolfos with short spines forming a ridge down its back and around the edges of its jaw had its back turned to Link as it appeared to be eating from part of the large body of beef that it had dragged down. With the light of the technoworks, Link could see that the Dinolfos wore metal plates over its back and, probably, its chest. And unlike the Lizalfos from before, it sported a pistol on one hip and a machete on its lower back. And in case it needed to look any more dangerous, its tail had a spiked club on the end which it smacked on the floor occasionally as it ate. Just on the edge of his vision, he could see the tail of a Lizalfos that was eating somewhere on the other side of the block they hid behind.

He turned back to find Layna already waiting for him. She pointed to her side and held up a pair of fingers. Taking it to mean that she saw two of the four that she had mentioned, Link held up his fingers to indicate that he saw the other two. Irleen hovered nearby, but even being so close, none of them wanted to chance talking.

Which was where all the miscommunication started. Layna drew one of her throwing blades, but Link grabbed her arm before she could turn to throw it out at the Lizalfos on her side. Although he was certain that she could probably deliver a debilitating wound to one, he was concerned that her initial strike would alert the others, which would mean bringing three fully capable Lizalfos down on top of them. Three guns, three sources of fiery breath, and, if the Dinolfos on Link's side was an indication, three blades. He was sure he could hold his own against one going blade-to-blade, and Layna, as he had seen against the Stalarmors, could cut up an enemy even if it would not die right away. But it left a third one, a fourth depending on how Layna's ambush would have worked. Link did not like the idea of trying to fight one-on-one while potentially two more were available to attack from behind. He pointed to himself.

Then he froze when he realized that he did not have an idea. He considered targeting the Dinolfos with his bow, especially since he would have a clean shot from behind. However, Link was not as sure about his aim. The arrow could bounce off the armor, or he could miss the Dinolfos' head entirely and simply blow their surprise. His aim was better with the boomerang since it was larger, but it might just piss the Dinolfos off.

Layna gave his hand a surprised look. Link was a little confused when she slid the throwing blade back into the pocket she had pulled it from. This confusion escalated to total surprise when she then grabbed his shoulders and pulled him close. Her lips pressed against his, and he felt a shock throughout his body, causing his eyes to grow wide. It must have been the heat around him causing him some exhaustion because he found himself more comfortable with the kiss, even mimicking Layna's lip movements to reciprocate.

"Are you _kidding_ me!?" Irleen snapped at them.

Not only was her voice high and loud enough to snap Link and Layna out of the moment, its occurrence was so jarring that the Lizalfos looked up from their meals and exchanged confused glances with each other, wondering who among them could have pulled off such a sound. In the instant of silence following Irleen's outburst, Link realized that she had solved the dilemma of how to attack the Lizalfos.

The Lizalfos were going to attack _them_!

"Kwanjahxhqa!" one of the Lizalfos snapped. "Gwoxhe mbogh shoghaighe ngahlom!"

"Uh oh," Irleen uttered.

Both Link and Layna put their hands in their pockets. While Layna produced another throwing blade, Link had grabbed Irleen's bomb gem. "Irleen, blow it!" Link shouted as he threw the gem around the block.

"And the world goes boom!"

Link barely had enough time to cover his ears, which had been awkward because he still carried the Lokomo Sword in his hand. _BOOOM!_ Link could feel the blast kick the block against his back, but it had done little to actually move the block. The Lizalfos hissed and spat words at each other, although nothing seemed coherent with them trying to shout over each other.

Jerking a thumb at the blocks behind them, Link shouted at Layna, "Go!"

With that, both of them rounded the blocks. Link found that the Dinolfos, probably being closer to the bomb gem when it went off, had been thrown onto its back. The Lizalfos that Link had also seen stood with its hands clamped to the sides of its head, pistol in hand, as it tried to make sense of what had just happened. It spotted Link and, trying to react as fast as possible, blew a spurt of flame that engulfed its hand. The pistol triggered just as Link side-stepped back behind the cover of the block. But the pistol was aimed too high, rendering the shot pointless. Link then immediately dashed from cover as shouts of surprise sounded from the other side. He gave a determined cry as he crossed the distance between him and the Lizalfos, who dropped the pistol and used its opposite hand to pull out a shortsword. Link raised the Lokomo Sword over his head and brought it down near the Lizalfos' neck. The Lizalfos had to spin its torso to intercept the blow. It must have been using the hand it did not prefer because, although the strike missed its target, Link ripped the sword out of the Lizalfos' hand. Then he twisted his wrist and swung the sword backward. The Lizalfos had stumbled when it had lost its sword, bringing it close enough that Link had not needed to move to put it back within strike distance. The swing sliced into the Lizalfos' small shoulder and then opened a line of red across its muzzle on its left. It allowed Link to see that, although tough-looking, Lizalfos scales were nothing against a decent blade, just as he had seen when Layna had attacked one earlier. Link circled his arm around and brought his arm into another upswing that opened a gash across the Lizalfos' chest. The Lizalfos spun and stumbled away from Link.

_Bam!_ The sound of a gunshot from behind startled Link into stumbling sideways. What was especially jarring was knowing that, even if he was too late to dodge the bullet, he had seen the aftermath. A hole had opened up in the side of the Lizalfos' head, and the Lizalfos collapsed on the spot. After recovering, Link spun to find that the Dinolfos on the ground was still conscious and pointing a smoking pistol in his direction. It had been a wasted shot, and now that Link knew that the gun was empty and the Dinolfos was not as stunned as he first thought, Link quickly turned and charged.

The Dinolfos threw its pistol away and rose. It pulled its machete out and used it to block the wide, horizontal slash Link aimed at its neck. The Dinolfos then took a step forward and attempted to open Link's belly with a similar strike. Link jumped away, arms wide. Too wide for him to make a comeback, especially when the jump made him loosen his grip on the Lokomo Sword, and the Dinolfos flipped the edge of its machete around and tried the strike in reverse. Link backed away again, this time farther so that he had a moment to properly grip the sword again.

Then the Dinolfos stood at its full height and raised its chin. Link heard a gulping sound and jumped aside just in time to avoid being roasted on the spot by the Dinolfos' fire breath. He had to back away when he saw the Dinolfos turn its head to follow him, and he nearly tripped over his own feet in the process. Then the Dinolfos choked off its fire and had to breathe in. Link took the opportunity to close distance with it and prepare an upward strike.

Then the Dinolfos spun its back on him. Link immediately aimed his swing to his right when he realized that he was about to take its spiked club of a tail to the stomach. He must have found a soft spot in the scales because his blade slid through the tail, parting the club from flesh and muscle. The Dinolfos gave a shriek and jumped away from Link. After giving its tail a glance, it spat at Link, "Haihlin zoxh!"

Link charged forward and attempted a jab into the Dinolfos' neck. The Dinolfos deflected with a heavy strike from its machete. Link kept a grip on the sword and, using the fact that his hand was still at a good angle to strike back, swept his sword up in a back-handed upswing. Link's blade found the Dinolfos' forearm, causing the Dinolfos to bark out its pain. This only seemed to make it even madder, as it then turn its whole shoulder to Link with the machete poised to come down on Link as strong as possible. Link was not in a position to block or jump out of the way, so he leaned to his right just in time to avoid the strike. In the process, the Dinolfos had taken a step forward to deliver all the power it could. This meant that Link had had the time to ready his own attack. So when the Dinolfos was in the right position, Link swung a horizontal slash which passed its muzzle and dug into its face right between its eyes. Its eyes were far enough from the strike that Link had not hit them, but he watched the eye on the left side of its head jerk in an awkward direction. He forced the swing to finish so he could pull the sword out, causing the Dinolfos to stumble backwards. After turning his hand again, Link sliced open the Dinolfos' throat with a gratuitous spray of blood. The Dinolfos fell backwards, gurgling as it clutched its bleeding throat as if trying to choke all of the blood off.

"Layna!" Link suddenly heard Irleen shout from the other side of the room. He spun around to survey her side of the fight.

One Lizalfos was already down, likely dead from the gash across its face and neck. But the other turned out to be another Dinolfos, skin a dull red and a comb-like ridge of spines on its head. One of its eyes looked to have been slashed out, and the gauntlet it wore on its right arm had been loosened enough that it dangled off its shoulder and rendered its hand useless as long as it was encased inside the forearm of the gauntlet. Layna was on its back.

At least, she had been when Link turned in response to the cry. He watched the red Dinolfos intercept Layna's fist as she attempted to cut open its throat. Then it suddenly whipped her off its back with an amazing show of strength. Layna hit the floor hard on her back. She seemed disoriented, but she was aware enough to realize that the Dinolfos was trying to twist her arm and rolled to keep it from happening.

Link saw his opportunity and dropped the Lokomo Sword. He removed his bow, pulled an arrow, and nocked it. The Dinolfos did not seem to realize he was standing there.

So he hollered out just after taking aim, "Hey, Ugly!"

In the same moment it took the Dinolfos to lift its head in response, Link loosed the arrow. Before it knew who was talking to it, the arrow hit its bare chest, penetrating quite well. It staggered and released Layna's arm. Link did not wait for any sort of recovery, nocking and releasing a second arrow in the span of a second. This one struck higher, at the base of its throat. The Dinolfos responded with a gurgling sound before it fell forward, snapping the arrows underneath its weight.

Link stood still for a moment, waiting to see if the Dinolfos would get up. When it did not, he spun around to look at the one behind him. It had just finished gurgling its last breath before lying slack against the floor.

Then Link dropped the bow and dashed to Layna's side. "Layna!" he cried, watching her roll in pain for a moment. "Layna, are you all right!?" He dropped to her side just as she sat up. She held the back of her head while allowing her injured forearm to sit on her lap. "Layna?"

She turned her head to him. "Kyabtin?"

Link looked up. "Irleen!?"

"Right here, right here," she replied as she fell out of the open air above.

Link dug into his pocket as he told her, "I need you to ask her if she's okay. It looked like she took a nasty fall."

"Sure." Link carefully set her translator gem on Layna's lap. "Layna, Liynk samoytakak 'al waxwicik."

Layna closed her eyes and gave a soft nod. "Ay'a, Kyabtin. 'Inu mixwickak. Kyabtin, waba yixwickak max?"

She handed the gem back to him, and Irleen said, "She's all right, and she wants to know if you are, too."

Link nodded. "What about her arm?"

"Wabin iddaf mushak max?" Irleen asked after he gave her the gem.

"'Imayn iddaf nayx nadmitiblak awyu nayx sakwil," she answered. "Amda Kyabtin, wabin 'atoyn 'ithab, 'imayn iddaf nadmimushak."

Irleen gave what sounded like an insincere laugh before Layna could return the gem, causing her to pause. "'Inu nayx nadnaygothak nwaki, Layna," Irleen said. "Liynk nayx moytokak nwaki calux."

"'Imayn harrokw zanak," Layna continued, "nadnaygothan 'inu mush, Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn. Waba nayx yikwotaysak 'inoy. 'Inu nayx nadmijoydhiysak nwaki 'idus."

Irleen gave an exhausted sigh. "Ay'a." Layna gave Link the gem. "She says her arm's fine," Irleen said. "And, evidently, it's not up for debate."

Link raised an eyebrow at her. "Uh… right," he replied. "That Dinolfos tossed her pretty hard, though. How'd it do that?"

"_You_ just caught it throwing her off its shoulder," Irleen said. "She went _flying_ across the floor before that. And I bet I know why."

"Why?"

"Look at its wrist." Link turned to the dead Dinolfos just behind him. This close, he saw that the creature wore some kind of bracelet on its left wrist. It was a gold band with a square, tooth-like division on the back side. Link reached his empty hand forward and felt around the separation until he found a trigger-like protrusion. He pressed against it until the band snapped apart, and he lifted the bracelet away from the body. As he brought it close, he saw that the inside was decorated with Sorian script. When he flipped it over, he found that the hinge was hidden by a large ruby inside which was embedded a single Sorian character.

"What's this?" Link asked.

"It's a power bracelet," Irleen said as Layna cast a curious eye on it. "The Sorians that built the technoworks used these to put these blocks into place when the technoworks were still just a bunch of inanimate blocks. They're made to increase the strength of the wearer. It used to take three or four Sorians to lift up these blocks."

"But… is _this_ how they've been moving the blocks around?" Link asked.

"I couldn't see any other way. I figured it might be the reason when we first found the technoworks like this."

Link nodded and wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Could we use it to put the blocks back into place?"

"Yeah, but we'll need to use the control room to make sure the blocks are connected back to the rest of the technoworks."

Link glanced up at the room around them. "Eh… yeeeeeah, this, uh… this isn't the control room."


	86. Gatolfos, Reptilian Armorer

Chapter 86: Gatolfos, Reptilian Armorer

…

Link and Layna took a moment to rest, exhausted from the walking, the fighting, and the heat. Link's arm felt sore from the swordfighting, but he was focused more on Layna's arm, worried that the Dinolfos had harmed her more than she wanted to admit. Not that he considered pursuing the matter. Between knowing that she was a killer and now realizing that she had a penchant for bizarre behavior (switching personalities, sneaking up on him, being startled easily, and randomly kissing him in the middle of a dangerous situation, although he wondered if that last reason might not actually be strange for a Gelto), he was not sure if he should try pushing her about her injury out of fear that he might join the Lizalfos and Dinolfos around them. However, when she decided she had enough time resting, the first thing she did was fling one of her circular blades into a corner. Link was impressed to find that she could make it ricochet back to her. He was even more impressed when she caught it with what he thought was her injured hand, although he wondered how she managed to catch it in her palm without slicing her hand open. Her glare at him afterward seemed to indicate that he should not bring anything up to her again. She busied herself with hiding the bodies, which included checking the two Link had targeted to make sure they were definite kills.

Link rose a few minutes later and contemplated the bracelet he had taken. He asked Irleen, "So, does it matter what block goes where?"

"Not particularly," Irleen replied as he closed the bracelet over his left wrist. "But you'll probably find that it would be easier to just push them into whatever wall they were pulled out of."

Link glanced at the nearby wall, which was not missing any blocks. "You know, I can see the seams between the blocks, but I _don't_ see how the Lizalfos pulled them out in the first place."

"Oh, that's easy. Place your hand on one of those floor tiles, and then slowly raise it."

Link took a knee where he stood and placed his left hand on a tile on his side, one of the tiles with the spiral pattern. Then he slowly picked it up. He was surprised by the sound of something crumbling, and he had to angle his head so he could see past his hand. A handle had formed where his hand was, and he gripped it and pulled the tile up. He was amazed at how light it was, especially since most indications said that it should be like picking up a lead weight. As expected, the tile was a cube, and its other faces were pink, just like the larger blocks.

"That's pretty interesting," Link said as he examined the block. "There's almost no weight to it at all."

"You could even pick it up with your other hand," Irleen said, "though you need to use _that_ hand to make the handle appear. The technoworks respond to the proximity of the bracelet."

Link carefully slid the block back down and took his hand away. He watched the handle melt back into the tile's surface. "So I suppose we should put all these blocks back."

"It'd make our job easier, especially if we're going to connect them back to the rest of the technoworks. We shou—… What is she doing?"

Link followed the direction Irleen was looking in and saw that Layna was dragging the Lizalfos that Link had killed toward one of the cavities in the wall further down. When she got it to the edge of the cavity, she stood on the other side and rolled the Lizalfos into the cavity. There was a hiss and a puff of smoke, and she watched the body for a moment before moving to the last body lying in the open. "Oh," Link uttered. "It looks like she's using the heat from the exposed technoworks to burn their bodies. That's… Actually, that doesn't sound like a bad idea."

"Burn, nothing," Irleen said. "The moment we reconnect these blocks, the technoworks is going to _consume_ their bodies. I know it sounds gruesome, but I kinda _like_ the idea. It'd put these bastards to some good use."

"Soil and water," Link said. "You're right, that sounds like good use." He cracked his knuckles as he looked around. "So. Let's see how this bracelet works."

Link found a block that had only been pulled out halfway and pressed both of his hands against its tile surface. He could feel that the block was much lighter than it appeared, but he found that he could not push it like that. So he braced a shoulder against the tile and shoved it with all his strength. He was a little surprised when the block budged under his push, and, when the block exceeded the range of his reach, he stumbled forward and whacked his head on the surface. The next few minutes were spent with him cradling his head while Layna, having finished disposing of the Lizalfos' bodies, tried to show him a little sympathy by placing a hand on his shoulder. Irleen tried not to laugh and voted to keep silent lest she say something to further annoy Link.

After he recovered, he pushed the block back into its space, making sure that he kept moving his feet so that his shoulder was always pressed against it. Its placement was not perfect; Link found that he could not fit it back into its space exactly. Irleen told him that the technoworks would square it up once it was told to reconnect them, so Link moved around the room and started replacing blocks, recovering Irleen's bomb gem in the process. Five of the blocks had been merely pulled out of their spots, and Link pushed them back into place with no trouble. The problem came with the six blocks which had been moved away from their slots in the walls. Link had to line the blocks up with their spaces and push for a moment, and then stop and double-check that he was moving it in the right direction. The tiles on the floor made it easier for him to follow a straight line, but he found that _pushing_ in a straight line was difficult. He had to do it right since he could only push the blocks from one side. Twice, he reached the blocks' spaces and found that he had been off by enough that the block would not fit inside correctly, forcing him to pull the block out enough for him to push it back into place. The process was quite exhausting, and Link had to pause for a break after replacing the blocks in that large room.

They then moved into the smaller room so Link could push those blocks back into place. This included kicking out the bridge the Lizalfos had left and replacing the block dividing the room from the corridor, which was not much of an issue since the larger room had access to the corridor.

When the last of these blocks were put into place, Irleen said, "Well. It's beginning to feel cooler in here already."

"Oh, yeah," Link replied as he tried to catch his breath, resting against the block he had finished replacing. "I might need another shirt or something." He wiped his forehead and pointed at his bicep. "I really wish I hadn't forgotten that thing, that… cloth, or whatever you wanna call it."

"Charm?"

"Yeah, let's call it that."

"Kyabtin." Link glanced at Layna, who had been observing him this whole time from the side. She offered him what looked like a strip of leather. When he took it, he found it to be a pouch barely larger than his middle finger. He squeezed the sown edges together to open the mouth up and peered inside to find a small amount of green liquid. He glanced up at her, and she mimicked a drinking motion with one hand. So he put the pouch to his mouth and turned it up.

The liquid had a powerfully tart flavor. The way Link had consumed it caused him to swallow it in a strange way, and he quickly leaned forward and coughed hard. Layna backed off in surprise. Irleen started laughing hysterically. Link felt as if he had just swallowed a mouthful of alcohol, but he was able to keep his senses about him so he could tell Irleen in a raspy voice, "It wasn't funny."

"Oh, that was _hilarious_!" she wailed. She threatened to drop out of the air as she continued to laugh for a moment. "C'mon, Link, you just coughed up _green_!"

"I wonder what was in it," he said, peering into the pouch again. Then he offered the pouch back to Layna with a fake smile plastered on his face. "Thanks, Layna, that was… _extremely_ disgusting." Layna, giving her head a confused tilt, accepted the pouch. "Let's get moving before she gives me something else."

"If she does, I want it to be red."

"Shut up…"

She giggled at him as he walked past her. "Spoil sport."

They went out into the corridor through the larger room. After kicking the remains of wood and metal that had once been a bridge over to the opening in the wall on the left side of the corridor (where they started to smoke as the exposed technoworks started burning them), Link made to step into the room with the ladder to the corridors above.

However, Layna grabbed his shoulder, stopping him before he set foot on the improvised bridge over the exposed technoworks. Link wobbled where he stood, surprised by the grab, and looked back at her. "Wha-what is it?" he asked. She removed her hand and pointed to one of her ears.

Link listened for a moment. It was subtle, but he could hear something echoing through the corridor. It sounded like a low hum, but when he stepped off the bridge and moved further down the corridor toward the block hiding the other end, he realized that it was actually something clicking extremely fast. He could not place the sound; he had never heard such a noise before.

He found Irleen hovering a little higher above his head and asked, "What is that?"

"I don't know; I've never heard it before," she replied. "There really shouldn't be any moving parts down here. Unless…"

Link took in a breath when he realized what her statement was leading to. "The Lizalfos did something."

"We'd better find and stop it," she told him. "I can't expect that the Lizalfos could actually _make_ something that could be harmful; they're not supposed to be that bright. All the same, we should take a look."

Link nodded in agreement and strode over to the block. He took a moment to examine the block, and then he squeezed his shoulder into the gap between the tile face and the wall. It felt awkward for him, especially because he stood a breath's distance away from melting his face against the exposed technoworks. He managed to shift the block enough to fit the rest of his body into the gap, and he pushed the block back into the wall. The other side revealed a stretch of corridor almost the same length as the area they had already seen. This also ended in a doorway, and now that it was in sight, all doubt as to the source of the clicking had been cleared. Layna took the lead from Link before they could start for the doorway. Link saw a blade in one of her hands, but he decided to wait before pulling the Lokomo Sword. If anything attacked, Link was sure Layna would attack _it_ first.

They emerged into a large, square room with a step-down area three tiles away from the walls. Just like the other rooms, this one had a number of its tiles pulled out, although they were only pulled out by small fractions. A number of tables had been improvised by a mixture of wood and metal nailed together and scattered all over the room. There were also a few crates sitting next to each other, most of which had been left open due to being filled with many long, narrow scraps of metal. A small furnace sat in one of the far corners with tools scattered all over the floor around it.

The main attraction was the caped figure standing in the middle of the room. It looked like a much larger Lizalfos, but the face was flat, wide, and sported a much longer muzzle with its upper teeth decorating its lower jaw despite its mouth being closed. Its eyes were much closer together and stuck out on the top of its head. The flat surface of its head was covered by a plate of metal specifically fitted for its face. Its right shoulder and part of its body were covered by what looked like a royal blue bedsheet. It wore a cuirass and a full sleeve of armor on its left side. Its neck was covered by a bevor which looked to have been crudely put together. Over the armor, it wore a sleeveless coat of thick, wool-like material that hung as far as its knees. It wore boots, something which Link had not seen on any of the other Lizalfos wearing. Its tail whipped around as it watched Link and Layna stand side-by-side.

The corners of its jagged mouth rose. "Aaaaaaxh," it spoke. "Haihlinqa. Zah, toghihxhse bexh mogh axghen shabixghagh imbex mbeg. Fixk ngahlom. Xashoxghen, smexht ixghweg imbex ngale."

Link could feel his whole body tighten up. Something about this creature's high-pitched voice made him anxious. "I guess we didn't find them all," he said aloud.

"It figures we'd run into another," Irleen agreed. "And a meaner one; this looks like a Gatolfos."

The creature's chin rose. "Qopexh jigh Xghito," it spoke in an intrigued tone.

Link narrowed his eyes at it. "What was that all about?" he asked.

"Tān kakòrōl ahà, Rītò?"

Link felt the color drain out of his face. Although his exposure had been limited, he still recognized the language Irleen was prone to spouting whenever no one held her translator gem.

This creature, this "Gatolfos", spoke Sorian.

Irleen sounded equally as stunned when she stuttered, "Y-y-you-you _can't_."

"Kīt ahà," it replied. "Kil huk kiħawāt."

Link looked up to see Irleen shivering. "You piece of _shit_!" she hollered at it.

The Gatolfos broke out into a screaming laugh that sent quakes up Link's spine. "Hòt kálin!" it declared. "Kīt pat, kūltùpirah kònucpa! Hōn citap kacìlòk!"

"H-him?" Irleen uttered. Then she shouted, "Where's the Sorian with you!? I know you have him!"

The Gatolfos gave its left hand a dismissive wave as it said, "Ħacìlòkat ō. Ħatòt. Ħatùpat. Hīlīħán ħanùl ħacīh. Ho hōn hì 'Kil Toròlcita kacàtī, katàl ta ō Hīlīħán klánūka' ħa káwitat. Toròlcita ħacàtīh. Àt kácánih. Ho kláħòħòtut tanì."

It laughed again, and Irleen did not seem to have a response. So Link asked, "What'd it say?"

Irleen's voice came out a little haunted as she said, "The Sorian they brought… it said he pleaded and cried. He wanted to save the Hylians. So it told him that he wouldn't see Hylians hurt if he got rid of the Streamways. And when he did that…

"When he did that… they _ate_ him."

That last statement left Link a little stunned. He had hoped to find another Sorian alive down here. Or at least one who had not been as tortured by his actions as Airman Kaheel had. He was not sure if the fate of this one had been any better, but it certainly left quite a queasy feeling in his stomach. He gulped as he looked back at the Gatolfos.

Then he steeled himself and grabbed the handle of the Lokomo Sword. Irleen must have put on the same resolve, because her next words prompted him to draw as he had never done before. Slow, and with intent. And with the urge to level some vengeance upon an evil creature.

"Get him, Link."

Link raised his sword and stepped down to the Gatolfos' level, prepared to run at him full-speed so that the boots would let him strike before it could see him.

But then the Gatolfos threw back its cape. It revealed to Link what he will forever know as the most horrifying gun he had ever seen. Six barrels mounted to a revolving base spun from the bedsheet being thrown off of it. It had a battered cylinder for a body, and it was held up by a tripod of both wood and metal. The Gatolfos placed a large bar of metal into a slot on the top of the body and put a gnarled, scaly hand on a crank on the side. Link froze his advance.

And the Gatolfos directed the barrels at him with a gleeful laugh. "Shoxghaine, Haihlinqa! _Shoxghaine_!"

Its following cackles of delight were punctuated by a rapid-fire report as the Gatolfos cranked the handle. Link had no idea how he survived the first rounds that left those barrels. Maybe it was more of his luck holding out. Maybe it had something to do with the Gatolfos' careless delight at using the weapon. But the moment he registered that the sounds he was hearing behind him were lead bullets pounding into the wall, he dove left behind a pair of nearby crates full of metal scrap. Layna, taking advantage of the Gatolfos' distraction with Link, kicked over a nearby metal table and ducked behind it just in time to avoid a spray aiming for her.

Behind his box, Link cringed at the _ta ta ta ta ta ta ta_ of bullets thumping against the crates, concerned that one of those would be able to punch through and hit him. When the Gatolfos redirected its aim at Layna, Link dared to peek around the side. Unfortunately, this attracted the Gatolfos' attention, and Link withdrew behind the crates again just as more bullets ripped the side of the crate apart.

"What is that thing!?" Link shouted above the sound of gunshots and ricochets from bullets skipping off the scraps behind him.

"I have no idea!" Irleen, ducking behind the same crates, cried out. "But it's tearing up _everything_! You gotta move, Link!"

"If I move, I'm dead!"

"You're not much better if you _don't_!"

Link sheathed his sword and waited. The moment he heard the fire redirect, he leaned past the far side of the crates to get a better look at what cover he had. There was a pile of metal scrap not far from him. If he lay on the floor, he could hide himself. Then, if he survived that, there was a larger pile of scrap which would serve as better cover. He glanced at the Gatolfos a couple of times. Convinced that it was having fun targeting Layna, Link took two strides forward and dove to the floor behind the pile. It was just in time; the Gatolfos, with a wider field of vision, had spotted him moving and swung the gun around to try to catch him. Bullets bounced all over the place. Link could hear them hitting the metal scrap next to him hard and covered his head with his arms.

"Lahjexh! Lahjexh!" the Gatolfos cackled. "Mwes tahvi lahjexht asu! Shoxghaine vaagh, Haihlinqa!"

"Kyabtin!" Layna hollered.

The gunfire lifted from Link's hiding spot, and he pushed himself up to see that the Gatolfos had spun to fire at Layna while she was running for another table. There was a heavy crash as she shoved the table over, and Link, thinking that he might be able to make it to his next bit of cover, rose and dashed to the next pile. It paused to swing the gun back at Link.

_Tink!_ "Axghgh!" the Gatolfos howled after being struck between the eyes by one of Layna's throwing blades. "Haihlinqa zoxh!" He opened fire on Layna again, leaving Link to crouch behind what looked like a mess of discarded carriage parts. He glanced over the top of a metal door frame to see that Layna had hidden behind a wooden table that was quickly being rendered into splinters.

Then the gun stopped firing. The lack of sound was almost as deafening as the gun itself. The only thing Link could hear was the metallic clicks of whatever mechanism allowed him to fire so many rounds so rapidly.

"Link, he's out of rounds!" Irleen suddenly declared. "Layna, go! He can't shoot!"

Link pulled his sword with the intention of pulling off the attack he had intended in the first place. Both he and Layna leapt from cover as the Gatolfos took a step away from its beast of a firearm. Link rounded the scrap pile, and Layna prepared to throw another blade. They were both poised to converge on the Gatolfos from the front, which meant that Link would not be in danger of taking the flying blade himself should she miss.

But the Gatolfos had other ideas. It put both hands into its coat and whipped them out again. Link and Layna barely had time to realize it was holding a pair of pistols before it fired.

Link spun in response to heat piercing his right shoulder and, taken completely by surprise, collapsed to the side of the scrap pile he had used for cover. Irleen screamed in horror somewhere nearby. The Lokomo Sword dropped next to him, but he did not dare try to pick it up as he pulled himself along the floor back under cover. When he was safe again, he sat up against a solid sheet of metal and looked at the wound in the surrounding light. There was a clear hole in his bodysuit on the outside of his shoulder, and blood was already staining his sleeve crimson. Unsure of what to do, he tried pressing his gloved hand against the wound.

"Link!" Irleen shouted as she descended on him. "Oh, geez, Link! Are you all right!?"

"I'm fine," Link said.

"What!?"

"I'm fine, Irleen!" Link told her in a louder voice. The pain felt like it was searing throughout his shoulder and upper arm, and the disturbing amount of warmth crawling down his arm made him wish it were anything but blood. "Where… where's Layna?"

"Layna? Oh, Layna!" She rose above the scrap pile. "I-I think she's back behind the table."

"Is she hit? Can you tell?"

"I don't see her."

The room suddenly erupted in another bout of rapid shooting, but Link was surprised to find that the bullets were not directed at him. He slid to his right and peered around the pile to find that the Gatolfos was using the gun to chew the table apart.

"Oh, crap, Link!" Irleen cried as she ducked back behind the pile. "What are we gonna do!? You can't approach him with that kind of firepower! Wha—… Wait, what about your bow?"

"I'm hit in the shoulder, Irleen," Link growled, trying to bear his pain and frustration. "I don't think I can handle it."

"You've gotta do _something_!" she cried out. "Layna's in _danger_!"

Link set his left hand back on the floor and pulled himself back into better cover. "I know," he told her. "But I can't use my bow, and I don't think my boomerang will do anything."

"Well, you can't wait until he runs out of bullets! That coat he's wearing is _full_ of those little pistols!"

"I _know_! I ju—…" Link paused when he looked down at the tile under his left hand. Having barely lifted the hand, a handle had partially formed in the tile. Quickly, Link pressed his hand against another tile that was not trapped under the scrap pile and revealed another handle. This one, he pulled up on until the small cube of technoworks came out of the floor. He test-lifted it for a moment. Then he found Irleen in the air and said, "Remember those flying tiles in that crypt we found?"

"Yeah?" she replied, her tone confused.

Link jerked his head at the cube he held. "I have an idea."

Her response was not immediate. But when she said something, it was with an evil glee. "I love it."

Link curled his right arm against his stomach so that he was not moving it so much, giving him less pain to worry about. Then he turned around so he was facing the scrap pile. He rose carefully so as to not attract the Gatolfos' attention.

Then he hefted the cube and threw it in the Gatolfos' direction. The cube hit the floor and skipped past the Gatolfos' tail. It paused its assault to look over its shoulder at him.

"You _missed_!" Irleen snapped at him, disbelief coloring her voice.

"Bad shoulder!" he snapped back, pointing at his arm. When he saw the Gatolfos turn the gun at him, he cried out, "Duck!"

The air exploded with gunfire bouncing off Link's hiding space. He backed away and took out another cube from the space next to the first one. Unable to actually see the Gatolfos without having his head blown off, Link took his best guess and flung the new cube out into the open. No good, though, as Link heard the sharp crack of the piece of technoworks bounce off the floor.

"Haihlin zoxh!" the Gatolfos howled in anger. "Shoxghaine _vaagh_!"

_Tink! Tink!_ Two more hits from Layna's blades. Link breathed a sigh of relief as he pulled out another block. It meant that Layna was still all right. "Axghghhhh! Fix! Fix nwadexh! Shoxghaine shoxghaine _shoxghaine_!"

Bullets then started pelting the wall behind Link as the Gatolfos swung the gun around like a madman. Link watched as the impacts caused the walls to form bright red dots. This had to stop before it shot up enough of the room to cause necrosis. But the wild shooting gave Link enough time to rise and see where the Gatolfos stood before throwing the next block.

_Crrrrrck-ssssssssssah_. "YAAAAAAH!" the Gatolfos wailed as it not only felt the full weight of the technoworks block crush part of its tail, eliciting the painful crack that could only be bones breaking, but also felt the unpleasant burning from the block's extreme heat. The Gatolfos continued its painful scream as it focused its wild spray of bullets back on Link, forcing him to dive back under cover.

_Tink!_ The gun suddenly stopped shooting, something Link only realized when he was halfway finished pulling out another block. He removed the next block and looked over his cover. The Gatolfos was trying to pull at a circular blade embedded in the body of the gun. Then Link looked closer and saw that it was not the _body_ of the gun. Layna's blade had wedged between the body and the barrels, preventing the barrels from rotating. Link took the opportunity to throw the block he had at the Gatolfos.

_Crrrck-ssssssah_. The Gatolfos let out another of its high-pitched screams of pain after the block slammed its left forearm, struck and slid off the back of the gun (causing the gun to swivel up and bust the Gatolfos' lower jaw, taking out a couple of teeth), and landed hard on its foot. The scream came when the block burned the boot apart in a matter of seconds, much too fast for the Gatolfos to react in time to save its foot. It backed away from the larger gun and drew a musket with a large barrel from its coat.

Link had already thrown another cube, and the Gatolfos had to dodge. This allowed Link the opportunity to reach out from cover and retrieve the Lokomo Sword by carefully taking the blade between his fingers. He was back behind cover just in time to avoid the blast from the Gatolfos' musket, which peppered the scrap metal with large shot. Link did not quite avoid this, as he felt one round make it through the pile and tear a wound open through his trousers and into his thigh. It only bothered him a split-second, and then he was pulling out another block from the floor. He looked over his cover to find that the Gatolfos had discarded the musket and pulled out another pistol. He flung the cube just as the Gatolfos fired, revealing that the guns it carried were flintlock weapons. Link spun and ducked again when the bullet grazed his left side, but it gave him great timing to reach down and grab the Lokomo Sword off the ground. He did not even wait for the block to hit, jumping back to his feet and running out of cover again. The Gatolfos dropped the pistol while dodging the block. Then, when it saw Link trying for another charge, it reached into its coat for another already-loaded pistol among the two dozen it kept under there.

It could not even pull this new pistol from its holster in time.

Against the protests of his wounded thigh, Link ran at the Gatolfos, and his boots reacted by speeding him up faster than the Gatolfos could react. Link held the sword behind him, level with his shoulders. No thought was given to whether this reptile had fire breath as well, nor did Link really care if it had a blade to stop him with. He was going for the kill, and the kill was exactly what he got. Between the speed at which he traveled and, likely, the strength boost he received from the Sorian power bracelet, when Link swung his sword around as he ran past the Gatolfos, he felt so little resistance that he wondered if he had actually missed. He jerked to a stop some distance away from the Gatolfos and, turning his shoulders, raised the sword in case he needed to strike again.

Then the Gatolfos' head hit the ground near his feet with a sick splat and clink from its minimal helmet. As if finally taking the message a second later, its body fell sideways. It had been a narrow opening, but even with the bevor, Link had found enough exposed neck to completely decapitate the monster in one, powerful strike. Link relaxed his stance and glanced at the blade to find only a few blood drops sticking to it. He gave the blade a couple of swings and found that the blood had been whipped off cleanly and completely. Then he gave a heavy sigh of relief and sheathed the blade. He looked at the body satisfied, glad that he was able to avenge the Sorian and the Hylians that these monsters had eaten. If he was lucky, it was the last.

"Link!" Irleen suddenly screamed across the room. "Oh, Great Elders, Link! You have to help her!"

Link felt his stomach fall through. He immediately found Irleen hovering over a wooden table that had been split in two with both halves shot up quite well. He dashed over to her and rounded the table.

Layna lay on her side in a pool of her own blood.


	87. The Line He Laid

Chapter 87: The Line He Laid

…

Link dropped to his knees and put a hand on Layna's shoulder. "Layna!?" he shouted. "Layna! Layna, wake up!"

Layna lifted her head, surprising Link. Her face was emotionless, as if it was not her bleeding out. But Link could see the sleep in her eyes, and he knew that it should not be there. She rolled onto her back, and Link saw a pair of bullet holes in her stomach as well as the single hole in her chest above her left breast. More bullet holes, more than Link wanted to count, riddled her arms and legs. Link's face paled, and he thought he would throw up from the sight of all the blood.

"'Inu… 'inu mi'atixya'ak talwban adi'," she managed to tell him in an even voice. "Taf 'inu mitaynalak talwban adi'. 'Inu mitowaynwak wabnik, Amda Kyabtin Liynk… wammu 'agoylwantya 'imayn kyabtin balw."

"Screw you, Layna!" Irleen screamed after watching Layna close her eyes. She fluttered in front of Layna's face, causing Layna to flinch. "Like _hell_ you're getting in your last words now!"

_Pap!_ Irleen started when she heard the sound of someone getting smacked and turned around. Layna opened her eyes again, and, in spite of her pain, she gave Link a surprised look.

Because Link had just slapped himself out of what he perceived to be an idiotic stupor. And he said in a low voice, "Not here. Not now. This isn't happening." He grabbed Layna's shoulders and pulled her into a sitting position. "C'mon, Layna, we're getting you some help."

"Kyabtin…"

"Great!" Irleen declared. But her next statement came out awkward as she asked, "So, uh… what-what's the plan?"

"I'm gonna carry her."

Irleen paused for a moment. "Uh… I know I don't have any skills in medicine or anything, but… I-I don't think you should move her. Maybe we should go bring someone—"

Link glared at her. "I'm _going_ to carry her," he repeated in a slower, harsher tone.

Irleen gave another pause before saying, "Okay, you'll carry her. But what's your plan for getting up the _ladder_?"

"I'll have her on my back," Link said as he carefully grabbed Layna's right forearm.

"And if she passes out on the way up?"

Link froze as he was getting into position to pick Layna up and carry her on his back. Irleen was right; if she lost her grip and fell while Link was ascending, it would be a very certain death. He immediately started pondering other ideas. Could tying her to him work? It did not seem like a safe idea; if she fell, the sudden pull of a line attached between the two of them might yank him off the ladder. She would have to be secured to him in a way that, if she happened to lose consciousness, Link could still climb. He considered how he would be carrying her on his back. He would have to hold onto her thighs the whole way and probably lean forward so she could keep her arms wrapped around his neck. That would be the key. If her arms were secured around his neck or maybe his shoulders, even if she passed out, she would not be in danger of falling.

"Rope, rope," Link muttered as his eyes passed over the room. "I-I need…" His right hand brushed the whip on his belt, and he glanced down at it. "Rope! Perfect!" He pulled the whip out and reached out to grab Layna's other arm. He winced at the pain in his right shoulder. "H—agh…"

"Kyabtin, waba yilwiyjomotak," Layna commented, her voice almost absent.

"Hang on, Layna," Link told her. He stepped over to her other side and took her other arm into his hand. He folded her arms and rested them on her lap. Though he did not like doing it, he then wrapped the middle of his Rope whip around her forearms about seven times as tight as he could. Then he tied a reef knot out of the handle and the head of the Rope, which had been made awkward by their respective rigidity and annoying shape. But he managed to put a descent knot in and tugged on her forearms to make sure they could not slip out. With her forearms bound in opposing directions, he would be able to carry her up the ladder without having her hands in his way.

Link then removed his sword and quiver. He decided to drop the quiver on the nearby floor, abandoning it for now. The Lokomo Sword, however, he decided to unbuckle and put around Layna, who watched him with an increasingly blank stare on her face. It was a little difficult since his right shoulder was still bleeding. In fact, he was beginning to understand Layna's tired look.

But he refused to let it happen. As long as Layna was in danger, he would not allow himself to rest. He lifted her arms and ducked under so that her arms would settle either around his shoulders or his neck. He had to shove her legs apart so he could square his body up in front of her. Then he picked her legs up by the thigh. Layna suddenly jolted to life and took in a sharp breath of air. She folded her legs against his sides, which made it easier for Link to jostle her a bit until she was resting against his back. He silently apologized for it, knowing that he had probably aggravated her wounds in the process. It felt a little awkward to him; he had never had to carry someone a head taller than him. Layna was unusually light, but Link attributed that to the Sorian power bracelet giving him the strength he needed to lift her.

"Irleen," he said with a strained voice as his wounds and his sore muscles decided to remind him of their presence at the same time. "Get in my hat. If I can get a run going… I might get the boots to speed us up."

"Okay, but watch where you're going," Irleen warned him before she disappeared into his hat. "It'll hurt us _all_ if you fall."

"Hgn… got it."

Link first walked to the edge of the step encircling the room and stepped up in front of the doorway. He managed two strides before having the will to start jogging. But his fatigue was setting in too fast, and the pain in his thigh gave him a bit of a limp. He could not get the boots to trigger before he reached the opening to the room with the ladder. The heat he felt as he crossed the exposed technoworks into the room did nothing to help, but he resisted as best as he could as he stepped up to the ladder. He took a moment to glance at the immense height and wondered if it had actually gotten taller since climbing down.

He carefully released Layna's legs. Her whole weight suddenly tugged on his collar, but she, still being conscious, adjusted her arms so they were wrapped further down around his shoulders. It pressed against the wound on his right shoulder, but it would have to be something for him to bear as he climbed; if she slipped and caught his neck, it was likely that he would pass out from the lack of air or simply fall due to the shift in weight. He put a hand on the white ladder and saw that, before he could start climbing, his palms had been soaked red from her blood. He wiped his hands on his trousers and started up.

The climb was difficult. In addition to having all of Layna's weight hanging from his shoulders, the way she had positioned her arms decreased his range of motion. He had to grip the ladder's rungs lower than what he was used to; attempting to raise his arms any higher would result in Layna slipping and hanging from his neck, something which he intended to avoid. His wounds reminded him of their presence with each step up. Perhaps the only thing keeping him clinging to the ladder was his determination to not lose another airman.

Halfway up the ladder, Layna began mumbling, "'Inu sanimyayl. 'Inu saylwobak za'atax 'imayn kyabtin. 'Inu sanimyayl. 'Inu saylwobak za'atax 'imayn kyabtin. 'Inu sani—"

"Is that _her_ talking?" Irleen asked from under Link's hat.

"Ugh… yeah," Link spoke through his clenched teeth as he continued to climb.

"Wish I knew what she was saying…"

Link grunted in agreement. "At least… she's still… conscious."

Layna continued to mumble to herself as Link climbed, although he was noticing that it was slowly becoming more and more slurred. He looked neither up nor down to gauge his progress, feeling that he was putting all his effort into reaching the top as long as he did not know when the ladder would end. And he did not want to think about what would happen if he suddenly slipped. He focused on the ladder, the reflexive positioning of each limb to ensure that he moved up each rung with precision as he had never done before. His arms were growing tired. Layna felt as if she was getting heavier. He tried to force those thoughts aside, tried to tell himself that, as long as he kept moving, he and Layna would be all right.

The end of the ladder showed up at last, and Link hauled both himself and Layna onto the floor of the small chamber at the top. A breath later, he fought to his feet and picked up Layna's legs again. This caused Layna to give a surprised shout, and she was suddenly lucid enough to say, "Kyabtin, 'inu binwikak. Waba sanwoyratak."

Layna's voice carried the tone of deep pain, and it sounded as if she was trying not to cry. "It's okay, Layna," Link told her as he started walking through the chamber toward the corridors that would take them to the surface. "It's okay, because… because we're gonna get you some help."

"Kwal, Kyabtin?" she whispered. "'Inu tanolak."

"I won't let you die," he told her. "I won't let _anyone_ on my crew die…"

The up-slope of the corridors ahead made it impossible for Link to break into a run. Of course, his new bout of exhaustion from having climbed a ladder did nothing to improve his situation. About the only positive aspect of being at the top of the technoworks again was the fact that the air was a little cooler. Sweat dripped in his eyes and blurred his vision. Still, he refused to stop. His steps became heavier. His entire body throbbed with pain, and it was becoming hard to ignore. Layna continued to ask "Kwal, Kyabtin?" in his ear. Just as before, as she seemed to slowly lose consciousness, her speech became slurred and reduced to simply mumbling the tone she was using.

Ahead in the last corridor, Link could see nothing but blackness. Night would have definitely fallen by now, and it left him concerned that he would not be able to navigate too well in the dark. But as he slowly approached the darkness, he reasoned that, if he just turned north once he found a main road, he could keep moving until he found lights. Most clinics he had known all kept their doors open even overnight. This meant that, of whatever buildings still had their lights on at this time, there was a good chance that he could find a clinic among them. But, being in the abandoned central area of the island, he would have to travel some distance before finding _any_ sort of population. He did not even have a watch to tell what time it was. How long would it take him to find civilization again?

"Irleen," Link spoke up. He paused before speaking as he tried to fight back a wave of nausea. "Irleen, I need you to come out; this tunnel's too dark."

"All right," Irleen replied as she emerged from his hat. She floated in front of Link and lower to the ground so that he could see where he was stepping. "How are you doing?"

"I don't care," Link answered in a heated tone. "I'm fine. How's Layna?"

"She looks like she's asleep… It's… Link, I don't wanna sound ne—"

"Don't say it," he ordered. "It's not happening."

"Link, if she's gone… you're just _torturing_ yourself."

Link growled. Then he shouted, "Layna! Layna, wake up!"

"Kyab…tin…" Layna whispered.

"This is crazy," Irleen said. "We've been moving for so long, you'd think she should've run out of blood by now."

"She's gonna live," Link growled. "It's not an option."

Irleen opted to say nothing more, seeing that her negative outlook on the situation was just adding to Link's frustration. He was glad she decided not to press the issue. His fatigue, his pain, and his frustration were already fueling his fear that Layna's life was slowly slipping from his grasp. He considered the people who had already died because of the activities of the past couple of months. Having decided just a few days ago that all the deaths around him would end with him fueled his determination further. Layna was a good airman. And despite her training to remain in the shadows and kill at someone's order, he felt they had developed what was probably one of the strangest friendships he had ever encountered, even after counting his best friend Line. It was not fair for her to suffer for it. Her job was not to die for him; that was _never_ her job as an airman.

Link finally found the opening of the tunnel and strode to the end of the alley, where he made an immediate right turn. As he had suspected, most of the building around him were dark with absence. Not even the streetlights in this area had been turned on. His main guide to not walking into anything was Irleen's glow as she led the way. He continued until he found a wide street two blocks down, giving him a view of the rest of the city in the distance. "Irleen," he asked, "do you remember what direction we came from?"

She motioned to the left. "That way, I think. Yeah, that sounds right."

"Get in my hat."

"Link, do you think you'll be able to run like that?"

He adjusted his grip on Layna's legs, aware that her blood was making holding her difficult. "I have to," he told her. "Layna's dead otherwise."

Irleen complied, and Link started down the road toward what he hoped was the north. With nothing in his way and not having to worry about walking uphill anymore, he found he could pick up speed a little easier. The bouncing caused Layna's arms to loosen from his shoulders, and she would have fallen off if she had not been resting against his back again. He managed a slow jog. Then it picked up to a slow run. Link's heart was pounding hard. His muscles threatened to quit on him. His own wounds stung in the cold, night air. But when his thoughts went back to Albert, Jared, and the crews of the _Horizon's Eye_ and _Cloud Moon_, he let out a scream of frustration.

And then the boots finally acknowledged that he was running and activated. Buildings suddenly turned into large, grey blurs as he sped down the road. He could see light in the distance. And now that he was running, he would reach it in no time at all. At least, that was his hope; "no time at all" would be ideal for getting Layna the help she needed.

Streetlights started speeding past. Then, when Link ran past a lit window, he slowed back to a jog so he could look around. His eyes now adjusted to the darkness, he looked around for a sign or window painting of a red teardrop, which was the best-recognized sign of a clinic. He found one just a few blocks down the road from where he had slowed. He tried to pick up speed again, but his legs just would not allow it anymore.

"Almost… there… almost…" Link uttered between labored breaths. His mind was beginning to feel a little hazy. He caught himself drifting in a different direction and corrected himself.

He finally collapsed right in front of the door. Having Layna's arms in front of him caused his head to nearly snap forward and strike the ground. Layna was dead weight against his back now. He could not move his legs anymore, the fatigue from everything about this situation making them feel absolutely numb and useless.

"Link!" Irleen cried out as she emerged from his hat. "C'mon, Link, get up! This is it, right!? Let's go!"

"I… I can't… I can't move…" he huffed. He put his hands on the ground and tried to pull himself closer to the door. "Hurry… call someone…"

"Call som—call someone," she repeated. "Call… Hey! Hey! Somebody help! _Heeeeelp_!"

Link managed to drag himself closer to the door, a pane of glass in a metal frame. He held up his left fist and started striking the glass as Irleen continued to holler. The deep thumps should have been responded to within a second, but no one seemed to be coming. "Hah… hah…" Link breathed as he tried to holler out. "Hah… hel… help… Help…" He paused to take in as much breath as possible. He had to get the word out. If he did not, Layna would be dead.

"HEEELP!" he suddenly screamed as he put the rest of his strength into striking the glass. The glass shattered under the last of his strength, which he realized must have still been amplified by the power bracelet. While it gained the attention of a number of panicked voices inside, Link found that the larger glass shards had sliced open his forearm. The last of his strength used, he lay on the ground almost motionless.

Link was in a fog when help finally arrived. He could barely make out the crunching of glass as people's shoes trampled over the broken window. Layna had been taken away from him. Irleen seemed to disappear. He tried to grasp for something, _anything_ to reaffirm that he was still alive. He felt something tugging on his shoulder, and he snapped to life and grabbed the wrist of whoever was touching him.

"Easy, easy," a calm voice told him. It had come from a masked man standing right in front of him. He recognized the white robe stained a dull pink around the belly area as a surgical gown. "I'm not trying to hurt you. Just let me finish this up, and I'll get to your other wounds."

As Link's awareness sharpened, he realized that, with the exception of a small cloth lying across his lap, he was completely naked. He sat on a gurney that had been placed on a table. Scratches covered his arms and legs. A thick bandage had been applied to the wounds on his left thigh and his left side just beneath his rib cage. He found that the surgeon was currently sewing up his right shoulder. Despite watching the needle thread through his skin, Link found himself too tired to be shocked by it. He took a moment to try to piece together events, but his mind was still in a bit of a haze.

Finally, he asked, "Where… where am I?"

"Hm?" the surgeon responded. "Oh. You're in a stitching room. The clinic whose front door you broke out."

The voice sounded casual about the damage Link had caused, but he told the surgeon, "I'm-I'm sorry."

"Eh. Don't be. The orderly on-duty was asleep at the desk. If it hadn't been for you breaking the window, you and the young woman might've died right out there on the street."

"Young… wo… Layna…" Link could feel his mind clearing more. He felt panic well up inside him. "Layna, where is she?"

"Okay, just take it easy for a bit," the surgeon tried to tell Link in a calming tone. "She's in surgery right now."

"I-I want to see her," Link said as he made to stand.

"No," the surgeon told him, pressing a hand against Link's chest to stop him. "You need to stay here. I'm not finished with your shoulder."

"Where is she?" Link demanded as he grabbed the surgeon's wrist with his good hand and tried to pull it away.

"Let me finish your shoulder first."

"I wanna see her now!"

"Nurse!" the surgeon hollered when Link slipped from behind his hand. He immediately released the needle he had been using to avoid stabbing either of them. "Hold him! Stop him!"

"Layna!?" Link rounded the table and found a doorway right in front of him.

Then a pair of arms wrapped him from behind, and he started struggling against them as he was lifted from the ground. "Keep him still!" a woman's voice called out.

Link did not see the needle until the blue-clad nurse stepped away from him. He struggled for a few more moments. Then sleep suddenly overtook him, and he passed out in the arms of the muscular orderly hugging him.

…

Link stirred after what felt like a second later. But as his head began to clear itself again, he found that he was no longer in the stitching room. He did not recognize the faux-stone ceiling tiles. But he was comfortable. He was in a bed, and someone had tucked him in up to his chest with a white bedsheet and a thick, green blanket. His body felt heavy. He looked to his left.

And he found that the bed left of his was occupied by someone. They had just a sheet and no blanket, and a white cloth had been placed over the person's face.

A body. It was a dead body.

As soon as Link's brain processed that information, he paled. He had been too late. He had lost Layna.

"Ah, you're awake." Link looked down at his feet in the direction of the voice. Standing at the foot of the bed was a tall, middle-aged man wearing a clean, white coat over a pink work shirt and tan slacks. Although Link had not seen his face before, he recognized the voice of the surgeon who had been working on him. "How are you feeling?"

Link glanced back at the corpse next to him. "Is… Is that…?" he tried to ask through a creaky voice, but he found he did not want to complete the sentence.

The surgeon grinned at him. "Try looking on the _other_ side."

Link looked to his right. To his great relief, Layna lay asleep, peaceful, with her chest visibly rising and falling to confirm that she was alive. He allowed himself a smile and a relaxed sigh.

"She's not quite out of danger yet," the surgeon told him. "But, barring being shot, stabbed, or spontaneously bleeding out, she should be recovered in time, Captain."

Link gave another sigh of relief. "Thank you," he told the surgeon. "I was worried that I'd lost her."

"You probably would've. In fact, with as much blood as the both of you were losing, you found us just in time."

Link gave him a concerned look. "Was… was I _that_ bad?" The surgeon opened a footlocker sitting hidden behind the foot of Link's bed. He pulled out a pair of trousers and held them up to show Link the dozens of bullet holes in the legs. Link had to take a moment to recognize them as his own trousers. When he did, his eyes opened a little wider. "Oh. Wow."

"The undersuit you were wearing tells the story better," the surgeon told him as he dropped the trousers. "Unfortunately, that was so saturated with blood that we had to cut it off and burn it. Though, I imagine some of it belonged to _her_."

"I-I thought I only took a couple of bullets," Link said.

The surgeon reached down as he replied, "You did." He picked up a small, metal pan. Link sat up, a particularly difficult move since his whole body throbbed with the movement, as the surgeon rounded the bed. He managed to raise his head enough to see one small round, two regular rounds, and an oddly-shaped bullet in the pan. "I've pulled almost every manner of object out of a human body. But I have _never_ seen a bullet like this before. Now I know you sailing types are good at inventing new ways of injuring yourselves, Captain, but I have _never_ seen so many bullet wounds as you and your friend here."

"Well, it's a pretty long… sto…"

Link froze. "Sailing types"? "Captain"? He felt his heart pounding hard in his chest, and that just seemed to make his body ache more. He could not believe it. The doctor knew who he was.

The surgeon shook his head, an amused grin on his face. "So _you_ are Captain Link," he said. "I have to say, you don't have much of a game face."

Link glared at him. "Are you planning to turn me in to the Skyriders?"

The surgeon gave a silent chuckle and reached below Link's bed. "Not particularly," he said as he drew out a small crate. He sat down on it and placed the metal pan next to Link's feet. "I _should_, but it doesn't sit well now that we've actually met."

Link's face relaxed. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet. You need to realize that you're in danger of being found if the Skyriders are still here."

Link shook his head. "It's the same no matter where we go."

"They were here searching for you a couple days ago. They seemed pretty sure they would find you or one of your crewmen…" He paused and then nodded at Layna. "Or crew_women_ here."

Link nodded his understanding, believing that Captain North had expected them to get to the nearest clinic if any of them had been injured escaping Tabletop Island. "What about the Skyriders? Did any of them need treatment here?"

"No, though I noticed one of them had a broken arm in a sling."

Link sighed. Then he closed his eyes and tried to suppress a yawn. "What time is it?"

"About half past five in the morning."

"The _morning_?" Link asked, his voice betraying shock. "How-how long was I out?"

"Eight hours or so. We had to sedate you so we could finish closing your shoulder." He hunched forward. "What happened to you two? Who was shooting at you?"

Link sighed. "Those-those monsters that have been… attacking people. In the center of the island. One of them had a… a _gun_, I guess. Something I don't think anyone's ever seen before. I think it's the thing that was shooting those strange bullets. I-I didn't think I'd been _hit_ by one, though."

The surgeon glanced back at the pan. "You weren't. That was pulled out of _her_ shoulder. Among others. Not that _you_ didn't get an unimpressive amount, either. Three bullets generally mean a grave, you know. What were you two doing, staring at it while it _shot_ you?"

"We took cover," Link said. "But… I guess it wasn't good enough. And… I think the shooter was a little… No, I'd say he was _quite_ insane." He glanced over at Layna. "Where was she shot?"

"Four in her legs, three in her arms, the left shoulder… two in her stomach and one in her chest," the surgeon said. "Tough girl. All the weapons we found on her helped, too; she had…" The surgeon started gesturing. "… The nurse told me she had a circular blade of some sort right about here. The bullet hit it, and the other surgeon that saw to her thinks that the blade may have deflected the bullet from her lung. She'll have a few nasty scars, but from what he told me, she already has quite a few."

Link glanced at her again, remembering how little he actually knew about most of his crew. "How long do you think it'll be until she's able?"

"Between the injuries she sustained and the painkillers we've got her on, she should probably stay off her feet for a couple of weeks while she recovers. Where's she from? I've never seen a woman like her before."

"She's Gelto. She's from the surface."

The surgeon's eyebrows rose. "Oh, wow. Tough luck she came all the way up here just to get shot."

Link nodded. Then he remembered something and asked, "Hey, Doc? About a month or so ago, do you remember anything about the King and Queen of Hyrule being on this island?"

The surgeon adjusted his seat and said, "Well, I remember something about them being out this way, but that was longer ago, I think. I'd've assumed they'd gone back to Castle Island by now. Why do you ask?"

Link just shook his head. "Curiosity. I've been… well, I've been out of contact for a while; that was just something I remember before then."

"Līnca!" Link jumped at the sound of Irleen's high-pitched voice. She bounced through the air as if out of nowhere and landed on the bed near Link's feet. "Con katàwì? Katòhan?"

"Oh," Link moaned. "Uh… doctor, I had a… a couple of gems in my pocket. Could you hand me the smaller one?"

"Sure," the surgeon replied, standing and moving to the footlocker again.

"Haħ?" Irleen asked. "Oħ. Līntána."

The surgeon rummaged for a moment before holding up the amethyst. "Is this it?" he asked.

"Yes, that's it," Irleen replied.

The surgeon stared at her for a moment. "So she _does_ speak Hylian," he said. "The orderly who took your clothes claimed he heard her speaking Hylian, but she's been speaking something else this whole time."

Link pulled his left arm (the only part of him that did not feel absolutely numb) out from under the bedsheet so he could hold out his hand. The doctor gave the translator gem to him, and he asked Irleen, "What were you saying?"

"I was asking how you were doing," she replied.

"Oh. Okay, I guess."

"Right. Look, I hate to bother you, but, even _with_ the Lizalfos all dead, we still need to repair the technoworks."

"Tech-technoworks?" the surgeon asked.

"It's a… It's a long story, Doc," Link told him. "How much longer do I need to recover?"

"Are you kidding?" the surgeon replied, raising an eyebrow. "Three bullet wounds and numerous lacerations? You need a couple of _days_ to rest up. Any strenuous work in that time, and you could wind up tearing out those stitches. We didn't give you any blood, but you _do_ need to let your body rest and restore the blood you lost."

"Not to mention you ran until you couldn't move your legs," Irleen added.

"You have some severe issues with exhaustion and, it seems, a bit of malnutrition. You have to rest."

"The longer I rest," Link said, "the longer I risk the Skyriders finding me."

The surgeon shook his head. "The Skyriders haven't been back, and I suspect they won't be for a while." Then he crossed his arms. "Besides, even if you would drive _yourself_ too hard, you might want to consider that your airman is in worse shape than you. She won't be going _anywhere_ for a couple of weeks. Unless you plan to abandon her."

"Link doesn't abandon _anyone_," Irleen argued, jumping up from the bed. "Do you know what he _went through_ to save her!?"

"Then he won't have any trouble _resting_ for a couple of days. We can keep you safe here. But you have to trust us." He glanced between both of them. "Other than having the Skyriders after you, you seem like a decent young man. Just give yourself and your friend here some time to rest. That's all I ask."

Link sighed. He had to admit that the opportunity to rest was quite appealing. And, if Layna was in seriously bad shape, maybe it would be best to remain. So he nodded and placed his head back on the pillow. "Okay, Doc. We'll rest."

"Yes, well, I'll have an orderly keeping an eye on you two just in case. The nurses will also be on-hand if you need anything. I think breakfast will be in about…" He turned to glance at a clock on the wall on the far side of the ward. "…mmm, another hour?" He paused and appeared to agree with himself. "I have some paperwork to fake, so I'll be by to check on you later before I leave. I'll let my relief know what's going on."

Link nodded. "Thanks, Doc."

"Yeah, thanks," Irleen said. The surgeon nodded and left through a door on the far side of the ward.

Link turned his head to stare at Layna. He considered how she would react when she woke up, whether she would remain in bed or try to ambush the next person to set foot in the room. The thought brought a sad smile to his face. He did not want to think about it, but he realized that, after all the trauma of being shot up by the Gatolfos, there was a chance that she might not be the same stealthy, acrobatic "watcher" that had been following him around for a month. Would she live with it? Would she let one of the other Gelto take her place?

"You saved her, Link," Irleen spoke up, interrupting his thoughts. "One can only guess at how she's going to respond to it. It could be that she'll follow you around until you die."

"I'm just glad she made it," Link said as he continued to watch Layna. "Too many people have died because of me. I… I don't want to see anymore…"

Irleen allowed a moment of silence before saying, "You pulled Layna out of the worst possible situation. Maybe… maybe those other people died because you weren't _there_ to save them. I saw you try once, remember? And… I know now that, even if you didn't know what to do… you would've saved the _Horizon's Eye_. But it's not fair of you to blame yourself when you didn't even have a chance. I-I don't want to say that these things just _happen_… but instead of saying that they died because of you, maybe you should think that they died because of _Cunimincus_. If it hadn't been for him, none of this would have started in the first place." She paused. "I don't know if it helps, but…"

"Thank you, Irleen," he told her, turning to look at her. "It… sounds a little weird, but… yeah. Yeah, it _does_ help."

Irleen released a large sigh and asked, "So _now_ what do we do?"

Link glanced over at the clock. "It'll be a few more hours before Leynne and Lilly meet up with the _Symphony_," he told her. "I know it'll be a problem, but do you think you can bring him here when they do?"

"I _suppose_ I could. I might have to fly around for a bit; I'm not sure where we are."

"That's fine. Just make sure you can find us here again."

"Got it." She then sailed out of the room. Link looked back up at the ceiling and was just beginning to contemplate everything that had happened to them last night when he heard Irleen flutter through the room again. He looked up just as she passed over the foot of his bed. "Wrong way," she told him with an embarrassed giggle before disappearing out the other doorway in the ward.

Link allowed himself a chuckle and glanced back up at the ceiling. Now that he had decided to allow Layna and himself to rest, he felt so much more relaxed than ever before. It seemed to him as if he had had to go to sleep every night thinking about all of the people that wanted him and needed him ever since he had returned to the sky. It was quite possible that he was on painkillers that made him so comfortable, but it was a comfort he could live with for now. Besides, the surgeon was right. Link could not go anywhere without causing Layna to want to go with him; he felt he understood how she thought by now (for various situations in which she was _not_ likely to spontaneously kiss him). If he stayed with her, it should make her rest long enough for her wounds to heal.

The quiet of the ward allowed Link to hear a sharp breath from nearby. He turned to find Layna staring up at the ceiling. "Hey, Layna," he said. He offered her a grin and held up his left hand to give her a thumbs-up. "We made it."

Layna turned her head slightly and gave him a look of utter bewilderment, as if she had not been expecting to still be alive. Link found himself worried for a moment. Then he was shocked to see Layna give him a thankful smile before turning to look back up at the ceiling. He chuckled to himself, relieved that her response had been so simple and, at the same time, so communicative when compared to the usual affair of either of them speaking and being misunderstood by the other.

A nurse stepped in a moment later. Link half-expected Layna to react, but she had gone back to sleep. The nurse approached Link's bed and slid the crate back underneath it. Then she asked, "Do you need anything?"

Link nodded. "Yeah," he told her. "Where's the head at? I've been holding it in for a while."


	88. Sonatinas of Restoration and Return

Chapter 88: Sonatinas of Restoration and Return

…

"Well, I must say, I'm ratheh shocked that you've actually been _injuhed_ in you nohmal ventuh. It's… really quite amusing." Link tried to resist the massive grin fighting to form on his face and ultimately lost. He had to admit that it _was_ kind of funny.

It was later in the afternoon, a time which Link expected Irleen to return with Leynne and Lilly. They had only just stepped into the ward where he and Layna were recovering and, other than those words, there had been Leynne crossing his arms and amusedly shaking his head. Lilly had looked mildly concerned, but Leynne's and Link's smiles seemed to quickly ease her worry.

"I'm glad Irleen found you two," Link said as he watched Irleen hover over his bed. "I was worried that it'd be hard since you guys wouldn't understand one another."

"Fohtunately, panic translates quite well," Leynne said.

"I wasn't _panicking_," Irleen argued. "If you knew _what_ I was saying, you'd probably be annoyed."

"Why?" Lilly asked. "Were you insultin' us?"

"Just him," Irleen answered.

"Chahming," Leynne told her with a sarcastic grin. Then he looked back to Link and asked, "So what do we do now?"

"Well, how are we in terms of funds?" Link asked.

Leynne put on an irritated look. "Well, not as fah along as I'd hoped," he admitted. "I _was_ on my way to request anotheh day." Then he put on a grin. "I don't want to sound pretentious, _Captain_, but I can't help but assume I have it?"

"You have it," Link said with a grin and a nod.

"I've found most tend to resist once they heah me speaking. I've tried to explain that I'm from the south."

"And _I_ gotta been tryin'na tell him that that story's _impossible_," Lilly spoke up. She shrugged. "But he doesn't wanna believe me."

"We're up here in the sky, Leynne," Link said. "Remember? All the directions up here are backwards."

"Which is annoying in _itself_," Leynne said. "I can't simply come to call south 'nohth'. That's not how my head wohks."

"The accent doesn't help, either," Lilly said, pointing to her throat. "To me, he sounds like an accountant or somethin'."

"I think he sounds like that to _everyone_," Irleen said. "I hear everything in Sorian, and he _still_ sounds like an accountant."

"I have to _explain_ things," Leynne argued. "I can't just keep _quiet_."

"Leynne, just tell everyone you're from Black Island," Link told him. "Trust me, it'll help."

"Why?" Leynne asked. "Do residents of Black Island sound like me?"

"_Nobody_ knows what peoples from Black Island sound like," Lilly said. "Not even peoples from Black Island."

"Seriously?" Irleen asked, sounding annoyed.

"I know," Lilly said. "It's weird, huh?"

Leynne gave a hesitant moan. "I'm not suh I'm comfohtable with outright _lying_ to people I'm making business deals with," he admitted.

"It's either that or get used to calling south 'north'," Link said. "We really don't want the Skyriders following leads back to us through other people, especially after what happened with Lilly. North already knows that we have surface dwellers on the _Symphony_. If he's heard that you, a surface dweller, have been making arrangements for payment, that could put _more_ people in danger."

"We _do_ gotta protect other peoples as well as ourselves," Lilly told Leynne. "And the truth is always the best."

"An omission is _not_ the truth," Leynne told her with a bit of an edge in his voice. Then he sighed and said, "I'll… just go with the nohth-is-south thing. But I intend to make some cohrections to the way navigation is done up heh. That's just _annoying_."

Link grinned. "Noted. How's the ship?"

"The _Symphony_'s fine," Leynne said. "But I don't think we want to leave it at the docks foh long."

Link nodded in agreement. "The surgeon here doesn't want us moving for a while. I'll be up and around tomorrow, though, and I'll take care of the technoworks." He looked up at Irleen. "It can wait another day, right?"

"Probably," Irleen agreed. "There shouldn't be as much heat built up down below, so the technoworks shouldn't be immediate danger. We can wait, but we shouldn't wait _too_ long. Yeah, another day should be fine."

"'Heat built up'?" Leynne asked.

"Areas of the technoworks were exposed to the air," Irleen said.

"It's almost as hot as a desert under the island," Link added. "It'll take some work, but we should be able to return the Sky Lines sometime tomorrow. So, Leynne, if you can return to the ship and have them remain below the island for another day, we'll take care of everything tomorrow."

"Everything?" Leynne asked. He circled his hands around each other as he drawled, "As in…"

"Resupply the _Symphony_, take care of whatever other necessities we need, and then move on," Link explained.

"What about Layna?" Leynne asked, pointing at the sleeping Gelto.

"We'll get her aboard the ship tomorrow," Link said. "She can recover there. Afterwards, we can find a clinic on another island and have her examined again."

"Think you can convince the doctor to let us take her?" Irleen asked.

"Injured people are allowed to travel," Link said. "Sick people, too. Especially if they need to return home or something."

"Oh!" Lilly cried out, snapping her fingers. "Speaking of sick peoples, I feel I know where the king and queen are."

"You do?"

Lilly nodded vigorously, and Link thought her head would pop off from the force. "They left the same day that the Sky Lines disappeared," she told them. "And wherever they went from there, it hadda be close, but it wouldn't be Tabletop Island. And since we're sure they didn't show up at Sagacity Island, the next best place'a search would gotta be West Iron Island."

"Okay…" Leynne droned for a moment. "So why the invocation of 'sick peoples'?"

"Because, wherever the queen is, she's probably really ill."

Both Link's and Leynne's eyes became wide. Irleen asked, "Ill? How?"

"I don't know yet. But it's the reason they delayed their trip backka Castle Island."

"And by the time she was well enough to travel," Leynne concluded, "the Sky Lines weh gone. Right?"

Lilly held up a finger. "Not quite. You see, they left so they could get the queen backka Castle Island, backka doctors that know her illness. Just like the captain's proposin'na take Layna, the king took the queen bedridden. She was well enough'fa travel, but _not_ enough'fa not need a doctor." Leynne tried to work the semantics of that last statement in his head, unsure if he had understood her right.

"Right," Link said as he realized something, "because, before the Sky Lines disappeared, there should've been a nearly-direct route straight through the middle of the kingdom. Right?"

Lilly nodded. "At best, maybe a couple days."

"But then the Sky Lines disappeahed," Leynne said. "So they would've traveled… west?"

"Either direction is at least a week and a half of sailin' even _with_ good winds," Lilly said. "At least, that's how _I_ understood it."

"You'h not wrong," Leynne told her. "Might and Tabletop Islands ah relatively isolated compahed with the rest of the kingdom. We could easily be looking at anotheh two weeks going eitheh way."

"So the king and queen are going… uh… the direction we _didn't_ go, right?" Irleen asked. "But if the queen got sick, what would happen?"

"I imagine, if they had the ability, they would stop," Leynne said. "But, considering that they neveh retuhned _heh_, that means they would've stopped at this… what was it? This island you mentioned?"

"West Iron Island," Lilly said. "And, yes, I feel they would've at least _stopped_ there. But, since there isn't any _news_ between the islands, well…" She bobbed her head from side to side to indicate her helplessness.

Link nodded. "Thanks, Lilly, that's great. At least we know we're going in the right direction. Uh…" He scratched the back of his head. "Look, I wanted to ask you… if you would join my crew, at least temporarily."

To Link's surprise, Lilly's features lit up with joy. "Oh, you _bet_!"

Link and Leynne stared at her in surprise. Even Irleen expressed astonishment at her acceptance by freezing in place, nearly falling out of the air. "R-really?" Link asked.

Lilly nodded. "I like this," she said. "I never traveled like this before. It's kinda fun."

"You know, _except_ the whole issue of being on a ship hunted by the fake princess of Hyrule," Leynne explained.

She shrugged. "It's not like I'd be any safer back home. Besides, this is _great_ for my studies."

Leynne and Link exchanged shrugs. "Okay, that solves that," Link said. "Leynne, you and Lilly should probably get back to the _Symphony_ and set things in motion. We'll meet here tomorrow."

Leynne nodded. "All right, Link. Tomohrow."

Lilly waved as they both turned to leave. "See ya tomorrow."

…

~~Day—I don't know what day it is.

~~I've been away from the Island Symphony for almost two days. Both Layna and I were injured after facing the Lizalfos down in the technoworks under the center of Might Island. We're both resting at a clinic on the north side of the island, hopefully far enough away from the Moon's Shadow that Captain North won't find us. I couldn't sleep tonight because of my shoulder, so I found some paper and a pen at the doctors' desk.

~~I met with Leynne and Lilly earlier this afternoon. We know where the king and queen are, or at least where they've been.

…

~~Day 48

~~One of my crewmen is dead and two more are too injured to work. I can barely move myself. That encounter at Tabletop Island went worse than I expected. I just know Captain North is near, so I have to take the Island Symphony out of here. Leynne believes our best chance is at Timbre Island because it's small and out of the way. We lay low for a bit, and then back to Sagacity Island so we can drop Lilly off. I know the Sky Lines on the east side of the kingdom are back. From Sagacity Island, it would be easy to return to Castle Island.

…

"For the record," Irleen said as she circled Link's head, "a _Sorian_ doctor wouldn't be so eager to manipulate the facts."

"Well then, I guess we should be glad that we had a _Hylian_ doctor," Link responded with a grim tone.

Early in the morning, there was a sort of haunted feeling about the empty and broken streets in the middle of Might Island. The stars had disappeared from the navy blue sky, casting the buildings around him in a strange ambience that could only exist between night and day. It was odd to see the landscape so dark against a bright sky. Link had become accustomed to the definiteness of things around him from the time he had spent on the surface, how night and day could so clearly be distinguished even when watching the sun rise and fall.

He probably pondered the sight because of his own venture into strange territory. Last night, the surgeon which had stitched him up had caught him making a journal entry using stuff he had found in the desk. They started discussing Link's problems with being chased by the Skyriders, and the surgeon commented that, with all the blood and bullet holes in Link's clothes, it would be quite easy to misdirect the encounter at Tabletop Island. To that end, Link had written a fake journal, taking suggestions from the surgeon and trying to keep his intentions vague. Their idea had been to make Captain North believe that Link was going to return to Castle Island. The paper Link had written on had been stashed in the pocket of his ruined trousers, and they, along with his bloody and shot-up tunic, had been placed in an old footlocker and deposited behind the clinic. The other doctors and nurses who had seen Link and Layna would be witnesses to their stay and, due to some of them carrying the footlocker outside, eventually point to the false evidence as part of the clinic trying to cover up Link's visit. Although the plan hinged on the Skyriders returning after Link gathered his crew and left, Link felt that the idea would work.

However, Link also felt that the misdirection was the latest in a lying game he was beginning to play. Yesterday, he had wanted Leynne to claim that he had come from Black Island just so he could not be traced back to the _Island Symphony_. And he had been falsifying the logbooks at nearly every port he had been to. Now, he was hoping that a fake journal would take North in the wrong direction. He began to feel uncomfortable with his actions now that he had a moment to think about them. Captains had hammered into his head the consequences of lying and misleading, and Line had always been a reminder of the kinds of trouble lying could bring with his record of trying to wiggle out of responsibility and, ultimately, failing. It concerned him that, if discovered, he could be in for some devastating results. At the same time, though, Link felt he was losing options. They were too close to being caught by the _Moon's Shadow_. He wanted to avoid another encounter, fearing that his crew might be killed. Added to the dangers of finding Cunimincus' crew in the technoworks, the idea of losing any of his crew at any turn was becoming unbearable. Link had to tip the odds in his favor. There were still people that needed his help.

Irleen had picked up on the unease in his tone and asked, "What's wrong, Link?"

"I just… Do you think I lie too easily?" he asked in turn.

"_You_?" she asked with a chuckle tinting her voice. "Lying? Link, you're probably the most honest person I know. What makes you think you're _capable_ of it?"

"I asked Leynne to lie yesterday," Link said. "And… at every port, I've been putting a different name in the dockmasters' logs. And last night, that doctor and I came up with a way to send Captain North in the wrong direction. It's… kinda bothering me."

"Well it _shouldn't_," Irleen told him. "Link, we're talking about a man who has orders to kill you. It's bad enough you're trying to keep _him_ alive. You don't need to feel guilty just because you have to lie to _him_. If anything, you lying to keep him away from the ship is probably _better_ for his health. Especially since any of the Gelto can _kill_ him at any time."

Link stared at the road for a moment. "I… I hadn't really thought about it like that. Still… I think I should apologize to him after all this. He's… They may be fake, but he _is_ just following his orders."

"That's your decision, Link. But, for now, it's best that he goes as _far_ away as possible."

Link allowed himself to grin and gave her a nod. Maybe it was good that Irleen had set everything out before him. Still, he hoped to eventually explain everything to North later on, when the captain was _not_ trying to kill him.

The main reason for waiting for morning was so Link might have a chance at finding any Lizalfos he might have still been alive by virtue of not being around when he, Irleen, and Layna had ventured into the technoworks. But from the time Link entered the haunted areas of the city to his rediscovery of the entrance, nothing approached him. So he ventured into the technoworks with Irleen watching his back just in case.

His first decision was to find the two bodies that he and Layna had hidden in the dormitory and, in a similar manner to what they had done with the later Lizalfos, pull the tiles up from the floor and bury the corpses for the technoworks to absorb. It turned out to be a very arduous process, and Link was thankful for the change of clothes he had received from the clinic. He wore a black body suit under a pair of black trousers and a lime-green, short-sleeve shirt, relatively lighter and a little more comfortable to wear and move around in compared to his old clothes. His hat, boots, and gloves had survived the fight with the Gatolfos as did most of his gear; he had not realized that his boomerang had saved his buttock from an embarrassing wound until he had picked it up earlier as he was gearing up. He lamented his shot-up tunic and resolved to get another one as soon as getting another one would not lead to a quick death.

The upside to his new clothing was his comfort when it came to descending into the lower levels after burying the Lizalfos and retrieving the small bag of lead rounds that the Lizalfos had been making. The heat had not improved since the first time, and it made Link miserable as he started replacing all of the large cubes. This was considerably less exciting while he had a bullet wound in his shoulder, but his thoughts about finally leaving this island and finding the king and queen helped him push through the issue. The first room he did was the ladder room. He even replaced the cube that had sat between that room and the corridor since, in the process of returning the cubes where they belonged, he discovered another room.

A room which he wished he had _not_ discovered. The Lizalfos had left the tiles in this room alone. Instead, the ground was littered with the bones of the Hylians that the Lizalfos had killed and eaten. Link and Irleen stood stunned at the doorway, eyes taking in the sight of thousands of bones scattered about the room in indiscriminate piles. Not all of them were Hylians; Link knew this much, and the incredible size of some of the bones supported it. Still, he felt sick looking at this room, and he eventually had to back out of the room and rest against the wall of the ladder room so he could resume breathing.

Irleen followed a split-second later. "This is… This is just…" She could not finish her sentence, perhaps out of shock or disgust; her voice seemed vague in either direction. "I-I… I can't…"

Link understood her frantic stammering, believing himself to be in the same mindset and grateful that his own shock had left him silent. He had not realized the extent to which the Lizalfos had been preying on the locals. How long had they been there? And…

And was Line among them?

He clutched at his chest as if to physically grasp control of his heart. There could have been over a _hundred_ bodies in that room. How many were Hylian? How many were not? Which was the Sorian they had brought with them? The scattered remains would never tell. It was bad enough that they had all died to feed the scourge of the skies. But they had done worse. The room was a mass grave, and each person that had been discarded into it no longer had an identity.

Link nearly choked on the bile trying to rise in his throat, and he swallowed it back. Then he told Irleen, "We… We need to… to tell someone. About-about this. They… They shouldn't have to remain here."

"Okay," Irleen replied in a silent voice Link almost did not hear.

They ventured through the room to a doorway on the right. Link took extra care to step over the bones no matter what they had belonged to. He wished he knew some kind of rite or show of respect to give to them, if anything to help him cope with the sight by giving him assurance that he had done all he could. But this was just another reminder of how much he had messed up. He tried not to look at the bones too carefully, tried not to imagine who they might have belonged to before the Lizalfos had stripped their individuality away.

He finally found his breath as he stepped back into the room where he and the Gatolfos had fought. The body still lay in the middle of the floor, and, with the heat, had begun to create an ugly stench. Neither he nor Irleen talked as he cleared another space in the floor to dump the corpse.

But by the time he was ready to drop the Gatolfos in the floor, he just stood above the corpse and thought about which lives this monster had consumed just to keep up its murdering ways. Rage bubbled inside him, and before he knew it, he was kicking the corpse. He kicked hard, and he kept kicking until he was sure the toe of his boot would rip open. If it would, then he would kick until the footing of his body suit tore. Then he would kick until his toes broke, until he could not stand. Then… Then… He did not know what he would do. It felt as if his life had just been shortened to this one moment where he abused a dead body for reasons he was not sure of anymore. He could not even remember what he was angry at. His voice came out in grunts, and then they were cries of pain.

The force he exerted eventually caused something to dislodge from the headless body's jacket. The pistol was in Link's hands the instant he saw it on the ground. He held it at the corpse, hand shaking wildly as he tried to aim for where he believed its heart was. He squeezed the trigger just to realize that the pistol had not been loaded. In frustration, Link hollered something incoherent and threw the pistol across the room. He delivered two more kicks to the corpse, and the force from the second one caused him to lose his balance and fall onto the floor behind him.

Irleen found it safe enough to float down in front of him. He sniffled, tears leaking from his eyes and snot covering his upper lip. He sat like a rag doll about to flop forward onto its face, eyes staring at the floor between his legs and arms limp at his sides. "Did it help?" she asked.

"No," Link replied in a cracked voice.

Irleen remained silent for a moment. Then she said, "Put it in the technoworks. In twenty, thirty years, the Hylians here will live off of _it_."

Link nodded and slowly returned to his feet. He silently dragged the Gatolfos' body into the hole, where the technoworks hissed as they seemed to cook the body. Link then went and used his foot to slide its head along the tiles and into the hole. He replaced the floor cubes on top of the grave. Next, he found the cubes that he had thrown and, using the flowing patterns on their tile surfaces, placed them back into the appropriate holes in the floor behind the scrap pile he had been using for cover. As he was doing this, he realized that there actually had been gaps large enough for bullets to get through and found himself amazed that he had not put himself in front of one during the fight. The fact that the Gatolfos had managed to miss him so many times left him wondering if the monster had actually been _aiming_ that gun. After the floor repairs, he went to the large cubes that had been pulled out of the walls and pushed them back in. He started from the wall closest to where he had replaced the tiles and followed the walls, glad that the cubes here had only been pulled out partially.

When he found his quiver again, he stopped and stared at the dried, smeared mess of dark crimson behind a shot-up, wooden table. He stepped down to stand over the dried pool, heart pounding in his chest and stomach twisting into knots each second he stared. His dried eyes welled with tears again, and he pressed a hand over them as if to stop from crying again.

"What the hell is _wrong_ with me?" he asked aloud.

"Link?" Irleen asked as she hovered in front of his face.

"Layna nearly died here," he told her.

"But she didn't. Link, you saved her."

"I know, but…"

"It's just like I said, Link. Layna survived because you were _there_ to save her. Layna is danger-incarnate; she knew what she was getting into. It was her choice, so don't blame yourself for her injuries."

"It's just…" He removed his hand and gestured at the blood. "They're all in danger for as long as they're with me. I don't know if they really understand that."

"Link. Most of your crew didn't sign on just because they needed a job. They signed on because they trust you and want to help you. They might not have known what kind of danger they'd be in, but they're _still_ with you. They won't give up, and they're not gonna let _you_ give up. And _you_ can't let things like this bother you anymore. That'll be how you lose this crew."

"You're right, you're right," Link said, wiping his eyes. "It's just… it's scary. It only took two days of command for me to lose my best friend."

"I know you don't want to lose anyone else. But that's the kind of point Captain Albel was trying to make. Sure, he wasn't _nice_ about it, but you'll _definitely_ lose the _Symphony_ if you keep shutting down like this every time you think you're gonna lose someone."

Link nodded and reached over to retrieve his quiver. "It's not just my crew, Irleen. It's everyone we meet."

"I know, you've got a big heart. I'm not asking you to stop caring. Just… try to keep your head together. For all we know, the same thing may be waiting for us on the next island." Link nodded. Then, spotting the next cube that needed to be replaced, he stepped up and strolled to it. "By the way, you _do_ realize that everyone on your crew is _older_ than you, right?" The revelation caused Link to chuckle.

He finished the room and moved on to another room through a third door. This room was not as deep, but it sported the very thing they needed: columns. They stood on the opposite side of the room from the door and, like the columns on Sagacity Island, the blue particles under the surface were falling to the floor. This room did not appear to have been bothered by the Lizalfos, although Link noted a few bullet holes in the left wall, standing out more due to the presence of the warning glow of necrosis. Link drew the blues harp from his pocket and stepped up to the area between the columns. He could not remember which note it was that he had to play, but he knew it was a draw note. He went through the range starting from the right and found it to be the fourth hole from the right when the particles froze in place. So he let out all his breath and pulled on the note, watching the particles rearrange themselves into the similar lines of Sorian script. Yet again, he had to pause so he could breathe out.

When he was finished, Irleen looked at the lists. "Okay, first, we need to reconnect the technoworks," she told him. She stopped at the top of the column on Link's right. "This one." Link had to stretch to touch the bullet next to the word. A white circle appeared where Link had been standing. And, just as before, the emeralds on the top side of the blues harp glowed a pattern for Link to play. He returned to his place and studied the pattern. It appeared simpler than the songs he had played in the Sagacity technoworks, but it was longer and harder for him to remember completely.

His first attempt saw him play it all the way through on the first try. However, since the technoworks had not responded, he assumed that he had missed or made a mistake on a few notes because, otherwise, it sounded like a fairly agreeable song. It had a slow pace, but it kept an upbeat, inviting tone that made Link feel less annoyed about having to play it again. Although, two tries later, he was becoming irritated by his lack of progress. He watched the pattern again until he found that, in the process of memorizing the latter notes, he had confused a series of notes with a similar set that occurred at the beginning. Now realizing the mistake, he played through it once again.

The technoworks responded with a low, grinding sound somewhere behind him while the room changed to a soft, blue color. He played again, and the sound of the blues harp drowned out the grinding. When he was done, he played once more. Halfway through, the technoworks returned to normal, but since Link was into the song enough, he continued to play it to the end.

There was a moment of silence as he glanced up at Irleen. She eventually asked, "Having fun yet?"

Link grinned at her. "Actually, that one _was_ kinda fun," he admitted. "I think I'll have to remember that tune; I think Lukka might like it."

"Who?"

"He's a member of the Sokk—uh, he's a member of a band," Link said, correcting himself when he realized that Irleen might not recognize the name. "Remember? That band I mentioned back on Sagacity? He taught me how to play the harmonica."

"Oh. Well, remember later. We need to get the Sky Lines going next."

"We do? What about all the necrosis around here?"

"That song you just played restored the technoworks to the way they were before the Lizalfos started taking them apart," she explained. "This includes the injuries to the technoworks. It's… sort of like a 'reset'. The technoworks created a kind of 'save point' when the Lizalfos started taking it apart, so when you replaced all the exposed areas, the technoworks realized that it might need to reset and made the option available. And since most of the injuries were not part of the technoworks for any significant period of time, the technoworks should have placed in part of a signal to trigger apoptosis."

Link scrunched his face for a moment. "Um… sooo… the technoworks are back to normal?"

Irleen released an exhausted sigh. "_Yes_, Link. The technoworks are back to normal. The exposed parts are linked together again, and the necrosis has been repaired. There's a chance that the necrosis wasn't a big deal anyway; we didn't find a whole lot of it like on Sagacity Island."

Link nodded. "Okay. So…"

"I need the list again."

"Right." Link put the blues harp to his mouth again and pulled the note to return the list to the columns. He glanced at the one on the left, expectant of her to approach that one.

She did as he thought and hovered next to the second-to-last item. "This one, and then it should be the second item again." Link pressed the first one, and then he paused to see if she said anything else. "Yeah, go ahead, Link."

Link tapped the second bullet. This caused the room to grow dark, and the circle in the floor returned. Just as before, Link took up position and studied the notes flashing on the blues harp. The notes were simple, like the song before, but this one was also quite long compared to the songs on Sagacity Island. His first attempt saw him recalling the notes from the wrong song and playing it part-way through until he realized his mistake. It was pretty honest; he could recognize parts that the two songs shared. He stopped and studied the notes longer and harder. Then he played again only to result in accidentally skipping some of the song in favor of playing notes that he knew were shared by the two songs.

"Link…" Irleen moaned when he stopped mid-song again.

"Just give me a moment," he told her as he started memorizing the notes again. He stared hard at the blues harp.

Then he played a piece that reminded him of some of the romantic songs that he had heard from some of his musician friends. It was soothing, and Link felt a little lulled by the song, almost as if he was about to fall asleep standing. He managed to keep his wits together long enough to play through twice. The third time, however, he lost track of where he was in the song and played himself into a loop of the same notes until he stopped.

"Whoops…" he told Irleen with a sheepish grin.

"Don't stop, Link," she told him in urgency. "Hurry, keep playing."

Link restarted the song and found that some of the notes had changed, similar to what had happened to the second song on Sagacity Island. But these ones were easier to catch, and he finished the final iteration of the song with only a few notes out of time with the rest of the song. It must have been acceptable because the ground shook underneath Link's boots, and the particles disappeared from the wall. When it was finished, light returned to the room.

Link glanced up at Irleen. "Well?"

"That last one sounded a little funny. What'd you do?"

"It changes notes on the third one. Do we have Sky Lines again?"

She glanced around the room. "Yep, we do."

Link nodded. "Okay. We should get back to the clinic. If we make it in time, we should be able to make it before Leynne tells the ship to duck away for another day."


	89. Uncharted Skies

Chapter 89: Uncharted Skies

…

Link did not make it. All of his work putting the technoworks back together and restoring the Sky Lines had taken up more time than Link had expected. He returned to the clinic fifteen minutes after their scheduled meeting and was informed by the nurse watching Layna that Leynne and Lilly would be returning at their second planned time later in the afternoon. In the meantime, they had left behind a basket of food for Link and Layna. Although Link appreciated it, he wished Leynne had chosen something more appropriate to the diet provided by their usual rations. He took out some of the stuff they could not eat and let the staff have it in thanks for what they had done for them.

Layna woke up in time to join Link for lunch. They spent part of the time watching each other. Link had seen Layna fight with a nurse last night about feeding herself despite her injuries. The fight had ended when Layna had taken hold of the nurse's neck, which had prompted Link to step in. Now, she was a lot calmer about the situation. Actually, Link found that she was actually quite cautious. Every bite was small and planned after a few seconds' contemplation of whatever was in her hands. It was as if she was looking for the right angle to take her next bite from. She chewed slowly and deliberately, something he had not quite expected from someone who had eaten so little in the past two days. She would swallow. And then she would stare at him with that emotionless glare she wore whenever things got serious. Link wondered if her meticulous method was the result of her being in pain. He was eating fairly slowly himself, trying to keep his movement minimal due to the throbbing in his right shoulder.

"Wow," Irleen moaned after twenty minutes of watching this silent meal. "Worst dinner conversation _ever_, Link."

"S-sorry," Link said, looking up to find her circling overhead. "I wasn't trying to ignore you or anything…"

"Not _me_, you dope," she replied. "C'mon, you're one-on-one with one of your crew. Shouldn't you… I don't know, talk work or something?"

Link glanced at Layna, who had stopped eating in response to their conversation. "What's the point?" Link asked Irleen. "She doesn't speak Hylian."

"So what? She's still got ears. At least _say_ something to her. Get her talking."

"We—… What should I say to her?"

"You're kidding, right? You took out a bunch of Lizalfos together. You saved her from _bleeding_ to death. I'm sure you can find some topic of conversation in there somewhere."

Link glanced at Layna again. "It's gonna be awkward passing your gem back and forth."

"Who's telling you to do that? There's no romance in it."

"R-_Romance_!?"

Irleen stopped and bounced in place for a moment. Then she zipped toward the door. "If you need me," she said in a bright voice, "I'll just be in the other room _not_ overhearing a _thing_~!"

"Irleen!" Link called after her. He rose to follow, but then he decided against it and sat back on the edge of his bed. Chasing after her would only aggravate some of his wounds anyway. After sharing an awkward look with Layna (who had not changed her expression), Link returned to eating the bread in his hands.

But Irleen's words repeated themselves in his head, and he started to find the quiet between them a little frustrating. No one else was in the ward except the nurse on duty, and she had turned her attention to some paperwork while snacking on a piece of fruit Link had given away. The rest of the beds were empty; the corpse had been removed the previous morning, and no one had come to the clinic and needed to stay for very long. Link could not focus on the food in his hands. Even as he stared at his half-eaten loaf of bread, his attention was on the fact that he and Layna were sitting across from each other over a basket of food.

"So, uh…" he found himself speaking to Layna without any sort of conversation planned out. He gave a nervous laugh, prompting her to look up from her food again. "The… The technoworks were kinda… sc-scaly… huh…" She just stared, and he started scratching the back of his head. "You-you know? The Lizalfos and… and their… scales… They're… scaly?" Layna continued to stare, making Link feel all the more awkward. "Uh…"

He shifted, and it caused him to wince at the pain caused by the wound in his thigh. This caused Layna to react, eyes widening in surprise, and she set her food in the basket. "No!" Link immediately said, raising a hand to stop her as she attempted to stand. "It's-it's okay. That was my fault, that was just me." Layna, although not really understanding, sat back down. "You know, it-it just—It kinda hurts to move." Quickly catching what he had just said, he sighed. "What am I talking about? You've got more bullet holes than me. It's a wonder how you're sitting up.

"Or maybe not, I guess. I've known you for a month and… well, I just realized that I don't know a _thing_ about you. You know, other than you being a trained killer. That's-that's actually kinda scary. I… I have to admit that, well… I'm a little worried you might kill someone. Uh… you know… on… accident… misunderstanding, something like that. I guess… I'm kinda afraid that you might kill _me_ or something." He punctuated the statement with another nervous laugh, but Layna did not react. "Uh… yeah, you, uh… you don't smile.

"Well… no, I take that back. You don't smile a _lot_. When you gave me that smile after you woke up… it felt so good to see it. You've got a nice smile. You know that? I mean, well… it's nothing like _Dholit_. You know, when _she_ smiles, it's… you just… you just get this feeling something _weird_ is gonna happen. It's creepy. And she says some of the strangest things when she's talking to the rest of us. I can only imagine what she sounds like in _Geltoan_. The others, they usually smile after I give them orders. I've never really seen that before. I mean, I know sometimes _I_ used to smile when I got an order from Captain Alfonzo, but… I don't know. It's weird. Maybe it was just because I was doing something. Whenever I _wasn't_, I had to deal with… with Line…" Link stopped talking as the memory of his best friend surfaced.

Yet again, he felt bothered by his inability to locate Line. He remembered the mass grave under the surface of the island, but he began to doubt if Line had actually been among them. He knew Line had brought Cunimincus' crew into the kingdom, but he had never known Line to hang around when trouble was starting, especially if he had _not_ started it. Line might have been responsible for sending the crates to remote locations in the first place since Cunimincus' crew had taken so long to shut down the Sky Lines. After that… He realized that his original belief that the Royal Family had arranged things after Line had gotten word to them was completely wrong. There had been no way for him to warn the king or queen. He thought back for a moment and remembered that, at one point, Line had mentioned _to_ him that the king and queen had left Castle Island. So was it possible that Line was tracking them down, too?

"'Inu…" Link snapped out of his thoughts when Layna spoke up. It was a bit of a surprise, but even more so than that when he saw that her neutral façade had broken. "'Ak halcix 'inu 'agoylwantya sanimyayl… 'imayn tacibin yiniguthak tab 'imayn 'iyfas nayx boytokw 'inoy. 'Inu mibiylnya'ak nwaki kanifya tab 'inu nayx taynol fathim balw. 'Itab suxhayndha… na', suxhayndhu, 'inu midhiyblya'ak zamthiys 'idu maddux. 'Inu nayx mitaynalak za'atax 'imayn 'iyfas.

"Taf waba, 'imayn kyabtin, nayx nadyigoylwiynak 'imayn 'iyfas. 'Inu tiynoltya'ak, 'itab 'imayn kyabtin, waba yijodhaysya'ak. 'Imayn kyabtin yisaltya'ak… na', 'imayn kyabtin yizhajxya'ak 'inoy. 'Inu ya'lu nadmaythosak. Nwaki lwiyckin? 'Imayn kyabtin nayx nadyilwaycikak 'inoy. 'Imayn kyabtin yijoydhiysak Giltiyn Dholit zalwciyk 'inoy. 'Imayn kyabtin…

"Kwal 'imayn kyabtin yi'atnya'ak 'inoy zacsiyb wabnik?" Link thought he could see her blushing, but her dark skin color made it hard to tell. She touched her fingers to her lips, and Link felt his heart give a noticeable thump against his breastbone when he recalled her kissing him. Was that what she was thinking of? "'Imayn xusruk nadmimaythasak… 'Imayn kyabtin… waba…"

Link only had a moment to recognize the tired look in her eyes before she started falling to her left. "Layna!" he shouted as he lunged forward. He knocked the basket off the crate with his knee in the process of standing. One hand took hold of her shoulder. This, unfortunately, was his right hand, and her weight suddenly wrenched pain from his wound. He cried out but did not release her, and he fell to the floor in front of her.

"Link!" Irleen cried out as she shot back into the room.

"What's going on!?" the nurse demanded. She was standing at their feet in a heartbeat. "What happened!?"

"I don't know," Link replied through his teeth, trying not to scream. "She just…"

"Larry, we need a hand in here!" the nurse called as she kicked the basket aside. She held a hand out to Link. "C'mon, we'll get ya up first."

Link grasped her hand, and she slowly pulled him up until he could sit back on the bed. A large orderly came in a moment later and picked Layna off the floor. He laid her on her bed, and the nurse checked her pulse.

Then Link saw the nurse sigh with relief. "It's okay," she told him. "She probably just exhausted herself. She's lost so much blood that it's a wonder she was able to sit up and eat."

"Will she be okay to travel?" Link asked.

"After a bit of rest," the nurse replied with a nod. "We'll have an ambulance take her to the port for you."

Link nodded, although he had already made arrangements earlier. "Thank you."

The nurse nodded again and slapped the orderly on the shoulder. "Thanks, Larry."

"No problem," the orderly replied before leaving.

Irleen watched the nurse return to her desk. Then she commented, "I wonder what she was saying. It sounded really deep."

Link sighed and shook his head. Then he looked up at her. "I thought you weren't gonna overhear anything."

"Big deal, Link," she replied. "I couldn't understand what _either_ of you were saying."

"Yeah, I bet," Link told her.

…

A little over two hours later, Leynne and Lilly returned to the clinic. From there, Link put Layna's gear (consisting mostly of different kinds of blades) in a spare bag and walked with them to the northern docks. The _Island Symphony_ sat on the same dock where he had last seen it, on the end of the western side. It might have been his imagination, but it appeared to him that the ship looked as tired as he felt. Leynne explained that he wanted to check a few things on board, so he and Lilly went ahead while Link waited for the ambulance to show up.

He was a little surprised when the surgeon stepped out of the ambulance after it had shown up. "Doc?" he asked as the man approached him.

"You look surprised, Captain," joked the middle-aged surgeon, waving to the ambulance drivers. In response, they stepped down from the front and moved into the back of the ambulance. "Try not to be," he continued. "I told my staff to let me know when you made arrangements to ship out."

He turned and watched with Link as the drivers stepped back out with Layna on a litter between them. As they walked past, Link told them, "Tell my second-in-command that she needs to be placed in her own quarters."

"Got it," one of the drivers responded. Link followed them with his eyes as they started up the gangplank.

"I still wish you'd let her remain so she can heal properly," the surgeon told Link, attracting his attention again. "Any sort of jostling or sharp motion could open her injuries, and I assume you don't have a surgeon on board."

"No, we don't," Link admitted as he sat the bag he had been carrying on the ground next to him. "And I wish I could leave her here with you, too. But… the Skyriders, they nearly caught us by kidnapping someone we know. And I… I don't want to leave any of my crew behind. Layna is probably the _worst_ to leave behind. I… I can't live with it. It would be better if she was with us."

"She could die on the journey," the surgeon pointed out.

"She _will_ die if the Skyriders find her. I haven't known her for very long… and I know I'll probably never be able to understand her, but I _do_ know she would either kill herself to avoid capture or kill herself fighting back."

"She's lucky she can move as she is," the surgeon commented. "Make sure you don't work her very hard. Even some of the smallest movements can cause problems."

Link nodded. "I don't plan on making her work until she's seen and okayed by another surgeon."

The surgeon pulled an envelope from his trouser pocket and offered it to Link. "This is a detailed account of her wounds and subsequent surgery as well as yours," he explained after Link took it. "Give this to the surgeon you find before you're looked at so that we can avoid a mistake. Your companion, Layna, her injuries are too sensitive to leave to the bare eye alone."

"Thank you," Link said as he pocketed the envelope. Then he took a folded piece of paper from his opposite trouser pocket and offered it to the surgeon. "I, uh… At first, I wasn't sure who I should hand this to. While we were in the technoworks this morning," he explained as the surgeon took and opened it, "we found a number of… of bones that belong to the monsters' victims. While I know most of them probably can't be identified anymore, they could at least get buried properly. These are directions to their remains. Would you…?"

"I'll find some volunteers to retrieve them," the surgeon said for Link. "You _do_ realize, though, that I'll have to explain where these directions came from, right?"

Link nodded and picked up the bag containing Layna's gear. "I know. And maybe that decoy we left will come in handy after all. Just… please be careful, Doc."

The surgeon tapped his left temple. "They don't give you a medical certificate for being stupid, Captain. And the name's Albert. Al, if you prefer."

Link looked astonished for a moment. Was it just irony that he had met a second man bearing the same name as his deceased airman? Or was the universe trying to tell him something? He shook the thoughts out of his head and clasped hands with the surgeon. "Thanks, Doctor Albert."

They parted, and Link passed the ambulance drivers before walking up the gangplank onto the _Island Symphony_'s weather deck. All of the Gelto were above the deck, inspecting some of the elements of the rigging on different masts while Dholit watched them from below. Gold and Harley were also wandering the deck, Gold using a mop Link had never seen before to swab the deck while Harley swept the deck down with a broom of similar, mysterious origins. Link could understand why this was needed; a definite layer of dirt had fallen on the weather deck, likely the result of the earthquake caused when the Sky Lines were put back into place. As if to confirm his thoughts, Link looked beyond the aftcastle toward the open air. Near-invisible as it was, Link could still make out the glowing blue line against the afternoon sky in the distance. In fact, this was up-lifting. He might have been mistaken, but he was sure that the Sky Lines on this side of Might Island led to all three of the major islands on the northern edge of the kingdom.

"Cap'n on deck!" Gold suddenly shouted. Link glanced back across the deck to see Gold standing at attention while Harley gave the seasoned sailor a look of utter bewilderment. Then Link caught Dholit's eye.

_And_ the gleeful evil that crossed her visage just before she called up to the other Gelto, "'Inamyayn Kyabtin yitajilwya'ak!"

In the span of a second, the Gelto were upon him. He did not know how. In one moment, they were turning in response to Dholit's call. Then they simply fell to the deck. Link was certain that Dubbl and Twali should have been hurt somewhere in descending from the tops of the main masts while Biluf and Lwamm dropped off the booms of the mizzen-masts. He dropped Layna's gear on the deck in surprise, and, for a moment, he thought that they would tackle him overboard.

"Kyabtin!" Twali, the first to reach him, nearly shouted in his face. "Waba xwicikak max!?"

"Dhol thukwfak!?" Biluf asked almost immediately after, giving no chance for Dubbl to translate.

Not that she was going to because she asked after Biluf, "Layna nayx taynolak max!?"

"Layna!? Taynol!?" Biluf nearly screamed. "Zhidi _nad_satanilak!"

"Kyabtin, waba yaxwkya'ak Layna max!?" Lwamm asked.

"'_Aydhom_!" Dubbl snapped at her.

"L-ladies, please…" Link tried to say.

"Kyabtin, waba 'adhmya'ak Layna max!?" Lwamm repeated as she pressed her face closer to his.

"Giyroxwan!" Twali snapped at Lwamm. "Nadnaygothan maddux 'agorxwi!"

"Kyabtin, naygothan Layna nayx nadtaynol!" Biluf pleaded.

"Lohakwan, Twali!" Lwamm snapped back.

"_Waba _lohakwan!" Twali shouted.

"'_Iduki_ waba lohakwan!" Dubbl screamed.

"Stop it!" Link suddenly shouted. His voice and raising his arms caught them by surprise, cowing them into backing away from him. He held up a finger and said, "One at a time." He pointed it past them at Dholit, who had been standing behind them the whole time. "Dholit. What do they want?"

"They want to know what has become of ouh deah little killah, My Captain," she replied, her face calm as she spoke. "Afteh all, it does not bode well to be cahried aboahd."

Link glanced past her as Gold and Harley approached the group. "Layna will be fine," Link said. "She's injured, but fine."

"Layna soymushak, 'ithab soysalwobak," Dholit translated. Link immediately saw relief on the Gelto's faces.

"Dhol thukwfak?" Biluf asked.

"She wants to know what happened," Dholit said.

Link sighed. "We were fighting more monsters. Layna was shot numerous times, so, for the time being, she needs to rest."

"Zhayf sayilya'ak zhoggixun 'agosji 'igz," Dholit told them. "Layna golwaynya'ak jiysolwtya zhidi mudhjya zatniyl 'ulwis. 'Idh Layna nayx caynolak zaxwuck."

The Gelto looked awed as they glanced between her and Link. Link was not sure how to take this reaction, so he asked, "They're not worried, are they?"

Dholit giggled. "Oh, My Captain. You ah the only one to mistake admiration foh wohry."

He gave her an annoyed look before addressing Dubbl, "Dubbl, is the ship ready to sail?"

"Ah—yes, Kyabtin!" she replied.

He nodded. "Okay. Dholit, you know the regular duties on deck, right?"

"Oh, of couhse, My Captain," Dholit said.

"Good. I need you to fill in for Layna while she's below. Uh… also… I'd like one or two of you to help keep an eye on Layna. Bring her food, maybe help her to the head…"

"I'm suah we can come to an ahrangement," Dholit said.

"That's fine. Whatever you can work out. In the meantime, if you're not on duty, go grab what sleep you can."

Dholit had moved to the front of the group, almost pressing her bust into Link's face. She saluted with her left hand, and the Gelto followed suit. "Aye aye, My Captain," she said with a grin.

"Ay ay, May Kyabtin!" the other Gelto chimed in unison, their Geltoan accents varying in degrees of awful.

Link blinked at them in total surprise. He was not aware that Dholit knew that particular terminology, but he could remember teaching her how to salute. She must have been instructing the other Gelto while they were in hiding. He returned the salute and told them, "Dismissed."

Dholit turned and told the others, "'Inan sifunidh zatriys."

As they dispersed, Link saw Leynne approaching him. He picked up Layna's gear, but Leynne had already stopped in front of him. So Link asked, "Did you get everything?"

"Moh oh less," Leynne said.

Link frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I ran into a few hitches securing provisions foh the Gorons," he admitted.

"Really?" Link asked. "You couldn't find a mining company or anything?"

Leynne shook his head. "No, no, I found a couple of local quahries."

"So what was the problem?"

He put on a slight grimace. "I called the fihst fohman I met an uncultuhed, self-centehed, immoral slob with teeth growing from every orifice in his body." He shrugged. "He told me to get my pasty, snot-nosed, hohsefaced ass out while my undehgahments wehn't strung to a flagpole."

Link raised his eyebrows in surprise. "I-I thought you were good with negotiating."

"Yes, but with fohtune, ouh 'negotiation' broke down when I began questioning the logic behind the refusal of sale of non-fuel materials to an aihship. He insulted my motheh, I insulted his… gentleman pahts."

"Wait, he wouldn't sell us rocks?" Link asked.

"It is a company policy which he staunchly adhehed to. And, apparently, people up heh believe the Goron race to be a myth. _But_. Theh is no need to be concehned because I _did_ find anotheh company willing to supply us the material the Gorons requih."

Link nodded. "You had me a little worried there, Leynne."

"I'd hoped to ask about this piece of cultural idiocy, actually."

"Oh." Link took a moment to think. "Well, some of these companies hire their own airships for transporting materials to other islands. I _think_ that's how they guarantee that they receive part of the profits from sale outside of Might Island."

"Aaah," Leynne said. "Othehwise, a less-than-honest captain and crew might sell to anotheh location foh a higheh price. Granted, it isn't a faih deal, but it's still business. Once the ship has bought the goods, it _should_ be theihs to do with as they please."

Link shrugged. "That's about as much as I can guess. I think my first captain had a similar problem… eh, but I was too young to care. I don't remember much of the problem."

"I _suppose_ I undehstand it, but he should be demoted foh pooh taste."

Link nodded. "What about the map of the Sky Lines I asked you to pick up?"

"About as easy, really," Leynne admitted. "Most of the local cahtographehs had already disposed of theih maps of the Sky Lines just because the Sky Lines weh gone, but I managed to find a small shop on the otheh side of the poht that sold me one. Although, he was about as enthusiastic about selling it to me. Gave me a considerable discount, actually. I expect he regretted it when the whole island shook."

"I wouldn't be surprised," Link said. He started walking toward his cabin, and Leynne fell into step behind him. "How about a course?"

"I have one laid out, but theh _was_ something I wanted to bring to youh attention befoh we set sail."

Link stopped and turned his head to him. "Yeah?"

Leynne pointed as he explained, "The _Symphony_ has been hiding undeh the west side of the island. Afteh youh injuries weh fihst brought to ouh attention, I decided that the ship might be betteh hiding _away_ from the centeh so as not to incuh any damage once the Sky Lines weh restohed."

"Okay…" Link said with a slow nod, unsure where the subject was leading.

"They witnessed the restoration of the Sky Lines from theh. Cale told me about a Sky Line that seems to go south quite close to the edge of the island and then cuhve towahd the east."

"You think we should take _that_ to the next island?"

Leynne shrugged. "I can't be suh. I checked the map numerous times, but that pahticulah Sky Line isn't on it." Link just blinked at him. He was not sure of the relevance of a Sky Line that did not appear on a map, particularly because he knew that there were times when maps would not print right and would be sold on the cheap instead of being corrected.

Then Irleen popped out of his hat against Link's belief that she had been sleeping. "Wait, a new Sky Line appeared?" she asked Leynne.

"That was my assumption," Leynne said.

Link glanced up at her. "Is that important?"

"It could be," she said. "It probably means that another island somewhere nearby floated into range of Might Island when the Sky Lines were turned back on."

"An uncharted island…" Link commented. He shrugged. "It'd be interesting, a bit of an adventure."

"Pehhaps we should finish this adventuh fihst," Leynne said.

"But if there _is_ a new island nearby," Irleen said, "it could be a good _hiding spot_ if we get into too much trouble."

"As opposed to the trouble we'h in _now_?" Leynne asked.

"It's something to think about," Link said. "But, for now, we should focus on our objective. West Iron Island."

"I know it's not chahted," Leynne said, "but I wanted to suggest taking this new Sky Line. I happen to believe that it will bring us closeh to West Ihn Island considering Cale's description of what he had seen."

Link glanced out toward the west. Although he liked the prospect of losing pursuing vessels in an unknown Sky Line, he was not entirely sure he should be taking that sort of risk in light of their goals. He was about to tell Leynne to plot a course using the Sky Line to the north, which he felt certain would take them directly to West Iron Island. Then he remembered what Captain North's letter had said, that he had sent other Skyrider ships out to the closest islands in case he tried to run. That could include West Iron Island, in which case arriving by a different Sky Line would give any waiting vessels little notice of their arrival, especially since they probably could not monitor _every_ Sky Line near the island.

"Okay," he said to Leynne. "Let's give it a try. But if we start moving in the wrong direction, we'll stop and return here. How are our supplies?"

"By my estimates," Leynne replied, "we have enough to last a month if necessary. The only problem I fohsee is a spontaneous lack of fuel foh the engine on account of ouh designated enemy of sobriety."

"Well, what do you expect him to do?" Irleen asked.

"Considering that he likes to hide his couch, pretty much anything. I'm thinking of nailing it to the deck."

"Just as long as it doesn't cause any problems," Link said. Then he noticed someone approaching from the corner of his eye and glanced over to see that it was Dholit. "Is something wrong?" he asked her.

"The othehs wanted me to heah the rest of the story," she explained with a smile. "It's tohtuah to deny a Gelto of a story of battle. When you have time, of couhse."

"Of course," Link agreed with a nod.

"_Excuse_ me," Leynne said to Dholit, his tone sounding offended. "Wheh did you get that clothing?"

It was not until Leynne had said something that Link realized that Dholit had changed her outfit again. Her trousers looked to be a pair of black slacks with the legs cut off and replaced by red fabric that was much wider below the knees and then secured to her ankles. Her shirt was a crimson waistcoat maybe a size too large for her, exposing more of her collarbones, while the sleeves were made of the familiar, pink, transparent material that he regularly saw the Gelto wearing, which had been sewn into the waistcoat.

Dholit, seemingly in delight of Leynne's recognition, spun in place. "I expected My Captain to notice it fihst, but at least it was a _man_ who spoke up," she said. "Do you like it?"

"Ah those my new shihts?" Leynne asked, pointing at her trousers.

"Hmmm… yes," she said with a teasing smile. "I found the material to be quite comfohtable."

"You destroyed my new shihts to make youhself a paih of trousehs," Leynne said. "Ah. You. _Kidding_."

"I only took a few select items," she told him. "They weh in the open, so I decided to liberate _just_ a few of them."

"And the thread?"

Dholit took hold of the shoulder of her shirt and, leaning forward, held out the seam for him to see the white stitching. "Spah repaih materials foh the sails. Dubbl felt we could use them to mend and make ouh clothing. Afteh all, we cannot remain in the same clothing fohevah, Leynne. It's ratheh unfaih that we do not receive new clothing as well."

"I hadn't even the time to _try_ those!" Leynne snapped. "What the hell is _wrong_ with you!?"

"Whoa, whoa, hold it," Link said, stepping between them. "Before you guys start fighting. Dholit, no more stealing from Leynne. The pillow and whatever you have now is the _last_ of it."

"Will My Captain punish me if I do it again?" she asked.

"I'll lock you in a room with Sello."

Dholit's face blanked, probably the only reaction he had ever gotten out of her which she could not pervert in her usual way. "Oh. My, you really _do_ mean to punish me."

"I do, Dholit. So no more."

She sighed. "Oh, well. At least I got some decent clothing out of my crime."

"Not so fast," Link said as she made to turn. "In the event that we _do_ manage to get out of this situation, you _owe_ him some new shirts, to his liking, the same number of shirts you stole from him."

She blinked at him several times, looking particularly dumbfounded. "O-okay."

"Return to your duties."

"Aye aye, My… Captain." Dholit appeared a little haunted, and she looked uncomfortable as she walked away.

"Wow," Irleen commented. "Am I the only one who heard the whip snap?"

"That… did seem ratheh _easy_," Leynne said. "She seemed especially compliant when you mentioned locking heh in a room with Sello."

"You know," Link said, turning back to Leynne. "I have to admit… that felt kinda nice."

"I wouldn't get used to it, though," Leynne said in a lower voice. "It's only a matteh of time befoh she finds a way to abuse that kind of attitude."

Link sighed. "Yeah, I know." He nodded toward the bow. "Get ready to take us out."

Leynne made a small show of a salute with his left hand, not waiting for Link to dismiss it as he replied, "Aye, sih."


	90. A Long Evening

Chapter 90: A Long Evening

…

~~Day 70 (Command, Day 33)

~~I'm amazed how much has happened in the past two days. Both Layna and I have been injured, her more horribly than me. We've returned the northern Sky Lines. And we've discovered the remains of the people whom the Lizalfos had eaten ever since they took over Might Island's technoworks. This last development makes me afraid of what we might find on the next island. I can't be too sure, but, after looking at an old map, it seems pretty clear that we could be looking at Bold Island next. Cunimincus and his murderous crew are the only ones who know what's waiting for us out there. And, unfortunately, that's just on top of trying to keep the Skyriders away from us. So I hope that we find the king and queen soon.

~~We're on our way to West Iron Island now. At least I hope we are. We're using an uncharted Sky Line. We've been heading east for a good part of the afternoon, though, so I'm a little hopeful.

_Kon kon kon._

Link looked up at the sound of someone knocking on his door. "Who is it?" he called.

"It's me~, My Captain," Dholit's muffled voice replied through the door. "Theah's an island to the nohth of us. Leynne wanted me to get you."

Link closed his journal and stood up. "Tell Leynne to drop out of the Sky Line and hold position."

"Aye aye, My Captain."

Link had expected to get some sleep before they reached an island. But it seemed like he had forgotten the kind of travel time one regularly sees when using a Sky Line. He retrieved his shirt from his bed and slipped it on as he walked to the door.

The ship jerked as he opened the door, forcing him to freeze in place before he fell on his face. He looked up to see the Sky Line floating upward away from the ship. It was quite late in the afternoon, causing the sky to begin turning purple in the direction they were traveling. Shadows fell across the main deck, but the setting sun kept the sails bright and white. Both shifts were on-deck. He strode across the deck, giving the Gelto a passing nod as he walked by.

Stepping onto the forecastle, he found that Gold and Lilly were already up and waiting. Lilly was a bit of a surprise for Link since he had yet to actually assign her any sort of duty. Gold was looking to port, hands in his pockets as if the activity was too boring for his taste.

Leynne spotted Link out of the corner of his eye and told him, "I don't know that we should drop too low."

Link glanced at him before looking out across the open sky. One other Sky Lines blocked the _Island Symphony_'s view of West Iron Island, but he could still make out its brown silhouette through the shimmering particles before him. It might also mean that anyone on the island might also be able to see the ship, so he told Leynne, "Go ahead and maneuver us so we can ascend."

"Undehstood," Leynne said as he turned the wheel to starboard.

Link looked up at the Sky Line above them. Then he realized something and glanced at the Sky Line between them and the island. "Hey, Leynne?"

"Yes?"

He pointed up. "While we were sailing, was there another Sky Line parallel to this one?"

"I don't _believe_ so," Leynne said. "Theh wehn't any of note as we traveled. This one heh is the only one along a similah path. Why?"

"It's just… It's a little weird," Link said. "Most Sky Lines, at least within the kingdom, always have a parallel Sky Line going the opposite direction. But this appears to be a first."

"Maybe it just takes time fer the other one tae show up?" Gold suggested.

Link just shrugged. "It's probably something Irleen might know about; I'll have to ask her."

"So how do ya wanna ask questions, Captain?" Lilly asked as she leaned on the bulwark on Link's left.

"That's right," Leynne said, turning to manipulate the ballast control. "Nohth said that he sent a ship in this direction; it could very well be heh. And that's only assuming that the _Moon's Shadow_ _itself_ isn't heh."

"That's a prob'm?" Gold asked.

"Nohth and his men have seen ouh faces," Leynne explained. "Which means Cale can't go eitheh."

"I wasn't gonna ask him," Link said. "But I _do_ need to go. It's easier to talk airman-to-docker."

"It's risky," Leynne warned.

"Any airman with _eyesight_ could tell what ship this is," Link rebutted. "Which makes even _docking_ difficult. We could certainly use that cutter under the poop deck by now."

"I'm just a ballast tank away from it," Leynne said. "Unfohtunately, it's ratheh hahd to cast ihn without access to a fohge."

Link let out a sigh. He appreciated Leynne keeping the ire out of his statement. He knew well enough that, even with supplies to keep the ship traveling for a month, there were still things that they could use. A functional launch would definitely help matters; it would mean that the _Island Symphony_ would not have to approach an island which could be harboring a hostile airship.

"Not that I would want to chance trying to bleed Loft Steam out of the _Symphony_'s ballast system," Leynne added after a moment. "One uncontrolled leak, and we'h looking at quite the fall."

"Yeah, if _that_ don't make yeh nervous sailin' up 'ere," Gold commented with a chuckle. He looked at Leynne. "Yeh sure know 'ow tae make a sailor comfy there, Chief."

"It's a fundamental truth while we'h up heh," Leynne pointed out.

"So, if the captain hazza go…" Lilly spoke up. "Well, what else? Do ya need someone else with ya?"

"I'm not sure if I should _bring_ someone else," Link admitted. "The Gelto might stand out too much. And if North _is_ here, his airmen might recognize Leynne or Cale, or even _you_."

"Well, yeh've got 'bout as much chance gettin' seen, Cap'n," Gold pointed out.

"I know," Link said. "But, at least with less of us, there's less chance we might get recognized."

"As youh second-in-_command_," Leynne said as he stopped the ship's ascent, "I'd ratheh have even someone _known_ to Nohth go with you. Keeping in mind, of couhse, that theh's no Layna to coveh you if you'h recognized. Oh… Misteh Gold, would you consideh going along? Theh's a chance Nohth's men don't know youh face."

"Mmm?" Gold replied, his thoughts interrupted by Leynne's question. "Oh. Yeah, I could. I was thinkin' though… Well, we could bring someone along tae be a _distraction_. Y'know, someone tae attract attention in case the 'eat shows up."

"I wouldn't think a distraction is that necessary," Leynne said. "Afteh all, I imagine all you plan to do is go to a neahby bah and chat, right, Link?"

"Yeah, basically," Link answered with a nod. "I mean… I suppose it would look less suspicious if one of us was drunk. You know, someone that Gold and I could drag back to the ship just so it looks like we're just… help… ing…"

Link's and Leynne's eyes met just as both of them came to the same conclusion before Link could finish describing a scenario which would make their nightly venture look a little more natural. Having little exposure to the candidate which they had in mind, Gold and Lilly could only watch their two superiors grin like madmen.

…

"When da cheese iz in ma gravy, I shake it like da Keezes!"

That statement alone caused a boisterous uproar of laughter from the crowd, making this probably the most pleasant experience Link had ever had in a bar. The centerpiece of entertainment was Sello, freed of his seemingly all-day duty of monitoring the _Island Symphony_'s engine (a duty which the engine room crew had taken on with confidence now that they had had a month to observe how Sello handled it between bottles) and almost limitless in his newfound power to get people to buy him drinks just to see what he would say or do next. He had already swallowed ten small, live fish, which was quite strange in itself; Link had not really known airmen to readily carry the fish for such a challenge. He had also managed to quiet the bar patrons down enough to tell them… some absurd story which only seemed to make sense to those of the patrons who were about as intoxicated as him. And there was no mistake that the other patrons could only ever be _about_ as intoxicated as Sello; as Sello was now and having come into the bar already inebriated, Link was quite certain that Sello was clueless as to why he was actually at a bar in the first place.

As Link had expected, Sello's nonsensical ranting and willingness to take on challenges of incredible stupidity had allowed him to join a pair of dockers in a corner of the bar, where the light of the overhead chandelier could barely reach. Link just wore his regular clothes, fearing that attempting to hide who he was under robes would only attract attention. As such, he wore his sword on his hip and his flare gun behind his back, trying to appear more as a fighter-for-hire. A pair of dockers wearing green uniforms sat across from him, middle-aged men whom Link had found after about an hour of searching. Gold was nowhere nearby, instead opting to stay close to Sello in case something happened. Link found this logic sound, knowing well how easy it was to start a fight in a bar full of drunk airmen and knowing that if anything _did_ happen, Link would need some help grabbing Sello and running out the door.

Link's first question, after introducing himself to the dockers as the child-captain that the Skyriders were searching for (which was turning out to be quite a useful introduction, considering that the fake princess's more hands-on approach to governing shipping around the kingdom had effectively pissed off every member of port staff north of Autumn Island), had naturally been concerning the king and queen. Both men seemed to be thinking about it, allowing Link a moment to sip his milk and watch Sello perform a backstroke across the bar. It was a little noisier than expected since, in the process, Sello's head was knocking empty bottles and glasses to the floor.

One of the dockers snapped his fingers once he had a memory, the sound just barely loud enough for Link to hear over the wild laughter on the far side. "Y'know, I feel it was about two weeks after the Sky Lines disappeared," the docker said in a loud voice to talk over the crowd behind them. "But… eh, that was over a month ago…"

"That's fine," Link said. "Anything you can tell me."

"What?" the other docker asked.

Link raised his voice and told them, "That's fine! Anything you can tell me!"

"Oh."

The dockers then took their chairs and moved to either side of Link so that they could be heard. The first docker, the man sitting to Link's left, leaned on the table. "It's been maybe… a month and a half ago?" he told Link in an average voice. Link nodded, believing that to be about the time the king and queen would have appeared on the island after departing from Might Island; he remembered Leynne saying that the journey to West Iron Island would have been about the same as when they traveled the air between Sagacity and Might Islands. "I feel they was comin' from the east, so…"

"Unless they went backka Might Island," the other docker said, "they probably would gotta gone'na the next island north. There's a few rocks on the way, but the next inhabited island is South Sand Island. Can't imagine them stoppin' there, though; Bold Island's gotta be about four or five days further."

"About how far away would you say South Sand is?" Link asked.

"Well, that Skyrider ship that came by said it took them about a week and a half."

"Not that takin' that journey's a whole load o' fun," the first docker said with a shake of his head. "With all those stray rocks floatin' around, the Sky Line was _always_ the safest wayya go. Not even those _miners_ wantedda hang around after the Lines disappeared, and they're supposedda _work_ in that mess."

"Has anyone ever tried circumnavigation?" Link asked.

"Probably the easiest wayya get lost," the second docker said.

Link nodded. "Did either of you actually _see_ the king or queen when their ship was here?"

"_I_ did," the first docker said, his tone indicating a touch of indignation. "They only stopped for maybe an hour, then they just left."

"Any idea why they stopped?" Link asked.

The first docker shrugged. "Can't say. I was workin' just down the pier from them, movin' some cargo." He put on a thoughtful look, then he added, "It was a little _strange_, though."

"In what way?"

"I only ever saw King Lauris. Y'know, it's strange because _I_ always felt that both the king _and_ queen appeared in public together."

"I heard the same thing," the second docker spoke up.

"But it was just the king," the first one continued. "I felt I just couldn't see her; he _was_ surrounded by knights."

"Knights?" Link asked. "What color uniform were they wearing?"

The docker scrunched his face as he thought. "Well… they was wearin' armor, but I feel they was wearin' _green_ underneath." Link nodded, glad to see that at least the knights with the king and queen had escaped influence from the fake princess, though he had to wonder how all this was happening without anyone on the Royal Family's vessel taking action. Was news just not reaching them?

"Why the interest in the king and queen?" the second docker asked. "You lookin' at startin' trouble with them, too?"

"Actually, I'm hoping they'll get me _out_ of trouble," Link admitted with a grin. "One other thing. Did… either of you happen to notice a strange shipment of crates come in? Maybe from one of the… uh, northeast islands?"

"Nothin' _I_ can feel about," the first docker said with a shrug.

"I might gotta seen somethin'," the second docker said. "Four crates outta Autumn Island. That sound right?"

"Yeah," Link said with a nod. "Badly-written orders? Covered in stupid caution stencils? Moved on the dockmaster's budget?"

"Then that must be what you're lookin' for," the second docker said. "I don't know about bein' moved on the dockmaster's budget, though. And they smelled nasty."

Link blinked in surprise. "Nasty? How?"

"Like they was full of fish. I just smelled them in passin', but it was like bein' stuck in a fish monger's store after-hours. Is that what's in them? Fish?"

Link flashed an uncomfortable look. "Actually, it's probably something _worse_ than fish."

The docker nodded. "They was here for about a day or so, then they just disappeared. I figured they'd been shipped off."

"Did you happen to catch where?"

"Nah, I didn't."

"Wait, wait," the first docker said. "Weren't ya workin' the western docks a couple months back?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Well, I'm always hanging around the warehouses on the other side. Didn't noticed the crates you're talkin' about."

"I see where you're goin'. If they stayed on the west side, they might gotta been shippedda Bold Island."

"Are you sure?" Link asked.

"The bosses don't like us movin' things around," the second docker said. "Everythin' on the west side tendzza go'a either South Sand Island or Bold Island."

"Everythin' else goezza Might Island," the first docker added.

"WHEeeEEeEeeEEeeEeeEE!" The conversation was interrupted to watch Sello, hanging from the chandelier by his hands, spinning in place as local dockers, having wound him in a length of rope, pulled the rope loose from around his torso. "I'M like A BEE on the GOLDen TOOTHpick!"

"That's not gonna end well," the second docker quickly said.

And, indeed, it did not seem to end well. One of Sello's legs flailed outward, and the sudden change caused him and the chandelier to swing wildly. People were knocked over as those within Sello's reach pushed backward to keep from getting kicked. As Sello swung away, his arms slackened a bit. At the bottom of the swing, suddenly dealing with Sello's weight again turned out to be too much for the plate holding the chandelier to the ceiling. The whole mount suddenly jerked out of the ceiling, followed by the electric wires which provided the chandelier's illumination. Sello was lucky the chandelier did not come crashing down on top of him. He had probably been surprised by the sensation that he was falling because he had let go of the chandelier. This threw him to the floor away from where the chandelier landed with an amazing crash.

"Oh, man…" Link groaned as the lamps on the walls flickered. He put a hand over his face and rested his elbow on the table.

The first docker started chuckling. "Ben's gonna be _pissed_."

The second docker gave the scene a dismissive wave. "He's been wantin'na get rid of that ugly thing for months."

"Probably not _that_ way, though," Link grumbled before taking a heavy swig of his milk.

"Chief!" Gold hollered as he emerged from the crowd. He stepped around the broken mess of glass which used to be a chandelier and leaned over Sello. "You okay?"

"I drag ma ears juzd like everybody else," Sello replied in the quiet of the shocked barroom.

"Cap'n?" Gold asked, looking up.

Link sighed and stood up. "Thanks for your help, guys."

The first docker reached over and picked up his mug. "Thanks for the beers, Captain. Wish we didn't talk so much; we'd gotta drunk with ya."

"That's okay," Link said after finishing his milk. "I appreciate it, though." He set down his cup and waved a hand toward the door. "Let's go, guys."

"Hah! Aye aye," Gold grunted as he lifted Sello back to his feet.

"Bud dat wuzzn't ma spoon," Sello said, his head flopping as Gold tried to drag him to the door.

Link stepped up and slung Sello's other arm across his shoulders. "Thanks, Cap'n," Gold said.

"I'd help more if I had the height," Link grunted. He smacked Sello on the back a couple of times. "C'mon, Sello, walk."

Sello released a loud belch. "I am on da stool," he said.

"Yeh _was_," Gold said as they turned him so they could get through the door. "Wasn't fer long, though."

"Dat's how I roll."

"Ah, shut up b'fore I roll _yeh_."

"Come back when ya aren't bein' hunted!" someone in the bar shouted out to them.

"I'll get more fish for ya!" another voice called.

"We'll do lunch!" Sello hollered back, waving the arm draped on Link's shoulders.

"Ow," Link grunted when Sello's arm hit his head. He grabbed Sello's wrist and held it against his shoulder. "Well, at least the docks are close."

"Firzz, ya pudda chicken in da boat, and den ya take it over, den ya take da grain over and take da chicken back and den da fox over, den ya come back, den ya pudda chicken in," Sello said in what would be a sing-song voice if he had actually been capable of holding the rhythm. "Den ya sedda boat on fire, and den ya have chicken fer breakfast."

"I'm not _ever_ havin' breakfast with this stinkin' drunk," Gold said. "Cap'n, 'ow come we don't sober 'im out? 'E'd be less o' a handful."

"Well, have you ever had a hangover before?" Link asked.

"Yeah?"

"And that's just after a night of drinking, right?"

"Yeah, that's usually the case."

"Well, Sello's probably been drunk for years. I'm a little worried that, if we try to dry him out, the hangover will kill him."

"Yeh _do_ realize 'e should _already_ be dead, right?"

"He made us an engine. I'm not gonna complain."

"OOOOH, IIIIYEYAIIIIYAIIII!" Sello started wailing.

"Shut up!" Gold shouted at him, elbowing him to get him to be quiet.

"Gohf!" Sello uttered. "I zwallowed ma toe."

"I wish yeh would," Gold told him.

Link caught sight of a green light bobbing around overhead as they reached the corner of the street. "Anything happening, Irleen?" he asked.

"No, it's been pretty quiet," Irleen replied as she moved lower to join them in their walk. "Not a sign of any Skyriders. How about the king and queen?"

"One docker may have seen them," Link answered. "Given our options, it's likely they went south toward Bold Island."

"That's that large island?" she asked. "The one I told you we'd probably be traveling to _anyway_?"

"We had to _check_, Irleen. Now we know for _certain_ where they went."

"And the crates?"

"Heh heh," Sello chuckled. "I had a crate day, too."

"Shut up, Sello," Gold said. "What crates?"

"We think Cunimincus had Line, Flower, and Leonard ship some of his crew around the islands so they could find the technoworks," Link explained. He paused to adjust his hold on Sello. "It seems like they tried to send them out to the smaller islands to slow them down, but they've somehow figured out how to get themselves sent to the right islands."

"Well, what makes yeh think they ain't those things yeh found back on Might Island?" Gold asked.

"Can someone get ma head 'fore I furgeddit?" Sello slurred.

"Yeh'r be'er off without it," Gold told him.

"Well, the docker who saw the crates said that they smelled like fish," Link said. He glanced up at Irleen. "And I'm pretty sure the Lizalfos didn't smell like fish when we found them."

"My best guess would have to be Geozards," Irleen replied. "They're like the fish equivalent to Lizalfos, but they're really not all that bright."

"_Ahhhi_. _Aghhhm_. _Aghhh_._ Laghhhight_._ Bughhhlb_," Sello belched out.

"Ew…" Irleen commented.

"Why do yeh go'a talk while we're talkin'?" Gold asked him.

"Bellz and Keezez," Sello told him.

"Oh, great, I'm talkin' tae a drunk," Gold growled. "I'm _talkin'_ tae 'im."

"Trust me, we _all_ make that mistake," Irleen replied.

All three then suddenly felt as if someone was watching them and froze in the middle of the street, Sello stumbling and forcing all of his weight on Gold's and Link's shoulders. They glanced around at the warehouses on either side of them, but nothing was immediately visible. They had ventured into a poorly-lit area with no form of cover. The docks ahead of them were vacant, so Irleen, Link, and Gold glanced back down the road.

"Cap'n…" Gold said in a low voice.

Link had gone pale. "Uh oh."

The road behind them was blocked off by three men wearing black tunics and each holding a pistol to their sides. The four of them had walked right into a trap.

"Moose?" Sello asked.

"Go, go," Link urged in a quiet voice. They immediately started forward, their pace quicker but still hampered by Sello. "Irleen, get to the ship."

"Right," Irleen said before zooming off into the air above.

Link glanced backward to see the men in black following them at a relaxed pace. He could not understand why until Gold suddenly stopped, nearly causing both him and Sello to fall to the ground. He caught himself and looked up at the path ahead. They had only been a stone's throw away from the open area at the front of the warehouses.

But four more Skyrider airmen stepped onto the road, blocking off the docks. Just as the ones behind them, these men each held a pistol. However, upon seeing Link, they leveled the pistols on Link, Gold, and Sello.

Link was at a loss for what to do. In addition to being captured without any obvious means of escape, his hands were too preoccupied with supporting Sello to pull either his sword or his flare gun to signal for help. He knew he could not do either, anyway; one move for either would probably result in all three of them taking at least one bullet.

"Ideas?" Gold asked under his breath.

"Turkey!" Sello declared. Gold silently stammered his anger for a moment, unable to find the appropriate profanity to spit at their drunken companion.

"Just remain still," Link replied in a low voice as he tried to think of a way to escape. "If anything, they'll just arrest us."

"Ain't very comfortin', C—" Gold replied, cutting himself off before he accidentally called Link "Captain".

"Captain Link?" one of the men in front of them asked. Link decided to remain silent and just glared at the man. He was not sure a lack of response would get them released, but a response was more likely to get them taken away. He began to regret introducing himself as the thorn in the princess's side. Had they been in the bar? They could not have; that had been the reason Irleen had been loitering around outside. No, at best, Link _could_ be their target so long as he did not try to confirm or deny anything. Not that silence was completely foolproof in itself.

"Are you Captain Link of the _Island Sonata_?" the airman said, his tone a little harder. The _Island Sonata_? So there was _some_ hope. Whoever these men were, they had _not_ come from the _Moon's Shadow_; they would know the name of Link's current ship. It meant, Link decided, that they had come from the ship that Captain North had sent in this direction.

"What if I _am_?" Gold answered. The response caused Link to visibly cringe. "'O the 'ell are _yeh_?"

"I wasn't talking to _you_, lard head," the airman snapped at him.

"Yeh'r askin' 'bout a captain, aren't yeh?" Gold asked. "There's only me, the boy, and a _drunk_. Yeh wanna know the _drunk_'s name?"

"I'm Spartacus!" Sello declared, seemingly jerking to life for a moment and nearly toppling all three of them.

"Damn yeh and yer brick head…" Gold growled at Sello.

"You done playing around?" the airman asked.

"Why don't yeh go take a long walk off the dock!?" Gold snapped. "Just leave us 'lone!"

Link saw someone step up behind the airman and tap him on the shoulder just before he could give Gold his retort. There was a whisper, and the airman stepped aside. And Link's eyes became wide. Short, sandy hair neatly trimmed. A tall frame, although with a little more width than the last time Link had seen it. A square jaw that forever seemed to sport little more than stubble. Dressed in a black tunic with a cape similar to the way Captain North had been dressed, Link found that he barely recognized the man until the light was on his face just right.

"Well, Link, I see you're _still_ not above finding yourself in trouble."

Link had to blink to be sure he was not seeing things. Then he asked, "Captain… Captain _Luke_?"

Captain Luke, formerly Lieutenant Luke of the _Grand Sails_, showed Link a large grin. "Well, I'd say you've really done it this time," he told Link. "I thought, if you ever made captain, you wouldn't have to worry about getting into trouble."

Link shook his head. "What… What are you _doing_ here?"

"Hunting you down, it seems," Luke told him.

"Yeh know this guy?" Gold asked Link in a low voice.

Link glanced at him. Then he said, "Airman Gold, this is Captain Luke of theeee… the _Summer Bree_—Is it still the _Summer Breeze_?"

Luke gave a nod. "Been that way for… well, coming on four years now."

"Captain?" one of Luke's airmen asked. "Are we taking them?"

"I don't see why, Alex," Luke replied. "You haven't caught a fugitive, you caught a fellow sailor. Sure, the boy has a propensity for getting into trouble, but I have yet to see the boy _cause_ it." He chuckled. "In fact, the source tends to be in close proximity." He looked back at Link. "How _is_ Airman Line, anyway?"

"Missing," Link replied with a curt word.

Luke's face lost its smile. "Oh. I-I'm sorry, Link."

"He's not _dead_, Captain," Link told him. "Just missing."

"I get it," Luke told him. "Uh… look, I'm sure you realize I _do_ have orders to look for you. But I'm willing to discuss it with you. I know you, Link. You don't cause trouble, you just get involved. We can go back to the _Summer Breeze_ and see if you _really_ need to be arrested."

Gold stepped forward, causing Link to stumble because Sello kept hold of both of them. "Sorry, Cap'n, but _that_ ain't happenin'," he told Luke. "I understand yeh both are friendly, but my cap'n ain't goin' anywhere _near_ yer ship."

Luke raised his chin, his expression difficult. "No, I suppose that wouldn't be the best of options for you, would it?"

"For _either_ of us," Link said. "That little bit of light your men should've seen taking off was a fairy. She's returning back to the ship to let them know we're in trouble."

"We got women on the ship that ain't very shy 'bout killin'," Gold added.

One of the men next to Luke raised an eyebrow. "You're kidding, right?" he asked.

"Captain North is one of the smartest and most brutal captains in the company," Link said. "Do you think we got away from him because he was having a bad day?"

"No," Luke replied. "No, you wouldn't've."

"Captain, you're not actually _buying_ this act, are you?" the same airman asked in disbelief.

"That's the problem with Link," Luke said, his grin returning. "He's pretty good about telling the truth."

"We should go to _my_ ship," Link told him. "Otherwise, when they come looking for us, there's a good chance some of your men are gonna die. And… I'm afraid _you_ might be the first, Captain."

"He's right," Gold said. Then he added in a casual tone, "Though I wouldn't particularly care if yeh went first."

"Mister Gold," Link said with a hint of warning in his voice. Gold glanced at him, then he set his jaw firm in a show of his newly-found silence. "Captain, we should move. We have to stop the women before they decide to attack."

"Agreed," Luke said. "Stow the guns, boys. Alex, go ahead and help with the drunk. Free up the captain so he can take us to his ship. It'd be easy for _him_ to lead so his crew doesn't decide to kill us right away."

Airman Alex took Link's place, and the rest of the airmen formed an escort party around their captain, Link, Sello, and Gold. They stepped out into the open, where the overhead electric streetlights provided enough light to see. Their walk to the ship was short since the _Island Symphony_ was on the end of the eastern docks while the bar had been near the center. As they approached, Link removed his flare gun and loaded a shell. This naturally caused a few of Luke's airmen to reach for their pistols, but Link made certain to point it straight up into the air and fire it. A green light pierced the sky, causing the whole group to stop in surprise.

Luke had jumped sideways when Link fired the gun, so he tried to play it off as he asked in a calm voice, "Signaling your crew?"

"Captain!" one of the airmen in the rear snapped.

"Ambush!" someone near Link shouted.

"Sunway!" A Gelto voice, and it sounded like Lwamm!

Link immediately tried to recall what he had been taught about Geltoan as he ducked out of the circle and raised his hands into the air, still holding the gun. "Stop! Stop!" he hollered just before he remembered the word, "Noyrotan! Ladies, noyrotan!"

"Guys, guys!" Luke shouted at the same time. "Hold fire! Hold your _fire_!"

"Dholit, tell them to stop!" Leynne's voice called out from the darkness. "Hold them!"

"_Nwoyrotan_, 'imayn giltun!" Dholit called out, although her voice was actually a little less panicked.

"I wandda one on da lef'!" Sello declared.

"Shut up!" Gold shouted at him.

From a gap between a pair of small buildings, Leynne and Dholit emerged into the light. Leynne held his musket pointed at the ground as he angled his head to investigate the scene before him. "Everything all right, Link?" he asked.

"We're _fine_, Leynne," Link told him, his hands held out as if to physically stop them.

"Says the captain with an entourage of Skyridehs behind him," Leynne pointed out.

"It's okay, Leynne," Link said. "They're not North's men. The captain, I _know_ him."

"Gold?" Leynne called out.

"It's all good, ex-oh!" Gold replied. "They ain't very friendly, but we ain't been 'urt."

"That's why I signaled, Leynne," Link said as he watched his Gelto crew step out of hiding. And Link had no doubt that they had intended to attack. Twali, having taken Link's bow again, was standing near a small pile of crates that the group had passed. She must have been waiting to start taking out men at the back of the pack. Dubbl and Biluf had been hiding next to the gap Leynne and Dholit had been in, both of them carrying a couple of Layna's blades in their hands. Lwamm and Harley slipped out from around the corner of a warehouse further ahead, Harley carrying the other musket. "Wow, you guys were really ready for us."

"Well, that was the whole intention, wasn't it?" Irleen said as she fluttered out of hiding in the shadow of a nearby ship. "So what's the deal?"

"Leynne, Dholit, come on," Link said, waving an inviting hand at them. "Let's get back to the ship, okay?"

…

Some more time was spent disarming the situation before both groups were finally aboard the _Island Symphony_. Only three of Luke's airmen were allowed aboard, all under the watchful eye of the deck crew. Harley had taken Sello back to the engine room to sleep off some of his inebriation while Gold relieved Leynne.

Link and Luke had stepped into Link's cabin. Link sat behind his desk while Luke appeared to admire the interior. His contemplation of Luke had been brief since he felt that he could trust his former superior. The fact that they had managed to return to the _Island Symphony_ without anyone being shot was all the proof he needed.

Luke looked at the map on the table for a moment before saying, "Chasing after missing dreams, Link?"

"I suppose you could say that," Link said.

Luke nodded. "Well. We're here." Link first thought he was referring to the island. Then he realized Luke was referring to the conversation they were about to have. "So what happened, Link?"

"A lot," Link replied.

"It must have been," Luke said with a chuckle. "You're being hunted by the Princess of Hyrule."

"She's not the princess," Link said in a voice meant to be sobering.

But Luke just chuckled again. "You think we don't know that?"

This caused Link to give him a surprised look. "You mean… you _know_?"

"Well, maybe not as much as _you_, but some of us had our suspicions."

"I-I don't get it. If you knew…"

Luke raised his eyebrows and finished the question, "'Why would we go along with it'?"

"We—… Well, _yeah_."

Luke plucked a pin from the table and examined it as he talked. "Link, I would expect _you_ would understand the meaning of orders and the chain of command. After all, you've only ever broken the rules because of Line."

"I don't get it. Where does the chain of command come in? The only ones that can command our captains are the _fleet_ captains, the people who _run_ the company."

"Link, being a captain in the Skyriders, you, just like the _rest_ of us, swore loyalty to the Royal Family. To uphold and provide for king and country in times of strife. And… well, a bunch of other silly rules that I've since forgotten. But it essentially means that we are at the family's disposal _when_ and _if_ they want us. Their orders are just as imperative as the company's. What it boils down to is this weird little branch in the chain that the family can use to cut off the rest of the chain at their slightest whim."

"I still don't get it," Link said. "_Where_ was this supposed to show up?"

Luke looked at him, setting the pin back on the table. "You went to Castle Island when they first named you a captain, right?" Link nodded. "And they gave you that green tunic and belt?" Link nodded again. "And they made you take an oath?"

"Uh… well, no, actually," Link admitted.

"It would've been a long-winded list of things you were promising to the Royal Family and Hyrule. Though, I can't exactly bl—"

"No, that's just it," Link interrupted. "I didn't hear _any_ of the oath."

Luke blinked at him in confusion. "You didn't?"

Link shook his head. "Princess Zelda… the _real_ princess… she was the one who gave me the tunic. When she was putting it on… she-she whispered something to me. She said she… she couldn't remember the words. I-I didn't know what that meant, but she had me say… uh, 'I do', or something."

Luke scratched his chin in thought. "Oh, I see…" he said to himself. Then he told Link, "Look, the bottom line is we quite simply don't have a _choice_. We aren't complete idiots, Link. We _know_ something's going on. The sudden drafting of Skyrider vessels into a navy and arming them… uh, posting a blockade to the Undying Storm, _chasing you_… They're all _signs_. It's more obvious than you think."

"Well then… Then why is Captain _North_ after me?"

Luke shook his head. "To him, this whole situation is a matter of honor. You know he used to be a Knight of Hyrule, right?"

"He was?"

Luke nodded. "We can swear loyalty all we like, but North's sworn his _life_ away. _Everything_ he does is just him following orders. Some of our other captains are just like that, too. What's the point in making the rules if they're just gonna be broken? You and I, maybe even Captain Alfonzo, we can _think_ all we want. But if you want to break the rules, you have to have a damn good reason."

"Captain Al—Where _is_ Captain Alfonzo?"

Luke shrugged. "I really don't know. When the word spread that the princess was after you, he was also wanted in connection to you."

Link's eyes widened. "No…" He clasped his hands behind his head and looked down at the desktop. "Gillam told me… He _told_ me he would have to mention Captain Alfonzo."

"Well, since then, no one in the company has seen him," Luke said. "The last time anyone saw him, as far as _I_ heard, the _Dusk Runner_ opened fire on them. I wouldn't expect it to go down, though."

"Why not?" Link asked, raising his head.

"The _Grand Sails_' hull was reinforced with steel plating when the princess began arming ships. And the _Dusk Runner_'s just a cutter; it couldn't handle more than a couple guns. I haven't heard anything from either ship, really, but… you know… chasing you down out here, we haven't really been in the loop lately." Silence filled the cabin for a moment. "So where do we go from here, Link? You haven't said a whole lot to convince me to not arrest you."

Link sighed. "Look, I know I don't have any proof that the princess is a fake. _But_. I have a plan. According to one of the knights I met at the castle, the best way to remove the princess from command is to find the King and Queen of Hyrule. I've been following them from Might Island. We know they stopped here, but they moved on; they didn't even stay the day."

Luke nodded. "An interesting plan… How close are you?"

Link shook his head. "I really don't know. We're following leads over a month old. One other thing, though."

"Yeah?"

"We know what made the Sky Lines disappear."

Luke's eyebrows rose with intrigue. "Oh, really?"

"There are… facilities, I guess you could call them. They make and maintain the Sky Lines, and a few of the larger islands allow us to control them." Link paused so he could give a small laugh and shake his head. "Look, I know it sounds crazy, but there are… there are-there are _monsters_ loose in the kingdom. They're the ones who got rid of the Sky Lines, but we've been bringing them back. We've found facilities under Sagacity and Might Islands, and we restored the Sky Lines to both the… what is it, the east and south sides of the kingdom." Luke tilted his head, and Link could tell he had a hard time believing the story. "Look, there's a little more to the story than that, but… really, you'd probably just think I'm even crazier."

"I don't know, I happen to think you're pretty loopy _now_." Link sighed and placed his forehead on the desk. Luke stepped up to the front of the desk and placed his hand on the edge so he could lean on them. "Okay, look, Link. I can't really say I believe you about the Sky Lines; it's a stretch. But there's the fact that, even if I don't believe you, the Sky Lines _are_ coming back. Maybe you have something to do with it, maybe you don't. So we'll just put that issue aside for a moment.

"The fact that you seem to know what's going on gives you a bit of merit. And I know who you are, you've-you've got that going for you. The orders to take you in or kill you have been pretty vague as to what you've done. I mean, for all _I_ know, the princess is after you because you pissed in her garden. Let's face it, any teenager can take even using certain words and spin it off as an offense punishable by death." The statement caused Link, who had raised his head by this point, to gulp. "I don't _know_ the princess, which gives you a little more merit. The fact that we're chasing down a fellow Skyrider, well… I'd have to say it actually has me a little miffed, especially now that I know it actually _was_ you."

"You… didn't think it was me?"

Luke shrugged. "Well, I heard the words 'child', 'captain', 'Skyrider', and 'Link' all at the same time. It _reminded_ me of you, but I didn't think you'd actually made _captain_. Congratulations, by the way. I didn't think you were going for it."

"To tell you the truth, I really _wasn't_. Captain Alfonzo just… told me I'd made captain. I didn't even know my name had come up."

"Well, I'll give you this, Link. So far, it looks like you've done pretty good. I sure as hell know your crew would _kill_ for you."

Link shook his head. "That's… not even _close_ to covering their behavior."

"I'll bet." There was a pause. "Look, Link, I think we can actually work with this. What is it you need to do? You need to get to the king and queen, right?"

"Yeah."

Luke stood up straight, crossed his arms, and glanced behind him as if checking on his men out on the deck. "Well, as far as my men _and_ Captain North need to know, we didn't find any criminal by the name of Link. All we ambushed was an angry airman, a drunk airman, and an old friend. It's not much, but if North _does_ decide to chase you north to Bold Island, at least you'll have a bit of a lead."

Link stood up from his seat, feeling that the conversation was over. "Thank you, Captain." He glanced down at his hands. "Uh… I-I don't really know if I'm supposed to salute or-or what…"

"Well, in this case, _I'm_ the one that salutes first; it's _your_ ship." Instead, Luke held out a hand. "But, between friends, I think a handshake is just as appropriate."

Link smiled and clasped hands with Luke. "Thanks. Thanks a _lot_."

They released hands, and Luke crossed his arms again. "Now, I'd probably better get going. After all, there's a dangerous boy in green out there who's wanted for treason. Got a date with a noose and all."

Link was smiling until Luke said "noose". At that word, he went pale.


	91. The Week We Improvised

Chapter 91: The Week We Improvised

…

~~Well, we didn't find the king and queen, but we have another lead. And, just as expected, we're heading south toward Bold Island.

~~I met Captain Luke for the first time in over three years. I have to admit, I was just about as paranoid as Gold, so I'd call myself pretty lucky that Luke actually likes me. He didn't believe me about the Sky Lines, and, granted, I'd probably be about as believing as him. But at least he's willing to back me up and buy us some time to get to Bold Island. It's occurred to me, though, that Captain North might be able to use the Sky Lines we've already restored to beat us there. So now I really hope the distraction we left on Might Island works.

…

"Ow." This was followed by Link sucking in air as the stitch was removed from his shoulder. "Oh, that smarts."

"Somehow, I find this _much_ moah enjoyable than when you initially said you wanted to speak to me in youh cabin," Dholit told him as she set the black piece of surgical thread inside an empty ration bag. "Not that I would have been disappointed with any otheh activity."

Irleen, hovering overhead, gave a sigh. "Dholit…"

"Yes, I know," Dholit told Irleen with a nod. "My daily allotment of innuendo is slowly dwindling." She carefully placed the seam ripper under another stitch and tugged up, causing Link to suck in air against the pain. "So why did you not get this taken caah of while we weh at the island?"

"I forgot," Link groaned through his teeth as she removed the stitch. He relaxed after she pulled it out. "Even though it was just Luke, I thought it would be easier to get off the island before any more Skyriders showed up."

Dholit shook her head. "You and Layna," she said as she prepared to cut another stitch. "Both negligent of youh own health."

"Ah!" Link hollered as the stitch tugged on his flesh instead of being cut right away.

"Oops," Dholit said with a grin. She pushed down on his skin and cut it properly.

"What's wrong with Layna?" Link asked.

"Hmm?"

"_Layna_," Link repeated. He paused as she took the stitch out. "What's wrong with her? Is she okay?"

"Oh. This mohning, Biluf found heh doing push-ups in heh cabin. She also tried to come on duty, so I took heh back down to heh cabin and told heh—"

"Ow!"

"—that you ohdahed heh to rest. And, it looked like she removed some of heh bandages."

"Is she trying to _kill_ herself!?" Irleen asked.

"Well, _pehsonally_, it would not suhprise me," Dholit said. "But I imagine this is just paht of the bravado that she's been trained to display. She sees being wounded as a sign of weakness, so she compensates by acting nohmal." She shrugged. "I suppose that could be the reason why she received moah injuries than My Captain."

"Could be," Irleen said, "but I wouldn't underestimate the difference between hiding behind a pile of scrap metal compared to a wooden _table_."

"Yeah," Link added. "Especially since we were hiding from a—d'OW!" He gave Dholit an annoyed look, to which she replied with her usual grin. "Gun."

"Pehhaps you should speak to heh," Dholit said. "Afteh all, I am meahly a yabbid that speaks to heh undah the pretext of conveying My Captain's ohdahs."

"Wait, what?" Link asked. But then Dholit jerked the stitch that she had just cut out of his skin. "YEOWCH!" he hollered, jumping off the bed and immediately stepping away from her. He felt the area she had pulled it from to see if he was bleeding. Then he accused her, "You did that on purpose!"

"Oh, my apologies, My Captain," Dholit said. "I get distracted when someone attempts to change the subject."

Link rubbed the spot she had pulled the stitch from. "Whah… What was the subject, again?"

"The welfaah of youh crewman, I believe," Dholit said. She patted the edge of the bed. "I expected that it was impohtant to you. Yes?"

Link shook his head. "Not if you're just gonna _yank_ my stitches out."

Dholit pouted her lips. "If I promise to be gentle, will you rejoin me on the bed?"

"Thaaaat's it, Dholit!" Irleen declared as she flew rings above Dholit's head. "You've just used your last one. No more double entendres for _you_ today."

"Ah, yes, I suppose I shall defah to you foh when an innuendo needs to be spoken," Dholit said as Link returned to the bed. "Though, I would like to emphasize that you try speaking to Layna, My Captain. I imagine that you will find the points I brought up to be of some concehn."

"Okay," Link said with a nod. "Okay, but can you finish me before I go take care of Layna?"

Dholit grinned and pointedly glanced up at Irleen. Irleen remained silent for a moment. Then she sighed and said in a dull voice, "Oh, My Captain, I was hoping you would say that."

"Thank you," Dholit said.

"Don't get used to it; he walked into that one," Irleen said as she rested on the desk. Link gave both of them a tired look.

…

Link allowed Dholit to finish removing the stitches from his shoulder and side (and declined the offer to pull the two stitches from his thigh due to not wanting to take his pants off with her in the room). Then, after the night shift took over on-deck, Link and Dholit went down below to talk to Layna.

They got as far as the cargo hold before they both froze at the bottom of the stairs. Half of this response was caused by shock.

The other half was preservation instinct. They did not want Sello's flailing legs to hit them. _WHUMP!_ Sello's body hit the deck like a dropped sack of potatoes. The only part of him that did not lay flat on the deck was his left arm. This was mostly because it was still in Layna's grip. Layna, who had been injured only three days ago by over a dozen bullets nearly shredding her body apart. Layna, who, despite being smaller and lighter than Sello, had just flipped the _Island Symphony_'s engineer over her head and slammed him hard enough into the deck that they were sure they heard something in Sello's body snap. Layna, who switched from her neutral killer face to paling embarrassment and utter shock upon seeing her captain and his insane yabbid standing at the other end of her drunken punching bag. Biluf, who had been enjoying the sight while leaning in the doorway to the berth deck, slowly straightened up with a surprised look on her face.

Perhaps it was the fact that both of them had shown such surprise, but Link could not be sure at the moment. All he knew was he had just watched one of his airman throw another to the deck, and that action made him mad. "Layna, let him go _now_," he told her with a voice of restrained anger.

Dholit gave him an amused smile before she said, "Faysolwan zhal."

Layna just opened her hands so that Sello's arm could fall out of her grip, frozen in place with blatant fear. Link stepped over to Sello's side and looked down at his goofy, unfocused expression. "Sello, are you okay?" he asked.

Sello chuckled. "Oh," he replied. "We done?"

"You're done, Sello."

"Ye-okay."

He turned to Layna and asked, "What are you doing? You just threw a superior against the deck."

Dholit giggled, and Link turned his glare to her to show he was serious. She put her fist on her hip and maintained her smile to show him that she was not intimidated. Then she said, "Waba liyxomotak dhol? Waba anwud tuxdhya'ak sahaydhi 'an xayna biyta."

"Sa-_sahaydhi_?" Biluf asked. She glanced at Layna, expecting to share her horrified look.

Layna continued to stare at Link for a moment longer. Then she calmed herself, closed her eyes, and stood up straight. "'Inu mimathosak, 'Imayn Kyabtin," she told him in a level voice. "'Inu mitoysiykwak lwiyckin."

"She says she undahstands and is awaiting heh punishment," Dholit said.

Link slapped a hand over his eyes. "Are you _kidding_?" he asked. "I can't punish her; she's still _wounded_!"

"I know," Dholit told him as she stepped up to his side. She kept eye contact with Layna as she told Link, "But if you considah the cihcumstances which brought about youh scolding, I imagine that you can find a way to tahn this situation into a means of cohrecting heh self-destructive behavioh."

"Her… self-destructive behavior…" he repeated with an air of skepticism. He was not entirely sure how throwing Sello down on the deck constituted "self-destruction". Then, a moment of thought later, he realized what Dholit was talking about and gave her a surprised look. She nodded at him and turned back to Layna with a stern look on her face.

Link steeled himself and addressed Layna. "Layna, you are restricted to your temporary quarters for ten days." Dholit gave a translation that sounded a little more concise than what he had said. And, unusual for her, she gave it in a tone similar to Link's. He continued, "You are to only leave your quarters to use the head." Dholit provided another translation. "Another airman will bring you meals." Dholit hesitated a moment before speaking. "You are also forbidden any sort of exercise since it seems to have led to you assaulting Chief Sello." Dholit gave him an approving nod and translated. "Any questions?"

After Dholit translated the question, Layna's body appeared to start shaking. "Na', 'Imayn Kyabtin," she said in a terse voice.

"No, My Captain," Dholit said.

Link glanced at Dholit, but his eyes had returned to Layna when he said, "Then tell her to return to her room."

"Tayjolwan wabin jalwayl xwal," Dholit told her. Then she motioned her left hand so Link would not see.

Layna saluted. "Ay'a, 'Imayn Kyabtin."

"Dismissed," Link replied, returning the salute. Layna dropped her hand and walked across the deck to the stairs on the opposite side. Link could see that her stride was a little stiff and dropped his scowl in a moment of regret. Then, remembering that Biluf was nearby, he turned to give her a glare. "Just _what_ were you thinking, Biluf?" he asked. "Aren't you _friends_?"

"Biluf, waba bulnya dhol?" Dholit repeated in Geltoan. "Nway nadlwazhidak wabun nwubuli max?"

Biluf looked down at the deck with shame and strode forward until she was standing right in front of Link. "Na', May Kyabtin," she responded. "Layna… zhidi 'imayn nuttaxwab."

Dholit placed a hand on Link's shoulder as she told him, "They ah the _best_ of friends, Link."

"May Kyabtin, 'inu… 'inu sanwayrtya'ak Layna," Biluf continued. "'Itab nwaki xwibilak. Layna soyyutkwak taf soysoydhobak zhadmin siylwub sanimyayl ib. 'Inu bilunak… addu soykwabol foltab soyyutkwa." Link looked to Dholit for a translation, but he found her looking incredibly somber. He could only think it had something to do with Biluf's words. "May Kyabtin, 'inu…"

Link looked back at Biluf. "Uh…" was all he could reply with since he did not know what she was saying.

Biluf shook her head. "Na'," she seemed to tell herself. "'Inu nadsabinwumak."

Then, she dropped to her knees (making herself look smaller to Link) and quickly wrapped her arms around Link. Link's back stiffened, caught off-guard and completely at a loss for how he should respond. Biluf buried her face in his chest for a moment. Then she turned her head and said, "'Imtowu, May Kyabtin. 'Intowanwak waba… zaghiylw Layna ta'ab balw."

Link glanced up at Dholit, who was giving Biluf a pitying look. Then, in an effort to relieve his discomfort, he raised his hands and pressed them against Biluf's back. It only helped a little, resulting in about two minutes of Biluf hugging him for reasons that he was not sure he understood. Then Biluf pulled away, covered her eyes with a hand, stood up, and stepped out of sight into the berth deck.

Link waited a moment before glancing up at Dholit. She looked down at him again and told him with a grin, "So. It appeahs you've made a staht on Biluf as well, My Captain."

Link silently stammered while indicating the berth deck. Then he managed to say, "I-I don't even know what that was _about_!"

Dholit's eyes softened. "They ah the _best_ of friends, Link."

Link stared at the berth deck as he pieced the situation together. Then he began to sympathize with Biluf. For as big of a problem Line had been for Link over the years, having _lost_ Line was probably one of the things he had thought about the most ever since he had awoken on the surface. Between the two of them, Link suspected that _Layna_ was the more reckless due to her assassin upbringing. He could understand her concern for Layna as a friend of a troublesome lunatic. And, somehow, he also felt like he had an understanding of what it had felt like to be Captain Alfonzo dealing with him and Line. Both Biluf and Layna were trouble, but there were ways of dealing with them.

Link sighed and put his hands in his pockets. "Yeah," he said. "They are, aren't they?" He looked over his shoulder, remembering that Sello was still nearby. "Sello, are you all right?"

Both he and Dholit turned around as Sello answered, "Ooooh, looooook. Stars."

Link sighed again and started for the stairs. "I'm going back to my cabin," he told Dholit.

"Oh, would you like some company?" Dholit asked.

"No!"

…

~~Day 71 (Command, Day 34)

~~I can't say watching Layna throw Sello to the deck was fortunate. And I can't really say I'm glad she did it, either. But at least I had a reasonable excuse to punish her and make her stay in bed until she can heal up. Biluf seemed relieved, and I think the other Gelto were, too. I don't know why, but I felt really tired at the end of today.

…

~~Day 72 (Command, Day 35)

~~We had to spend part of the day using the engine to push us south due to horrible winds. Leynne thinks this might've also affected our course, so he spent some time keeping track of our movement and went off-duty into my cabin to figure out our position. He reported that, at best, we've deflected from our course a bit, but it shouldn't be significant enough to make us miss Bold Island. He suspects that we may miss South Sand Island, though. Personally, I don't think it'll be a problem; if we miss it and reach Bold Island, we could always double back. It'll be easier as long as Bold Island is where the technoworks were sabotaged.

~~I'm glad to report that Layna has begun to heal properly. Dubbl says she's been silent about being punished, but, somehow, I'm afraid that she might be mad at me. I don't want to say it was something I had to do because that's just too easy. I really feel kinda bad that I had to punish her just to get her to feel better. Maybe, by the time we reach Bold Island, things will be back to normal. As creepy as it's been having her secretly follow me ashore ever since we started running, I'd feel more comfortable if she was able to come along.

…

Link had planned to sleep a little later than usual, still a little sore from asking Leynne remove the stitches in his thigh the evening before. Whoever was at the helm had other plans come the early morning.

It started when the _Island Symphony_ suddenly rocked to one side, causing Link to roll out of his bed and land with a solid _thump_ on the floor. The hit jarred him awake fast enough to appreciate the situation before things jerked in the opposite direction as the ship corrected itself, causing his head to strike the drawer that had slid out in the initial maneuver.

_Pam!_

"Augh!" Link hollered, cradling his head.

"Luc con háta!?" Irleen asked after her bed was done rocking.

Link stood up and looked out the windows at the back of his cabin. Although the frosted glass made it difficult to see anything, the large, brown spots made him understand what might have happened. "Oh, man…" he groaned to himself as he turned and stepped over to his wardrobe. He pulled his green, wool jacket out and dropped it on the footlocker. Then he sat on the footlocker so he could pull his boots on. Once he had finished, he grabbed his jacket and stepped out onto the deck.

The sudden presence of cold air caused him to jump in surprise, and he quickly threw the jacket on and buttoned it up. The jacket only covered him down to his waist, so he could feel the cold attempting to freeze his legs through his bodysuit as he strode across the main deck. Dubbl and Lwamm were nowhere in sight. It was not until Link was halfway across the deck that he saw someone else.

Leynne was just coming up the port stairs while pulling on a brown longcoat over a bright red, short-sleeve body suit. "What the hell was _that_?" he asked in an irritated tone as Link made to pass him.

"I _tried_ to warn you guys," Link responded as he marched past. He saw Gold still at the helm. Once he climbed the steps onto the forecastle, he found Dubbl and Lwamm standing on the bulwark, using the stays for the fore-masts to keep their balance. "Report," Link tersely said to Gold.

Gold sighed, realizing that his action had prompted the irate tone from Link. "Sorry, Cap'n," he said. "Appeared tae port. I couldn't see it 'til we 'bout 'it it."

"My wohd…" Leynne awed as he stared at the skies off to port.

Link could not help being surprised by the sight of the rocks, either. He had only ever noticed them a couple of times as the _Grand Sails_ had passed by the spot in a Sky Line. Back then, Link had thought they were no larger than maybe him. Being inside the area gave him a new appreciation for how dangerous it really was. Many of the distant rocks were vertical, oblong, and looked like they could rival whole apartment buildings in size. Meanwhile, the rocks floating nearby varied in sizes between regular furniture and more massive than the _Island Symphony_ itself. Being early in the morning made rocks on the port side hard to see with the presence of the sun on the horizon, at least until a large rock moved to block the sun. Link could see why Dubbl and Lwamm were in their current positions. The rocks never seemed to maintain the same altitude from one moment to the next. Smaller rocks especially seemed to rise and fall with interesting speed, and the two Gelto needed the positions at the edge of the ship to make sure they did not have one rise from below and punch a hole in the ship.

"What a _mess_," Leynne said after his grapple with shock. "How does something like this come about?"

"I'm sure there's an explanation for it," Link said.

"Of course there is." Both Leynne and Link glanced around until they found Irleen hovering behind Link.

Link gave her a confused look. "Irleen, you understand us?"

"Why?" she asked. "You don't have my gem with you?"

"I was sure I left it in my trousers…"

Link felt a tug on the back of his jacket. "The same trousehs that could be on this clothes hangeh?" Leynne asked.

"What?" Link asked over his shoulder before he felt around behind his head. He felt the hook from the clothes hanger that he had thought he had left in his wardrobe. "Oh. I guess it is."

"So what's _youh_ hypothesis behind this?" Leynne asked, indicating the air around them with a hand.

"Hypothesis, nothing," Irleen answered. "I _know_ what's causing this. It's the technoworks."

Link gave her a confused look. "The technoworks? But… but we're nowhere _near_ an island right now. The closest one is still West Iron Island."

"No, Link," she replied. "Not technoworks from a _different_ island. There are technoworks all _around_ us."

Leynne glanced at the distant rocks. "What, in _those_?" he asked, pointing.

"In _everything_," she said. "Every rock you see here contains a part of an old, probably collapsed technoworks that still seems to be operating."

"Operating? How?"

Link snapped his fingers. "Because they're still pulling resources from the surface, right?" he asked.

"You're paying attention, Link," she said in a pleased voice. She slid aside to look at Leynne. "The technoworks pull water and minerals from the surface to maintain their processes. The rocks you're seeing are probably years of excreted dirt and maybe even _metals_ which the technoworks can't use."

Link nodded. "I always wondered why this was such a good mining spot."

"I'll bypass the obvious question of _how_ those resouhces get heh and move along," Leynne said. "I'll ask the stupid question of why they'h floating like this."

"Don't sound very stupid tae _me_," Gold spoke up as he gently turned the ship to port.

"Magic," Irleen responded. "When the technoworks receive enough materials to power themselves, their basic response is to float. That's why the islands up here _stay_ up here."

Link expected Leynne to ask more questions, but his second-in-command had fallen silent. This prompted Link to turn to look at him. Leynne tilted his head with an unreadable look on his face. At first, Link thought it was a skeptical response to the word "magic".

Then Leynne grinned, causing Link to become confused again. "Leynne?" he asked.

"I've an idea," Leynne replied. "But we'll need the otheh Gelto and pehhaps the Gorons. And net. And ropes. And crates full of all the spah metal pahts we have. And Gold to stay on the helm."

Gold shrugged and said, "Still me turn anyway."

"What's the idea?" Irleen asked.

"We'h going fishing foh rocks," Leynne answered, causing Link and Irleen to share a look.

…

"Now remember," Irleen said as the deck crew all looked at the air above them. "The best way to do this is knock off all the dirt you can and then close it up. There's a chance it'll want to rise once it's free."

"Thank you, Ihleen," Leynne, standing at the top of the stairs to the forecastle, told her in an idle tone.

After changing clothes, Link stood next to Gold and looked through the air above for a small boulder. It had taken him a moment to realize Leynne's plan. Although Leynne had never seen a cube of technoworks before, he had considered that these things could only be as large as some of the smallest rocks floating around them. While Link directed Gold to maneuver the ship in order to get a rock on the deck, Lwamm, Twali, Lidago, and Helo stood by with nets fashioned from spare shrouds they had below. Dubbl and Leynne each held a small piece of metal which they would use to remove the outer layer of dirt from the technoworks cube. Biluf waited near the middle of the deck with a crate tied down to the deck and turned on one side so that box's open top faced where the rock would be. The end result would be a technoworks cube or two which could be installed in the cutter as a ballast system. Once Link had explained the idea to Irleen, she had described it as ambitious. She also said that, once they had what they needed, the technoworks would go dormant until Link played the "attention" note on his blues harp.

Link could see this going wrong in many different ways. The foremost on his mind was a rock punching through the deck and opening the ballast system. He had gotten lucky on the _Island Sonata_; he was not sure he could pull it off on the _Island Symphony_. The fact that he had a crew with him had made him hesitate even more. It had only been Leynne's assurance that it would take a boulder probably about a quarter of the size of the ship itself to penetrate the deck which had helped alleviate Link's concerns. Just alleviate, though; Link still had his fears.

"Cap'n," Gold spoke up. Link turned, and Gold pointed up and ahead. Placing a new duoscope (made out of consistent materials and not the patched-together pieces Leynne had used before) to his eyes, Link followed Gold's direction and found a boulder which could not be any larger than him. The boulder was slowly floating downward, meaning that it should be a decent catch.

Link nodded. "Go get it, Mister Gold."

"Aye aye," Gold said. He spun and fought to engage the ship's propeller. Then he pushed the throttle to increase its speed. He did it a little fast, causing the bow to tip upward and the rest of the crew on-deck to stagger.

"_Easy_, Gold," Link said. "We don't wanna drop anyone over the side."

"Wasn't me, Cap'n," Gold said. "I was bein' gentle with it. It's that moron down below. _Every_ time I turn it on, it does somethin' different. Yesterday, I 'ad tae play with it tae make sure it was runnin'."

"That's the fihst time I felt the ship jehk," Leynne pointed out.

"Yep, that was a new one," Gold said.

Link looked back up at the boulder. "Increase the ballast a bit," he told Gold.

"Increase the ballast, aye," Gold responded as he tapped the ballast control lever with his elbow.

The ship rose a moment, and Link suddenly had the impression that the boulder was coming straight for his face. But he saw that the boulder was not falling fast enough, so he told Gold, "Slow us down a bit."

"Slowin', aye," Gold said and tugged back on the throttle. He looked forward again, and his head moved from the boulder to the bowsprit. Then he looked back up and turned the ship slightly to port. "Gonna be tricky…"

"That's pehfect, Gold," Leynne said. "Keep it coming."

Gold nodded. "Aye, Chief."

Link felt excitement rise in him. "That's it!" he said. "Is it stopping?"

"That looks like it's stoppin'," Gold agreed as he tugged down the throttle.

"A little fahtheh than I expected," Leynne commented.

"Take us up," Link told Gold.

"Aye, takin' us up," Gold answered as he pushed the ballast control. The ship rose further.

"Okay, stop the engine," Link said as the boulder passed over his head.

"Stoppin' the engine, aye," Gold said. He jerked both the throttle control and the propeller control down, causing the ship to coast to a stop while it continued to rise.

It coasted a little far, and Link, as he moved to the stairs behind Leynne, lost sight of it due to the port fore-mast being in the way. Leynne must have lost it, too, because he called across the deck, "Wheh is it? Does anyone see it?"

"Sofatan 'anw fayt!" Dubbl hollered at the other Gelto.

"Kyabtin!" Lwamm, standing on the starboard side with Helo, called out while pointing up. Link stepped back onto the forecastle and moved to the center of the deck. He saw the boulder again between the sails. The ship was still rising, but it appeared as if the boulder was falling toward the deck. Nobody on the main deck was reacting.

Instead, he watched two human figures (Cale and Lilly) jump into the opening in the poop deck. The boulder landed the starboard side of the deck a second later, hitting so soft that Link could not feel the impact from the forecastle at all.

"Hold altitude!" Link snapped just before leaping over the rail and falling to the main deck. "Twali, Biluf, with me! Lwamm, Helo, secure that rock! Get it off the poop deck!" Halfway between his orders, Link dashed across the deck with Leynne and Irleen following. Twali and Biluf chased them down after Dubbl repeated his orders. Link and Leynne took the stairs up while Twali and Biluf jumped up and pulled themselves up and over the railing in the same amount of time. Link charged for the doors to the launch deck and pulled them open.

When Biluf had started using her chemistry things in the launch deck, she had covered the cutter with a spare pair of sails and constructed a partition which she had braced against the cutter in case any of her experiments exploded again. Both Cale and Lilly were lying on the partition they had knocked over after they had rolled off the cutter's overturned hull. Lilly was on top of Cale, her body sprawled across his abdomen.

"You guys okay?" Link asked as Twali and Biluf reached the door.

Lilly sat up and moved off Cale. "I-I feel so," she said, moving to the edge of the partition closer to Link. "I might gotta hit my head."

"Cale?" Link asked.

Cale wheezed. Then he said, "I huht…"

Link breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay," he told them with a grin. "Let's get you out on the deck."

Link and Twali had to pick up Cale and helped him out onto the deck, where they sat him behind the rail next to Lilly. Leynne was looking over them when Link heard something heavy coming down from the poop deck.

"Captain," Helo said, holding up something in his enormous hand.

He handed it over to Link. Link found it to be a dark, copper-colored cube of technoworks about the same size as the floor cubes back on Might Island. It was lighter than he had expected, and he found that it had five perfectly smooth faces. The remaining face was partially covered by gray stone.

"Funny," Link said. "I thought it was larger when it hit."

"That is the size we found it," Helo said. "The deck above is covered in dirt. I believe that it all fell off the metal surface when it hit the deck."

"Irleen?" Link asked as he turned around.

Irleen popped up from behind Leynne and moved to hover over the cube. "Yep, that's technoworks," she said.

"How come it's dark like this?" Link asked.

"It isn't being used on an island," Irleen replied. "It's… how can I say it? It's-it's like raw _dough_. You know how, after you make dough, you either have to use it or throw it away?"

"As if it had gone bad?" Leynne asked as he stood up.

"Yeah," Irleen said. "I mean, even when you don't use it, there's always processes going on, right?"

"Naturally," Leynne said. "The yeast in the dough continues to bubble foh as long as the yeast is present."

"You bake?" Link asked.

Leynne gave him an irritated look. "I've lived in a dying forest foh almost fifteen yeahs, Link."

"The technoworks continued to feed on materials it can still draw from the surface," Irleen said. "That's its most basic function: survival."

"You mean to say that thing is _alive_?" Leynne asked.

"Yep. They take in whatever non-living things they can find on the surface, consume what they need, get rid of the rest. All the dirt and the rock that was on it is all just fecal matter to them."

"Thank you foh the distuhbing thought, Ihleen," Leynne commented. "It's… nice to know that I'm stepping in rock feces wheneveh I stand in diht."

"So what can we do with _this_?" Link asked.

"It'll take a bit of time to figure it out," Irleen said, "but if you hold onto them, you can put them on that small boat just like Leynne wants to do. Just one of these should be enough."

"_Fouh_ will ensuh we don't capsize it while flying," Leynne said.

"So three more than?" Link asked.

Leynne shrugged. "Now that we know how to uncoveh them."

…

~~Day 73 (Command, Day 36)

~~Today, we've probably done one of the weirdest things ever: we spent part of the day harvesting cubes of technoworks from a bunch of floating rocks. We have four total, and Leynne thinks that we'll be able to put them on the cutter with some of our spare parts. This probably put us a day behind, but if we can get the cutter working as a launch, we won't have to worry about risking the safety of the Island Symphony every time we approach an island.

~~We had to run the engine more today, but Leynne reminded me that the islands always produce wind that push outward from the island. His hunch was right; the larger rocks in the area produce the same thing, although maybe not as strong. Although neither Leynne nor Gold really enjoyed sailing near the rocks, it gave us some reprieve from using the engines and save fuel. But unless the winds in this area shift, we could possibly run out of fuel before we reach even South Sand Island. It feels just like the journey from Sagacity Island to Might Island, only this time, things are happening too quickly. We need a way to move faster before we chance falling out of the sky again.

…

~~Day 74 (Command, Day 37)

~~We're still traveling through the scattered technoworks, but we've attempted to lessen our reliance on the engine by continuing to move near the larger rocks. Leynne modified two of our oil lanterns so that the light they give off is brighter in one direction, which makes it easier to move at night. Still, we've been hit by three rocks today. I'm glad Leynne was right about the hull, but I never thought I'd be testing it by flying through a bunch of rocks. It makes me wish we had started at Bold Island, although I wonder where we would be now if we had.

…

~~Day 75 (Command, Day 38)

~~The rocks were thinner today. Unfortunately, this means we've had to rely on the engine again. We tried beating to windward for some of the smaller distances between the larger rocks, but the Island Symphony being such a large ship makes it difficult for her to tack. We could run close-hauled for a bit due to having six gaff-rigged sails, but it doesn't get us to Bold Island any faster. Most everyone's been quiet today, and I can't help feeling that things are quickly going hopeless around here.

…

Link woke up confused by the darkness around him. Even stranger was the bed he was on, some sort of long, flat, wooden box draped with a bedsheet and anchored to a wall with metal plates and chains. He could only tell what they were due to the light somewhere across the room from him. The light was weak, and, as Link slipped off the bed and to his feet, he found that he could not reach it. Somewhere between the bunk and the light, Link encountered a vertical set of bars. A cage? Or… was it a cell?

"Captain?" The feminine voice, the voice of Princess Zelda, came from his right. He glanced over to find her soft face peering between the darkness of the bars around him. At first, he thought that he was somehow mistaken. He proved himself right when he began to see the rest of her body in the poor light.

"Princess Zelda," he said as he stepped over to her. "You did it again, right? This is… We're talking to each other inside a _dream_, right?"

Her face molded relief, honest and free of consciousness of her image. "Oh, thank the Goddesses," she said. "I was worried I had failed."

Link glanced around again. "What is this? Where are we?"

She looked down. "This is… where I've been. Where I am now."

Link ceased breathing for a moment. He had to remind himself that it was only a dream, that he was not _actually_ in the brig of the _Smiling Gunner_. He regretted asking, not because he actively feared the place, but because Zelda's reluctance to say exactly meant that she did not really want to be reminded. He lowered his head and said, "I-I'm sorry."

"You have… never been here before, Link," she told him. "It's understandable that you would ask."

Link glanced around uncomfortably. "I… I think I've seen it before, though," he said. "When I first started having your dreams…"

She nodded. "It took some time, but… I guess I managed to fool myself into believing that you had been here all this time. I have tried to focus on you because… of all the people that I can imagine, you are the only one who will appear to me."

"Is something wrong?" Link asked.

Zelda gave a giggle, a rather sad sound accompanied by her eyes glancing away for a moment. "Yes, I… I suppose you could say that."

Link had picked up on the stupidity of his statement before she responded and silently kicked himself for asking if something was wrong. The Princess of Hyrule was in the brig of a demon general's airship with no means of contacting her friends, never mind her own _parents_. "I'm sorry," he said. "Your Highness, I've be—"

"Zelda."

Link looked up at her, dumbfounded. "Huh?"

"Please call me Zelda?" she asked. Link thought he was hearing things. Did she really turn a request into a question? "I… want you to, Link. I don't want to stand on formality within a dream."

He was not hearing things, which just left him more confused. "Z-Zelda," he said. She smiled in response, so he continued, "I've… I've been trying to find your parents as fast as I can, but they moved on from Might Island. But-but I think—"

"Link, please stop." Link did as he was asked, clapping his mouth shut. "I know you have been working so hard for me. At times, when I fall asleep, I find myself looking through your eyes. Sometimes, when I say things, I wonder if you might actually hear me. But I did not bring you here to question your progress, Link."

"Oh," was all Link had to say.

"Link, has there ever been a time in your life when you wished you had… someone, _anyone_ to talk to?"

Line immediately came to Link's mind, and he nodded with his eyes aimed downward. "I sure do."

"I did not want to impose on you, Link. But… with the Sorian crew not willing to talk in front of their traitorous countryman, I find that I can no longer tolerate the silence." Link saw her reach a hand through the bars. "Please, Link. Please would you be my friend? Not a servant that feels the need to serve my need. Not an airship captain whose duties should have ended when he fell asleep. Just… my friend."

"I…" Link replied, staring at the hand. He was not sure what she was asking. It all felt so awkward to him. But he could see how eager she looked, so he held up a hand and carefully clasped hers. Her skin was soft and warm, and he could feel his face growing red as he held her hand. "I-I will."

Again, she looked relieved as she pulled his hand closer. "Thank you, Link. I wish I could tell you… tell you how much just _this_ means to me."

Link did not know how to respond. He just looked down at their clasped hands and blinked.

He immediately regretted blinking. He found himself lying on a bed when his eyes opened with the bleariness of having lost sleep again. A strip of soft light filtering in through a door showed Link that he had awoken back in his cabin, the room itself confirmed by Irleen's soft light glowing on the ceiling. His hand clutched the pillow that had previously been the princess's hand.

The dream was still fresh in his head. To him, it had ended because he was stupid enough to blink, just as had happened before. Even without knowing if what he had seen were the conditions the princess was held captive under, he could see how dreary things could be for her on that ship. At first, he was saddened by what he had seen. Then he became frustrated, throwing the pillow off the bed. He flopped onto his stomach and bunched up part of the bedsheet under his head. But his thoughts continued to dwell on the dream. The more he thought about it, the more he began to think that this slow pace they had been dealing with for almost a week was not good enough. They had to find the king and queen as soon as possible. He eventually arrived at the idea that, had they taken the Sky Lines back through the other side of the kingdom, they could have been at Bold Island by now. The idea angered him further. He sat up on the edge of the bed for a moment, chastising himself in the dark for his stupidity. He had let his paranoia of the Skyriders get to him so bad that he was taking his chances on a route that could see his ship falling to the surface. He should have known better.

He had to fix it. He could not wait. _Zelda_ could not wait. The longer he took to get back into the storm, the longer _she_ had to suffer. Without thinking about what he was doing, he stood up from the bed and started getting dressed.

"Link?" Irleen asked, her voice cracked and deep (that is, a definition of "deep" which accounted for the naturally high pitch of a fairy's voice). "Whus goin' on?"

Link sat down on his footlocker to put his boots on. "We're not going fast enough," he told her.

"We're doing what?" Irleen responded as she rose out of her bed.

"We can't keep going like this," Link said as he stood. He felt around his pockets to see what he had with him. His hands bumped the blues harp.

It spurred his brain into a clearer thought. If the cubes of technoworks could _float_, what about making them go other directions? "Irleen, is it possible to make the technoworks go in other directions?"

"What?" Irleen asked. "Link, what time is it?"

"C'mon, c'mon," Link said. "Is it possible?"

"Wha—… Y-yeah, I think so, but yo—Link!"

Link had stepped out the door into the night air. The running lights had been turned on, and the night sky was moonless. Due to Gold needing Lwamm and Dubbl on the bridge to keep watch for rocks, there was no one on the main deck in front of him. He remembered that, despite Irleen having told them that the cubes would eventually go dormant, Leynne had put forth the idea of storing them in the hold below, inside the crate they had intended to use. So he marched across the deck toward the portside stairs.

Irleen had barely managed to get out the door before Link had closed it, and she followed him across the deck. "Link, just what are you expecting to accomplish?" she asked as she followed in his wake, the only way she could move while the engine drove the ship.

Link snapped to consciousness that she was following him and turned around. "Come here, hurry," he said, cupping his hands together and holding them out. Irleen grunted and flew into his hands. He closed them around her and hustled to the stairs. He waited until he reached the landing halfway between the weather deck and the hold before releasing her. "Irleen, can I use the blues harp to control the technoworks?"

"Wha—" she managed to get out before chasing him down the stairs. "Yeah, you _could_, but… Link, you need to _know_ how to use it. It's not just a matter of playing _notes_. You can't just experiment, Link, you have to be _taught_."

"I don't think so."

Irleen paused at the bottom of the stairs while Link stepped up to the crate in the middle of the hold. "Well, there's your problem, then," she told him in a snide tone.

Link reached his hands into the crate and pulled a cube out. "I got a plan," he seemed to say to the cube before placing it on the floor. The one he had pulled out had a large, oval-shaped grey stone encasing half of the cube, so he stood it up on its only untouched face like planting a strange mushroom.

"Yeah, okay, you're not thinking very straight," she told him. "Let's just go back to bed."

"Not yet," Link said as he pulled the blues harp from his pocket. Despite his lack of clarity, he could remember which note it was that caused the technoworks to respond. He was about to play it, but then he decided to pick up the cube and moved it further forward. Whatever he had in mind, he did not want to accidentally turn on the other three blocks. When he had it in position, he played the note softly. The cube responded by brightening in the dull light of the overhead bulb. It did not glow like the technoworks, but Link just assumed it was because it was not part of a larger group like what he had found under the islands.

"Okay, so you remember how to awaken it," Irleen said. "What are you going to do _now_? You can't just spontaneously learn how to _use_ that thing."

Spontaneous learning… The gears in Link's head changed directions when he remembered something from before. It was a while back, beyond when Link knew next to nothing about the Sorians.

_Next_ to nothing, because he _had_ known something about the Sorians. He remembered Rireen using that baton thing, what had Zelda called it? The Wind Walker? It sounded close enough. He could not remember the name, but he _did_ remember that it was a _Hylian_ artifact that Rireen did not know a thing about. In spite of that, Rireen had been able to use it to open the Undying Storm for the _Island Sonata_ to pass through.

So Link replied, "I can't. But _you_ can."

"Huh?" she replied.

"I've seen it before," Link explained. "I saw a Sorian use magic from a _Hylian_ relic to open the Undying Storm for my old ship. _And_. I've seen you use magic even like that. Remember, in the Snow Realm on the surface?"

"Link, that sort of thing requires concentration and clarity," she told him. "I really don't have _either_ right now, and neither do _you_."

"Irleen, I _need_ you to do this," Link pleaded. "You're the only one who can."

"Right now, Link? It's the middle of the _night_!"

"Yes."

"No! Link, _what_'s gotten into you?"

"I'm _not_ wasting time anymore!" Link snapped, causing Irleen to back up a bit. "We've already spent a month wasting time, and for _what_!? I'm being hunted by my _own company_! They've got orders to _shoot_ me down, Irleen! _Twice_! Twice, we could've been captured! And _twice_, we've had to deal with Cunimincus' crew! That makes _four times_ that we _all_ could've died! What have we got to show for that, Irleen!? We aren't _any_ closer to finding the king and queen! And we're about to go down in the middle of a bunch of floating rocks because we're gonna run ourselves out of fuel! There are people _suffering_ out there, Irleen! Suffering because we're doing everything the _stupid_ way! Normal people who have no idea what's going on! Governor Lore, who was reduced to almost _nothing_ overnight! Captain Luke because he has to cover our _asses_! Captain _North_ because he has to follow his _stupid orders_! That's not to mention Captain Koroul and _his_ crew! They're still on the _Smiling Gunner_! They're stuck in a brig with _no_ light, _no_ rescue! Princess Zelda doesn't have anyone who's willing to _talk_ to her! She's lonely in that brig! We _suck_, Irleen! We can pat ourselves on the back for putting the Sky Lines back, but it isn't _enough_!"

"Princess…" Irleen trailed off. Then she snapped, "Just what the hell is _wrong_ with you!? 'Princess Zelda'!? Is _that_ what you're going crazy about!? Because your princess is on another boat!? You still think you're seeing her in your _dreams_, don't you!? How many times do I have to tell you!? It doesn't! _Work_! That way! A long time ago, I was willing to go along with you randomly having a dream through Koroul's eyes because it was _plausible_, Link! But no! No! Not anymore! You're not _seeing_ her! And you're just _letting_ these dreams get you riled up! What good is this kind of thing going to do for you!? Waking up in the middle of the night thinking you've just shared a dream with her!? Are you _that_ naïve!?"

"So _what_!?" Link shouted back. "Who _cares_ if I'm seeing her in my dreams or not!?"

"_I_ do!" Irleen replied. "You're taking this _way_ too far! You told me we should be able to make it to the next island! What's the point in doing _this_!?"

"To make sure we don't fall out of the damn _sky_!"

"How wonderful for _us_ then! Our captain throws away his _sanity_ just to make sure we make it a day early! What are you gonna do next, get out and _push_!? It's not going to harm anything if you would at least get some damn _sleep_, Link! We could just as easily have done this in the morning!"

"We're doing it _now_!" Link shouted. "And if I have to bust a hole in my ship just to make it work, then all Goddesses be damned I'm gonna _do_ it!"

Someone cleared his throat, and Link and Irleen looked to the starboard stairs to find Leynne standing there. Unexpectedly, he did not appear very bleary-eyed. He looked quite clear-headed for someone who had probably been awoken by Link and Irleen screaming at each other. "I don't know that blasphemy is really favohed by aihmen up heh," he told them, "but I imagine that one doesn't want to try it while running on his last leg."

Link glanced to the doorway to the berth deck to see Cale, Biluf, and Lilly leaning out. He tightened his grip on the blues harp and told them in a controlled voice, "Go back to sleep, you guys."

"Is that an ohdeh?" Leynne asked. "Because, even in the dead of night, I can see an oppohtunity."

"Not you, too," Irleen groaned.

"I don't want to inconvenience you, Ihleen," Leynne said, "but while we may bahely make the next island, it would be betteh to cut those odds in any way we can. Even if it has to take place in the middle of the night."

Irleen sighed. "Okay, okay. Just… this could take some time."

Link held out the blues harp to her. "Take all the time you need. We just need a way to get these cubes to keep the _Symphony_ moving."

Irleen rested on top of the blues harp and remained there for a few minutes. Leynne hissed at Biluf, Cale, and Lilly to disappear and stepped out into the hold to watch. Link was careful not to move his hand out of fear of disrupting her.

Then she moved along the surface of the blues harp, stopping and changing directions at one end of different emeralds. Link took this as how the cube needed to be controlled and memorized the eight-note sequence that Irleen indicated. Then, she pulled away from the blues harp and told him, "After you play that, just touch one side of the cube. Whichever face you touch will cause the cube to want to float in the opposite direction."

"Thank you," he said. Then he played the eight-note sequence, one of the easiest pieces he had ever played although lacking any sort of sophistication.

The cube glowed brighter, and Link saw blue rings expanding in sets of three on both of the sides of the cube visible to him, looking like ripples on water. He strode forward and touched one side. The cube responded by pushing itself away from Link's finger and sliding across the deck until it hit the wall on the inside of the berth deck.

"The technoworks…" Irleen started. She seemed to shake herself and continued, "The technoworks need have a line of sight on the surface so they can feed. This cube will give up in a few minutes; it'll run out of power and go dormant again."

"I have a plan," Leynne said, placing a hand on Link's shoulder. "We'll put it togetheh right away, and then you need to go back to bed."

Link nodded. "That's all I want."

…

~~I found us a new option.


	92. Sleepless Weekend

Chapter 92: Sleepless Weekend

…

Link had not slept at all. In addition to not being able to find his pillow, his thoughts had dwelt on Princess Zelda so much that every time he opened his eyes, he silently cursed that he was not back in the cell with her. Eventually, a bit of light from the sunrise took the darkness of his cabin away. So he got dressed and stepped out onto the deck so he would not disturb Irleen.

The sun was higher in the sky to port than Link had expected. The blue sky around them was still broken by floating rocks. The booms of the ship's six masts shifted back and forth ever so slightly in response to the helm. They no longer drove the ship, not as long as Link's solution provided them the thrust they needed in such unfavorable winds. Approaching the bow, he ran his hand along the bulwark. At about the middle of the main deck, Link stopped and looked past the bulwark at the results of last night's bout of insomnia.

A chainplate had been put into the bulwark on the outside. A line running parallel to the ship's hull connected to a second chainplate further aft. In between, one of the technoworks cubes had been wrapped in rope around the front-facing side and the middle. The aft-facing side had been left exposed so that, while the technoworks was in operation, it could continue to gather the resources it needed from the surface. All four cubes had been strapped to the outside of the ship in a similar manner, although not in the same way twice due to the rock growth on each one. He was surprised that no one had informed him that one of the cubes had gotten loose. Not that they had no means of replacing the cubes, Link realized as he looked up at the rocks floating around them. He considered the possibility of stopping to gather more cubes, but he dismissed it just as quickly as he had thought of it. It was enough that he had awoken part of his crew during his shouting match with Irleen; he did not want them to start thinking he was losing more of his mind.

Link started forward again. Then he stopped after a single step when he saw Dholit standing near the port hatch. She wore the outfit she had made from Leynne's stolen wardrobe, which somehow accented the attitude she expressed. _What_ attitude she had intended to show him was not entirely clear. Her face was hard to read, and she had her arms crossed in a manner which Link usually associated with someone about to let him know that he had made a mistake. For a moment, they just stared at each other.

Then Dholit uncrossed her arms so that she could give Link an inviting wave. Link narrowed his eyes, not entirely certain if he should interpret the wave as such (especially considering Dholit's usual demeanor). The distance between them was too great for them to speak with each other, so he could not ask without approaching her. He had just considered walking over and asking her what she wanted, but she stepped into the hatch and disappeared from sight. This left Link wondering if she was being serious or if it was just another of her antics. He decided to follow her.

He found Dholit as he reached the cargo hold. She stood with her back to him, paused at the top of the stairs going to the next deck. She gave him a glance over her shoulder before she descended. Link continued to be puzzled by her attitude, so he followed. As he made to set foot in the galley, he realized that she had stopped.

He froze just in front of the stairs when he saw that she was not alone. Leaning one thigh against a small crate of rations was Leynne, arms crossed and a frown on his face. Link could hear him take in a breath as if preparing himself to face something difficult. This made Link conscious of his own heartbeat. He glanced over to his left to see Dholit leaning her back against the bulkhead dividing the galley from the quarters beyond.

His glance passed between them a few times before asking Leynne, "Is something wrong?"

"You might say that," Leynne replied in an even tone. He looked a little angry, and Link began to fear coming below.

"We have some concehns about My Captain," Dholit said.

"About-about _me_?" Link replied. "Why?"

"Well, you _did_ wake up half the ship last night," Leynne said.

Link dropped his eyes to the deck. He had realized how stupid it was of him to have gone berserk the previous night. Everyone had gone to bed without another word about it. Even Leynne, who had helped him strap the cubes to the outside of the ship. "Oh," Link uttered. "That, huh?"

"I do not claim to have the cohrect grasp of how captains ah suppose to behave on a Skyrideh vessel," Leynne said. "It's considerably less than my undehstanding of a second-in-command. I _do_, howeveh, recognize when a _pehson_ is behaving ehratically. Theh _is_ a line wheh uhgency ends and insanity begins. As the 'friend to the crew', I believe it falls within my puhview to inquih wheh ouh captain stands in relation to that line. Sih."

Link sighed. "I suppose I owe you an explanation for last night, don't I?"

"As ouh commandah," Dholit spoke up, "I don't happen to believe that you owe us anything of the soht. It is _ouh_ lot to cahry out My Captain's ohdahs without question, even should they lead us to death; that's how it wohks in Gilto society. Howevah, as one commandah who has expressed a great deal of concehn foh those undah his command, I have come to expect My Captain to speak when something troubles him."

"You were there last night, too?" Link asked, facing her.

"Hidden beyond the wall," she answered with a nod.

Link nodded. "I've…" he started. He knew that his explanation for his behavior last night was bound to make both of them think that he had gone crazy. But Dholit was right. Link cared about his crew a lot, probably more than any captain should. So he took in a breath. "I've been having… having these dreams lately. I-I started having them… I don't know, maybe about a week after the _Island Sonata_ crashed into the ground? They… well, I guess they've actually been quite horrible. I mean…" He sighed. "I've been having dreams about… about Princess Zelda."

Dholit and Leynne glanced at each other. "The princess you left behind in the Undying Stohm, cohrect?" Leynne asked.

"Yeah."

"How often have you been having these dreams?" Dholit asked, her face melting into a concerned look.

"I-I don't know," Link replied with a shake of his head. "At first… maybe once or twice in a week. Like-like I said, I… I'm not sure when they began."

"And you had anotheh one last night," Leynne reasoned.

"Yeah," Link said. "I guess I just… I ju—I just let it get to me." He stepped over to a nearby ration crate and rested his rear against it. "Up until maybe… maybe that trip out to the Fire Realm. I-I didn't even realize I was having these dreams. When I had one there, I asked Irleen if it was possible that I'd made contact with Princess Zelda's dreams somehow."

"What would Ihleen know about it?" Leynne asked.

"Before the _Horizon's Eye_ left Forelight Island, Irleen made a gem for the ship's captain. It was supposed to have my impressions of my crew on it; they were going with the princess to help replace some of the ill crewmen on that ship. Well, I had a daydream about the ship being attacked. It was from that captain's perspective, and I realized that his ship was going to be assaulted on its way out of the storm. Irleen explained that we must have exchanged dreams because of her gem. So I though… well, maybe the _princess_ had the gem, and I was starting to see her dreams. But Irleen just… just keeps denying it.

"Ever since we came to the sky, it's felt like the dreams have gotten… stronger. It's… It's like I'm suddenly very _conscious_ of my dreams. You know? Have you ever felt like you could take control of your dreams while you're dreaming?"

Leynne shrugged. "I suppose. It's not entihly easy to tell."

"This dream I had last night… I-I just felt so _helpless_. We were standing behind bars next to each other. She told me she was lonely. She wanted… wanted a friend… And, when I woke up… I just felt so sorry for her that… I wanted to _do_ something. I thought that we could use the technoworks. And… well, you heard me arguing with Irleen."

"Evidently," Leynne said. He uncrossed his arms and shoved them into his trouser pockets. "Look, Link. I've only known you foh maybe oveh a month now. I've seen the way you cahry youhself; you've got quite a guilty conscience. But I would like to point out that waking in the middle of the night and stahting an ahgument probably is not the path to travel down right now. I cannot say foh cehtain if you really _do_ see the princess in youh dreams oh not. I would just hope that you don't take too drastic an action based on something you probably could not have helped in the fihst place. You've seen some of the most hohrific things in the past two months; the fact that you seem to dwell on this is not a pahticulahly promising aspect."

"You think I should just forget about her?" Link asked, his tone becoming heated.

"I wouldn't do _any_ such thing," Leynne replied, mirroring Link's tone. He calmed himself for a moment before saying, "I just ask that you… just keep looking fohwahd. Regahdless of what youh dreams show you, they only have as much bearing on youh actions as you allow them. I guess I'm telling… no. No, just _asking_. I'm _asking_ you to not let them control you. As a friend."

"As a friend…" Link repeated as he glanced down at the deck again. "I'm sorry for the trouble I caused last night."

"At least we'h moving without having to rely on the engine," Leynne said. "It may not be as fast, but at least we can save fuel."

"Just promise youh next epiphany occuhs during the day," Dholit said, grinning at him.

"If it doesn't, I'll save it for the next morning," Link replied with a grin. "Promise."

Leynne yawned and stretched his arms in the air. "Well, I suppose I shall go relieve Gold."

"Are you okay to man the helm?" Link asked.

"I've had my shahs of sleepless nights," Leynne told him. "This is nothing."

"Okay." Link watched Leynne cross the deck and go up the stairs next to him. Then he looked to Dholit after Leynne was out of sight. "What about you?"

"A little suhprised, I suppose," she replied, pushing herself away from the bulkhead. "Afteh all this time of denying advances, it tahns out that you actually have a gihl you really caah foh."

Link gave her an annoyed look. "Dholit…" he groaned.

"Am I mistaken, My Captain? She _is_ a princess, afteh all."

"No, it's…" He sighed and rubbed his eyes with a hand. "I care because she's in danger. Even if all I know comes from a dream… I can't really imagine reality being that much better."

"Naturally. Still, foh you to dwell on heh much moah than the fine women on youh own crew, you must think quite highly of heh."

Link raised a hand as he spoke. "Without… without relying on what I've dreamed, she's probably the only Hylian on that ship now. I know Line came back on the _Horizon's Eye_, probably with Flower and Leonard. And, from what we've seen of Cunimincus' crew…"

"'Wish the thoughts of monstahs to flee, foh it is the monstahs within ouh sight which threaten us the most'." Link gave her a confused look. She told him, "Paht of an old Gilto epic, though not exactly as elegant in the Hylian language. That is not to say that youh visions of youh princess ah meahly illusions, of couhse. But you should see that concehning youhself with things at a distance leaves you vulnerable to the perils befoah you, Link."

"And you think I should only worry about the princess if she's right in front of me, right?" Link reasoned.

She smiled compassion at him which made her words sound all the more sincere. "My Captain, I feel that, when youh princess stands befoah you, both of youh plights will be less than thoughts."

…

~~Day 76 (Command, Day 39)

~~I spent the morning receiving lectures on what scares the crew the most, even what scares me. I guess I'll be holding onto any more ideas for when it won't separate my crew from their souls. But both Leynne and Dholit have had some very good points. As eager, I guess, as I am to return to the Undying Storm with some way to rescue Princess Zelda, I need to remember that just willing it to happen isn't enough. I have my crew to think about, especially since we're still being hunted by the Skyriders.

~~The wind gave us a little bit of help this afternoon, allowing us to sail south much better. According to Leynne, between the Island Symphony sailing close-hauled and the technoworks driving us, we've been moving faster than we were a couple days before. When the wind died down, we decided to try running the engine with the technoworks.

~~Needless to say, we won't be doing that again. As it turns out, when Sello's engine doesn't have to do so much pushing, the resulting speed makes even the Gelto cringe. I guess it's one thing when the ship's being driven by a Sky Line, but a completely different nightmare when we're being driven by a drunk.

~~Somehow, it's made me anticipate telling Captain Alfonzo all about my command so far. Just to see if he's capable of laughing.

…

~~Day 77 (Command, Day 40)

~~Today was probably the quietest day we've had for a while on this ship. Other than Layna still recovering, things seemed to just flow without any trouble. I talked to Lilly when she came on-deck, and we decided that, while Layna is still recovering, she could fill in for a while. Although, I have to admit, I really don't think she understands how rough being an airman can get. Then again, now that I consider it, I'm beginning to wonder if there are some duties that I've forgotten to assign.

~~We got lucky again with the wind giving us an opportunity to reach to the south. We've managed a good bit of speed for the day before the wind shifted on us again. But, for once, it felt like nothing had gone very wrong. Gold even suggested turning the engine on again just to scare the hell out of the crew. Apparently, he thought it would help the status quo of things going wrong for us. I know he was joking, but I have to admit that I was actually considering it.

…

"You were concerned for me?"

Link immediately shook his head to help clarify his mind. When he looked up again, he realized that he was standing on the bow of the _Island Sonata_ overlooking a blue sky through the forestays.

In the forestays, however, stood Zelda. She stared at him for a moment. Then she said, "They are right, I fear."

Link tilted his head. "Who?"

"Your crew. The well-dressed man and the dark-skinned woman. And… and Irleen."

"What do you mean?"

"These dreams." She glanced down at the deck and stood in silence for a moment. "For you as well as me." She sighed and stepped across the beakhead until she was standing just in front of the weather deck. "Link, since your airmen confronted you about the argument you had, I have been considering both of our positions. You have to manage your ship and your crew. And I… I cannot continue to exist within these dreams."

"Wait—wait a minute," Link said. "P—… Zelda, what are you talking about?"

"I have to stop creating these dreams, Link. They can only harm us."

Link stammered for a moment before he could ask, "W-why? How?"

She stepped onto the deck so that she stood eye-to-eye with Link. "Link, neither one of us can tolerate this. I mean no harm, but I _know_ that my attempts to escape this place using my dreams are causing you grief. I cannot on good conscience continue to pressure you simply because I want release from my prison. Whichever of your dreams I take, I know that you see one of my dreams. For every success I have when I contact you this way, you lose sleep. For every action you take on my behalf, I cause your crew doubt."

"Doubt?" Link asked, his tone surprised and slightly frantic. "What _doubt_?"

"Doubt in you. It was pure chance that I had seen both your argument with Irleen and your airmen confront you. How many other times has that happened?"

"_No_ other times!" Link told her. "That night…" He spun and stepped away from her as he tried to think. When he had an explanation, he turned back to her and said, "What you saw, that-that was the _only_ time that happened. I-I just… When I woke up from that last dream… I-I got—I guess I got a little mad. Ah—You asked me to be your friend, and then—and then, suddenly, I was back in my bed." He clenched his fists. "I-I wanted to _do_ something. I wanted to get you out of there. But…" He paused for a moment. "But that was the _only_ time I acted so stupid, and my crew called me on it. Leynne was right; I can't let my dreams just control me like that. But you _can't_ just end them."

"Link, if I do not end them, it will only make the both of us suffer. You will continue to have these dreams of me, and I will continue to seek escape in a world which I may never see again. The last time we spoke…" She lowered her gaze to the deck. "The last time we spoke, I had lost my senses. I could no longer keep my composure that evening and… I wanted someone to comfort me. I told you that I tried to fool myself into believing that you had been in here with me. What could be left of my senses if self-deception can be so easily achieved?"

Link felt a chill rattle his whole body. Unconsciously, he took a step away from her. "Z…Zelda…"

"For every moment of sleep, I lie awake in all but the blackest darkness for what feels like days. Talking with Captain Koroul's crew yields silence. Cunimincus' crew has left us to our own devices. We could die, and they would not respond. I have lost track of time. I thought that escaping into your dreams would relieve me of my plight, but I realize that I have only created problems for the both of us. In the darkness, I wish to see you. I wish to see you so much that… it _hurts_." She looked back up at him, and Link saw her eyes watering up. "I feel physical pain, Link. Every beat of my heart makes me think that my heart shall burst. It has become so bad that I do not have the energy to stand when I wake. And I fear that, if I continue these dreams, it will only hurt more."

"But… if-if you just stop… what's going to happen to _you_?"

She shook her head. "I cannot be certain, Link. I may go mad, or I may survive."

"That's not _good enough_!" Link told her. The passion in his voice stunned Zelda, and she took a step back in surprise. "I mean _why_! _Why_ should it be like this!?"

"Link, please," she said with a concerned look. "I've had a lot of time to consider this. If I am to go mad, it would be better for both of us if I were to do it while not keeping in contact with you."

Link shook his head with a sharp motion. "No."

She glanced down at the deck. "You would foster harm upon me just so you can talk to me?"

"Pr—… Zelda, I can't just let you go like that. Your word is the only solid proof I have of the fake princess in the castle. And you've actually _helped_ me. When I met her, if you hadn't said anything, I might've just _stood_ there and been taken captive. Without you, we might not even be this close to making things normal again."

For a moment, she had been stunned by the revelation that her words had reached him at that point in time. She dropped her gaze to the deck again, and, this time, she did not look up as she told him, "That's unfair, Link. It's unfair of you to say those things. I… I would have been contented if you would just forget about me."

"You once said that you wanted to be part of my crew," Link told her. "I will _not_ forget my crew."

"But… I'm so far away, Link…"

"So is Line. And Leonard and Flower. But they're _still_ my crew. I even count Albert as part of my crew, and he's _dead_. And you wanted me to be your friend."

"It was a moment of weakness…"

"It doesn't matter."

She angled her head to hide the look of pain from her face. "I hate you."

"_Tough_."

Zelda immediately looked up at him in shock, not expecting the terse response. Link had actually been a little surprised by the response himself, not meaning to sound so harsh to her. The reply had just barely formed when he blurted it out, and her words caused him to speak it before he could stop himself from being a jerk to the Princess of Hyrule. But he maintained a determined scowl. It was the only thing keeping him from reveling that he, like her, was beginning to lose his composure. However, he was frustrated instead of sad. He did not like that she was trying to give up. It was bring her too close to a point which Link was worried he could not bring her back from. Friend, crewman, or neither, Link did not want to lose contact with her. He did not want to believe that he would lose her, too. Her dreams meant she was still alive. Alive meant that he could still do something to help her.

"Tough…" she said. Then she asked with indignation causing her voice to rise, "What do you mean '_Tough_'? What kind of response is _that_!?"

Link could feel emotion welling up again, and he attempted to hide it as he told her the next thing that came to mind. "You mad, Airman?"

"Wha…?" This was followed by several minutes of Zelda blinking at him, stunned by his sudden turn of attitude toward her.

Then Link cracked, and he started laughing. He was not sure why. Somehow, her becoming angry with him had flipped his attitude around, and he could not tolerate holding it back anymore.

"Link, have you lost your _mind_!?" she cried at him, anger prevalent in her voice. "I am trying to explain that I cannot afford to make these dreams anymore, and you are treating it as a _joke_!?"

Link tilted his head back to look up at the sky. He managed to rein in his laughter, but tears welled up as he used every bit of strength he could to maintain the effort. "I'm-I'm sorry," he told her. "But you… haaaah… You should've seen your face when I told you 'tough'."

"Link, I meant to have a serious conversation with you," she said, her own emotions toned down but still apparent. "Why are you being mean about it?"

Link managed to calm down and looked her in the eye. "I don't know," he answered with a soft smile. "Maybe I'm _already_ nuts; my crew seems to think so at times." Then he put on serious look and told her, "But I don't want you to go away."

"Link, I may be a princess," she said, "but there are _others_ who need your help."

"It doesn't have anything to do with you being a princess," he said, trying to keep his voice even. "Okay, so what if you stop seeing me in these dreams? I'm never gonna stop thinking about you. And you've seen what just _thinking_ about you does to me."

"So you mean to say that, talking or not, we will both go mad anyway?" she asked, looking down.

"Knowing what I already know is happening to you? Yeah, I probably will."

She looked up again, but she hesitated before saying anything. "Half of me had hoped that you would talk me out of such a drastic action," she confessed. "I… suppose I underestimated the effect we have had on each other."

Link scratched the back of his head. "I think that's just the way I've been lately," he said. "All this death I keep seeing… I mean, I nearly _killed_ myself because I thought I was gonna lose one of my crew last week. At this point, I think _anything_ might drive me insane." He put his hand down. "I don't want to lose anyone else."

"I… I'm sorry, Link. I had not realized how horrible things have been for you."

"They _have_ been tough. And I'm doing my best to make sure they don't get any worse. So, if something happens to you, I _want_ to know. Because as soon as that fake princess is out, I'm going to bring every ship I can after _you_."

Zelda shook her head. "I've seen you in my dreams, and I've seen your dreams. I have to admit that I really don't understand how you think."

Link gave her a cheesy grin. "Well, I really don't think I do _that_ much thinking. I just… go with it. Full and by, like we used to say on the _Grand Sails_."

"Full and by?"

"Yeah. It's… sort of like doing your job, but just… taking it easy. Not putting more effort into it than necessary."

She gave him a smile and shook her head. "No, Link. I do not think you are so relaxed."

"Ah, well…" He started scratching the back of his head again. "Maybe-maybe not _lately_, but…"

"Link, I am glad that I spoke to you about ending these dreams. I admit that I was afraid to let go, and I was afraid of what would happen once I did. We may survive this ordeal, or we may go insane together. But I am glad. And, whatever happens, I will be glad that you have been here to help me."

Link opened his arms to indicate the ship around them. "I'm always glad to be on the _Island Sonata_. But I'll feel better when you're on the _Island Symphony_."

She nodded. "It looks like such a beautiful ship." She looked around for a moment. "Link, I have to go now. I must get some sleep away from these dreams, but I will return when I can."

"Okay," he said. "I'll be waiting. Hopefully, we'll have found the king and queen the next time we talk."

"Good luck."

"To both of us."

This time, Link managed to hold back the urge to blink just long enough to get that last statement out. When he woke up, he found himself staring across his cabin on the _Island Symphony_. He closed his eyes and tried to remember as much of their conversation as he could. He felt drained of his will and very resistant to the idea of getting out of bed. But the dawn's light reached him through his frosted glass windows. It was as if he was awake all night talking to her. Part of him worried that, having argued with him about giving the dreams up, she might not be in his dreams again.

He shoved the idea to one side and got out of bed. This dream was going to haunt him until she spoke to him again, but it would not affect his command today.


	93. It's Days Like These That Make Me Wonder

Chapter 93: It's Days Like These That Make Me Wonder

…

Link sat with his back against the bulwark, eyes closed as he played the blues harp in an attempt to remember the first song he had played in the Might Technoworks. It had been his pet project for the morning, and he was still struggling to remember the notes even after a brief break for lunch. He had the general layout of a couple of recurring pieces remembered, but the great majority of the song continued to elude him.

Leynne had been watching him most of the time. Although he had to monitor the ship's direction, he had a relaxed look on his face as he stared at the sky ahead. At one point, he asked Link, "So, does a captain regulahly entehtain a hobby on-deck?"

Link had just finished another attempt at the song and replied, having no opposition to speaking, "I don't think either of my captains ever did. It's just to keep me occupied."

"And commanding an aihship doesn't keep you occupied?" Leynne asked with a chuckle.

"I made rounds earlier this morning," Link said. "I even visited Layna."

"How is she doing?"

"Okay, I guess." Link shrugged. "She didn't really talk. Dholit says she's been doing all right, that she's healing up okay. She's even taken some of the stitches out, although I wish she had waited until we reached the next island. She should really be seen by a doctor."

"Did you tell heh as much?" Leynne asked, glancing at the bow to see if Dholit was listening while she stood on the bulwark further ahead.

"I did, but I trust her judgment, too."

Leynne shrugged. "Okay, I guess I can live with that."

"The ship's in shape. With all the activity up here, there's not much else to do."

Leynne nodded. "Well, I can see why you decided to spontaneously take up the hahmonica."

Link shook his head. "For the past month, I've been spending most of my time on-deck worrying about the ship. I'm just trying to relax. Do things that don't spook the crew, like _you_ said."

"I don't know, Link. Seeing you with a hahmonica is ratheh spooky."

"Wha—You've seen it before!" Link told him, his voice rising. "Remember?"

Leynne freed one hand from the helm to give a dismissive wave. "I know, I know. I'm just saying that doing something different is about as unsettling. Why the hahmonica, anyway?"

"Other than being the only instrument aboard?" Link asked with a more even tone. Leynne shrugged. Link sighed and continued, "It helps. I learned to play a few years ago, but I'm a little out of practice. This blues harp is a magical instrument that can command the technoworks. On both Sagacity and Might Islands, I was having some trouble playing to the technoworks, so I could use the practice."

"I'll fohgo the obvious question of why the technowohks need music to wohk. My eahs may not be quite as tuned, but it seems to me that you've been repeating the same melody foh most of the day."

"It was one of the songs for the Might Island technoworks. I've been trying to remember it; I have a musician friend who might like it."

"About a hundred otheh things you can do, and you'h trying to remembeh a song?" Leynne asked in an amused voice. He shook his head. "Two months, and I _still_ find you to be a peculiah young man."

"Those hundred other things can drive me crazy at any point in time," Link argued. "At least with this, things don't seem as depressing."

"Rock to poht, Leynne!" Dholit called from the front.

"Thank you!" Leynne called back before turning the wheel to shift the ship starboard. "Have you considehed writing the song down using musical notation? It would make the process easieh."

"It probably would if I _knew_ musical notation," Link answered. "I'll be fine, though. I'm getting used to doing it like this."

Leynne nodded and turned the wheel to put the ship back on course. "Do you know the extent of this region?"

"I wish," Link replied. "In a Sky Line, it would take us about six hours to sail past. I don't really know how long that would be by conventional means."

"It's a miracle you people managed to navigate the skies foh so long without any soht of constant landmahks to keep track of youh location."

"That was what the Sky Lines were for. As long as you knew the junctions, you could navigate with ease. Not that I really did a good job of it anyway. Between the two of us, Line was the much better navigator."

Leynne glanced at him for a moment. "Assuming he's managed to avoid any unfohtunate cihcumstances, wheh do you imagine he is?"

Link sighed and tucked the blues harp into his pocket. "I really don't know anymore," he confessed, crossing his arms. "Up until now, I was hoping that he might've been with one set of crates to make sure it kept getting misdirected or something. But it looks like Line just sent them to whatever islands he could and then just disappeared. He couldn't have gone to Castle Island; that place is swarming with Skyriders."

Leynne nodded. "It would make sense that, if he fled, the false princess would want him, too."

"If _anything_, he should've gone to Skyrider Port. But unless we go there ourselves, we can't really know."

"I would imagine a reception would be waiting foh us should we make an attempt."

"No doubt. So I just don't know. It's possible that we missed him on Autumn Island. Or _any_ island we've been to; they _are_ pretty big."

"Is he the kind of pehson to go into hiding?"

"When he gets someone mad at him, maybe. But… I don't know. He had Leonard and Flower with him. They're pretty big men."

"With the creatuhes you've described to me, they might not have tried putting up a fight."

Link sighed and rested his head against the bulwark. "If it came to that… yeah, they might've gone into hiding. For two months, though… I just don't know."

There was a pause between them. Then Leynne said, "Look, I'm suh that they'll emehge once control of the kingdom is put back into the propeh hands."

"Yeah…"

Leynne put on a frustrated look, realizing that he had just succeeded in making his captain depressed. "You should… continue with that song. It might save you from talking with _me_."

Link gave a weak chuckle as he pulled the blues harp out again. "Yeah. Sounds like a good idea."

…

~~Day 78 (Command, Day 41)

~~Found out today that there's very little for me to do on this ship without it reminding me of my troubles. I've spent most of the day practicing on the blues harp I found on Sagacity Island. I can still remember some of the small pieces that Lukka taught me, and I might have put that song on Might Island back together. I can't seem to do anything else without thinking about someone who's in trouble. Princess Zelda, Line, Flower, Albert, Captain Alfonzo—They just seem to work their way into my thoughts when I'm not playing. I kinda wonder what Captain Albel would say if he knew how much trouble I was in. Probably shout at me and say I did something wrong. Or would that be Captain Alfonzo?

~~We sighted a ship in the distance this evening. If it was a mining vessel, it could mean that we're near the end of this slice of nightmarish sky. The wind still isn't working with us, but at least we're maintaining speed without having to use the engine. If I didn't have to control each individual block, I'd seriously consider keeping them so we don't have to use up our coal stock. But, once we reach Bold Island, Leynne will install them on the cutter.

…

Link had decided to make it a routine to check the various compartments of the ship each morning, mainly to give himself something to do rather than wander around the weather deck with a gloomy face. The cargo hold was still quite bare due to them not having a job. He looked in on the berth deck, not having actually stepped into it before. On the other side of the doors were four rows taking up the space all the way to the bow. Each berth actually had a gratuitous amount of space, cutting into the number of berths available. Each berth had a hammock; a pillow; a folded, wool blanket (for the berths that had not been taken); an overhead compartment with a padlock and key inside when Link opened an empty one; a mirror; and a small, fold-up desktop/tray-table. The men had taken the farthest row on the port side, and it embarrassed Link a bit to see that only four berths in the middle of the row were being used. Link found that the two rows in the middle of the deck had an extra head and a compartment for supplies to clean the ship. His decision to check on the women's row was met with total embarrassment when, upon rounding the corner, he caught sight of Dholit and Lwamm standing naked in the middle of the deck. Lwamm whistling and Dholit calling "yoo-hoo" preceded Link bolting back into the hold.

He stepped down to the galley next. The various crates and barrels had been arranged so that there was a path between both sets of stairs, the officers' quarters, and the small kitchen setup at the rear of the bay. It was a convenient arrangement, but Link decided he would have to talk to Leynne about putting in some ropes to help hold the supplies in place while they sailed, as it looked like one crate had been dumped out behind the stairs. He saw that there was a narrow place on the port side behind the countertop. The supplies blocked him from getting back there, but he saw that there were a number of large planks and boards hidden in the cavity. They must have been extra supplies for building tables for the galley. Unfortunately, with his small crew, no one was really available to set up the galley as a proper eating place. But it was nice to know that someone had left him the means to make it that way. As soon as they had a larger crew and a cook, he would need this stuff. He peeked into the cabinets in the kitchen area, but no one had gone through the trouble of stocking them; about all he found was a few pots and a frying pan. This caused him to wonder what they were supposed to be used on, and he found an iron stove hidden in an alcove on the starboard side behind a door which Link had not actually questioned. The fact that the supplies had not been piled up in front of the door told him that his _crew_ had at least noticed. But when he stepped inside, he found that pieces were missing from the stove.

Forgoing the engine room for now, Link took the stairs down to the orlop, the final deck of the ship. Although the ship appeared larger than that on the outside, Link had come to realize that the height of the decks was a little taller than standard (which allowed the Gorons to move freely about the ship) and that there was a thick substructure between the main deck and the cargo hold. Here in the orlop, the spare parts, spars, and rigging had been stowed along with some of the tools. While the various replacement pieces of airship laid scattered about the deck, the tools had been placed in a large storage cabinet erected in the middle of the deck, which also served to provide support to the deckhead above. As he crossed the deck to look around, he realized that the deck planks sounded thicker under his boots. It had probably been built that way because the ship's keel needed to be weighted down to keep it from capsizing. Lighting in here was scant, and Link found that the electricity for the ship was being provided by a wind-powered generator which reminded him of the wind generator that Sello had installed on Luggard's locomotive. This recollection was mostly due to the fact that the wind generator had a number of odd parts attached to its boxy exterior, the most recognizable being the missing front door from the stove in the deck above. Link decided that he would have to look at the ship's bow the next time he was ashore; somehow, he had missed the vents which allowed airflow into this part of the ship.

As he traveled to the stern, he found one of the Gorons curled into a ball in one corner. The Goron stirred and unrolled himself, revealing Helo's face and unkempt hair. He yawned, stretching his massive arms into the air. "Oh," he said when he realized Link was standing in front of him. "Good morning, Captain."

"Good morning, Helo," Link replied. "I didn't wake you, did I?"

"Technically, yes, but I see no reason to complain," Helo replied. "How are you doing this morning?"

"Actually, it's probably been one of the best mornings I've had in a while," Link confessed with a sheepish grin.

"Oh, my," Helo replied in a worried tone. "Have you not been sleeping well?"

"Just a recent bout of… unpleasant dreams. But I've been doing better lately. How about you? Is life on the ship agreeing with you?"

Helo shrugged. "It gets a little mundane at times, but I've taken it as just the regular workings of an airman's life."

Link nodded his understanding. "When we find a decent place to stop, I'll be sure to see that you and Lidago get a bit of time ashore. How's _he_ been doing?"

"It took him some time to fit himself in, but I believe he's found a means of dealing with his anxiety."

"His anxiety?"

"Most Gorons don't like heights unless we have some earth or building beneath us. I could imagine that this is the reason why he and I are the only Gorons who joined your crew."

"Well, is he okay? Does he need a break or something? Anything I can do?"

Helo put on a smile and waved a hand in front of Link's face. "No, no, Captain. He has the matter well under his control. See for yourself."

Helo pointed over Link's shoulder, and Link turned to look at the opposite corner of the deck. He was somewhat surprised to find that someone had put up a pair of shelves against the hull. Secured to these shelves with rope were a number of well-crafted sculptures. Well, Link could only assume they were well-crafted; he was not really sure what most of them were. A few were trees, one of them appeared to be a sculpture of Helo, and one looked like Sello passed out on his couch with a wine bottle stuck in one ear. Link stepped closer and found that there was a light fixture in the corner when there was no such fixture on the other side. His curiosity as to how Lidago had managed to handle the fine details of the sculptures was alleviated when he discovered a number of crude instruments in a box underneath the shelves.

"This is amazing," Link said with an air of awe. "How's he making these?"

"Well, I would tell you, Captain, but you may actually be disgusted by the revelation," Helo told him.

"It's okay, you can tell me. It can't be _that_ bad."

"Okay. The clay he uses is a product of our feces mixed with sawdust."

Link's hand immediately froze just shy of touching one of the unidentifiable pieces. He turned his head and asked, "This is… This is Goron _poop_?"

"Clay is one of the few earthly materials which a Goron will _not_ eat. This is mostly because it reminds us of our own feces. But we've found means of using both in society. You'll find that many items of Goron pottery can be made of one or the other. Our feces can be mixed with sawdust to absorb moisture and odor, making it easier to use. From there, it can be fired just like regular clay."

Link shook his head and stepped away from the shelves. "Wow, I… Yep, you're right; I could've probably gone without knowing that."

"I _am_ sorry, Captain."

"Nah, don't worry about it. I _did_ ask."

A door opened up, and Lidago stepped into the compartment a moment later. "Goron," he greeted Helo.

"Goron," Helo replied.

Then Lidago froze upon seeing Link standing in his corner. "C-Captain."

"Hi, Lidago," Link replied. He pointed a thumb over his shoulder. "I was just admiring your sculptures. They're very nice."

"Thanks, Captain." Lidago replied with a grin.

Link glanced down at where he stood and stepped aside. "Uh, carry on."

"Doh," Lidago said, nodding.

"You're going on duty now, right?" Link asked Helo as Lidago settled into the corner and curled himself up.

"Yes."

Link indicated the compartment that Lidago had just come from. "I'll go with you." Helo nodded.

The rear compartment of the orlop was just a pair of partitions pinching off a small area of deck. The Gorons had used this to store the rocks that were their food source. Helo picked up one rock as he led Link to one of the doors to the engine room. The following crunch caused Link to wince; it sounded as if Helo had broken his jaw biting into it.

The only change to the engine room was the addition of some sort of mechanical contraption attached to the front of the engine using a number of pieces Link thought looked suspiciously like parts from both the galley's stove and the wind generator. He noted that it was some sort of feed mechanism because Harley was just hurling a shovelful of coal into an open hopper on the top. It appeared necessary, as it looked as if someone had bolted shut the large door which Sello had originally loaded the fuel into.

"Whoop," Harley uttered when he saw the two enter. He knocked the hopper's top hatch closed with the shovel and set the shovel against the engine. "G'mornin', Cap'n," he said with a salute.

"Good morning," Link replied with a dismissive salute. "How's the engine running?"

Harley chuckled. "No disrespec' intended, Cap'n," he said, "bu' if the engine craps ou', I go' a feelin' ya'r gonna notice."

Link chuckled along. "Yeah, I suppose you're right." He glanced over at the bulkhead between the doors. And he found that Sello, for lack of a more comfortable location or position (it appeared), was lying with his top half on top of a pair of his alcohol crates while his waist hung over the edge and his boots rested on a smaller crate. Link nodded in Sello's direction and asked, "What happened to the couch?"

Harley shrugged. "Don' know. I ducked inna the kitchen early this mornin', 'n i' 'n _'e_ was gone when I go' back."

Link glanced over at Helo as he picked up a crate and dumped coal into one of the wooden bins on the starboard side. "Hey, Helo? Did Sello wake you up last night moving his couch?"

"I'm afraid he didn't, Captain," Helo replied. "No one came past me last night."

"So… if _Helo_ was still sleeping in the orlop and _you_ were in the galley…" He glanced around. Then he started scratching his head. "Well… what the hell did he _do_ with it?"

"Tha's the mystery," Harley told him with a grin. "An' 'e was drinkin' so much las' night, ya go'a wonder 'ow 'e moved i' withou' makin' a sound."

Link shook his head. "I've been everywhere on this ship today. There's no _way_ he hid the couch anywhere under the weather deck."

"Ya migh' as well le' i' go, Cap'n." Link glanced up at the walkway above to see Lawrence leaning over the waist-high wall. He gave Link a quick salute and continued, "We looked all over the ship every other time 'e did i'. We even tied a rope t' me 'n 'ung me over t' see if 'e pu' i' _under_ the ship. No gold."

"Why no' ask the 'orse 'imself?" Harley asked. "Ya'r the boss, Cap'n."

"The boss may not regularly give orders, but I'm sure he will _respond_ to one," Helo agreed, indicating Sello with a hand.

Link scrunched up his face. Then he shrugged. "Why not?" He walked over to the crates and placed a hand on Sello's shoulder. "Hey," he said, shaking. "Hey, Sello. Wake up."

"Bwah, oop-bleh," Sello grumbled as he returned to semi-consciousness. He opened one eye and turned to Link. "Hi, Grammy. Whudder ya doin' adda train station?"

"It's-it's _Link_, Sello."

Sello belched. "Ahm. Who?"

"Link? _Captain_ Link?"

"Who?" Sello asked, causing both Harley and Lawrence to start sniggering.

"A lot of good _ordering_ does," Link commented to Helo. He told Sello in a louder voice. "Captain! Link! Your _boss_!"

Sello stared at him bleary-eyed. Then he grinned and said, "Oh. Hi."

"Hi, Sello," Link replied. "Hey, where's your couch?"

Sello's grin remained, but Link could see the confusion in his eyes as he asked, "Wha-what couch?"

Link indicated the crates Sello was laying on. "The couch that sits here. The couch you sleep on because you never go to your quarters?"

"Oh. Izz right here."

"Where?"

"Here."

Link looked down. His hands started shaking with his words as he told Sello, "There's nothing here but these crates, Sello."

"Heh-yep."

Link stared at him. "Sello. If the crates are _here_, where is the _couch_?"

"SECRET TUNNELLLLLLL!" Sello suddenly shouted, causing Link to jump backwards. "THROUGH THE MOUNTAINNNNN!"

"Geez, Sello!" Link shouted at him. Then he put on a disgusted look and waved a hand in front of his face. "_Wow_, that's some nasty breath. It's like having someone shove a boot in my face."

"Should'a been 'ere las' night," Harley said. "Smelled like pork."

"Yesterday, i' was lilies," Lawrence said as he touched down on the deck.

"Sello," Link said as Sello sat up on the edge of the crates. "Where did you put the couch?"

"In my left toof," Sello said. He jumped to his feet. Then he fell into a pile on the deck. "Ghof. Turtle cheese."

"Hee hee."

Link's eyes went wide at the sound of a girl giggling, and he was thankful that the only person capable of seeing his face was at this point trying to get back to his feet by only lifting the lower half of his body. He immediately cleared his throat and said, "Well, I've had better luck finding answers in my dreams. I think I'll… go do… uh, captain's… stuff. Uh, gentlemen." Link completely missed all three uninebriated (and thoroughly confused) airmen giving him a salute and stepped over to the ladder on the port side. He climbed as fast as he could and stepped through the door to the galley.

Once there, he asked aloud after seeing that no one was around, "Princess Zelda?"

"Link?" she replied, causing Link to jump in response. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

"You nearly frightened me out of my _wits_," Link told her. Then he lowered his voice and continued, "What is this? How am I hearing you? I'm wide awake." He looked down at himself to confirm that he was still wearing his regular clothes. "Right?"

"I believe so," she answered.

"Right. So there's a logical answer to this.

"I'm going crazy."

"No, no, Link!" she cried at him. "I'm-I'm really here."

"Uh… I'm pretty sure that's what a voice in a crazy person's head is supposed to say."

"No, it's not like that at _all_, Link," she replied. "Remember our last conversation? When you… when you talked me out of giving up?"

"Yeah."

"Well… I gave it some more thought. Like you said, together or apart, we might both go mad. I… I didn't want to leave you. And… I began thinking about when you said that if it hadn't been for me, you would have never run away from the fake princess. Link, I _did_ call out that day. I called out at you to run, and you did. I never realized that you had heard me before. So I decided to try doing it again. The fact that the both of us can communicate now means that it _works_. I am asleep, and I can call to you through my dreams."

Link slowly nodded. "Somehow… I am incredibly uncomfortable with this."

"I only started watching when you were done talking to that large man down below. I think you said his name was Helo?"

"Yeah, okay…" Link said. "So… how do I know I'm not crazy?"

"I wish I could convince you, Link. Unfortunately, I just don't have any sort of proof. Besides that, Link… I think you might have a different problem which needs your attention."

"Problem? What problem?"

"Look over your left shoulder."

The way Link stood left him facing the starboard side of the kitchen. He glanced over his shoulder as he had been instructed.

And he saw Lwamm standing at the base of the portside stairs. From the shocked look on her face, Link knew that he had just broken the language barrier in the worst possible way. To her, Link had just been having a conversation with the wall, and that was a universal warning sign that something was quite wrong.

Link held up a hand. "Lwamm? Just-just wait a moment…"

Lwamm took a step back. "'Ak kyabtin coyhacnwya'ak…" she said to herself.

"Lwamm…" Link said in a half-warning, half-pleading tone, taking a step forward.

She bolted up the stairs, and Link sped across the galley to catch her. "Giltiyn Dholit! Giltiyn Dubbl!" she cried as she hustled up the stairs. "Zhayjoxan 'inoy! _Zhayjoxan_ 'inoy! May Kyabtin coyhaconwak! Coyhaconwak!"

"Link!" the princess called to him. "You're _chasing_ her!"

"The crew _already_ thinks I'm insane!" Link argued as he rounded the stairs in the cargo hold. "I'll be in _real_ trouble if she tells anyone!"

"How does this _help_!?" she cried.

"Giltiyn Dho—gyaah!" Link heard impacts against the deck above. When he reached the weather deck, he found that Lwamm had barreled into Twali, Biluf, and Dubbl, knocking them to the deck along with her. All four were rubbing their heads, having each taken a strike to the cranium when they hit the deck. Dholit and Lilly stood nearby, both looking on the pile of Gelto with faces of utter amusement. Lilly in particular was trying to stifle laughter.

"Lwamm!" Dubbl snapped as she shoved Lwamm off her. "Waliyxomotak dhol!?"

"May Kyabtin, coy—" Lwamm began as she pushed herself up from the deck.

"Lwamm!" Link immediately snapped, having no other alternative to silencing her. Lwamm flinched and closed her mouth. Link stepped up to her and stared down at her for a moment. Then he told the other women, "Return to your duties. Dholit, I want you and Lwamm in my cabin now."

"Ooh," Dholit replied as the other three stood up from the deck. "With great pleasuah, My Captain." She used a hand to signal Lwamm. "Taycoban, Lwamm. 'Inan 'ibunwidh 'inamyayn kyabtin dha' jalwayl fiyk." Lwamm, shocked at Dholit, nodded and got to her feet.

As Link followed them across the deck, Zelda asked him, "How do you plan to explain this?" Link could only sigh and started to consider his next course of action. He did not want to lie to his crew, but he had the problem of not being able to tell the truth without making them think he was crazy. He had no real options in the matter, and he needed to come up with _something_ to satisfy them.

He remained silent even after all three had stepped into his cabin. Lwamm had yet to say anything to Dholit, which meant that Dholit did not know anything of the events down below. He crossed the cabin and sat at his desk. He rested his elbows on the desktop and steepled his fingers together to hide the lower half of his face as he tried to come up with a response for the two Gelto standing in front of him.

Then he realized that he did not have to explain anything. So the first thing he said was, "Dholit, tell her I'm not crazy."

Dholit tilted her head, a curious look on her face. "A denial this fast, My Captain?" she asked.

Irleen jumped out of her bed and hovered in the air between the three of them. "What, did I miss something?" she asked as she looked between Link and the Gelto.

"I believe _both_ of us have," Dholit said.

"Just tell her," Link said.

Dholit flashed a ghost of a smile before telling Lwamm, "My Captain nadhaconwak, Lwamm."

Lwamm looked stunned and glanced between her and Link for a moment. "'I-'Itab… Giltiyn Dholit, 'inu _kulwbya'ak_ zhal!"

Dholit grinned at Link as she said, "'Inu bisixak My Captain lway'ijiynw."

Link felt it was time to play his hand. So he put on a calm face. "Irleen," he said. "The gem that you made for Captain Koroul. Has it been known to affect people even when they're far apart?"

"Huh?" Irleen responded, confused as to how she had become part of the conversation. "Uh… w-well, yeah, sometimes. I mean… The-the gem contains memories or emotions of the person it's used on and then gives those features to whoever's holding it. Uh… I think some of the texts I read on this particular kind of magic has been known to cause effects on the person it was used on."

"Such as?" Link asked.

"Uh…" Irleen had to pause to gather her thoughts. "Well, people linked by a gem like that tend to occasionally share dreams."

"Yes, I remembah you explaining this to Leynne and myself befoah," Dholit said with a nod.

"Irleen, does the gem have any effects even if one person is awake?" Link asked.

"Eeeeeh, that's… not a really well-studied occasion," Irleen replied. "Um… I think I read something about one person hearing the other person's voice, but that was a long time ago when I read that."

"But is it possible for me to hear Princess Zelda's voice on occasion, assuming she has the gem now?"

Irleen glanced back at Dholit. "I _guess_ so. Wait… _Have_ you been hearing her voice?"

"Yes."

Irleen sighed. "Oh, boy. No wonder you're so obsessed with this idea that she's been trying to talk to you. I wish you'd said something earlier; I'd've told you as much. _Yes_, it's _possible_ to hear the other person's voice, but she has to be hearing _yours_ at the same time. It's… not a really common occurrence."

Dholit raised an eyebrow. "So, I'm to assume then that you thought you weh having a convehsation with Princess Zelda and Lwamm panicked because she caught you and thought you had fallen mad?" she asked.

"I tried to stop her before she caused a panic," Link said. "Spontaneously declaring that your captain's insane isn't a very good idea on an airship. I know I haven't done much to keep you from thinking otherwise, but I _need_ you to believe me."

Dholit glanced at Lwamm, who responded with a curious look. Then she smiled and narrowed her eyes at Link, almost as if declaring "Well played, Link" as she told him, "Well then, I shall set Lwamm straight in this matteh. But it would help if you would keep youh pastimes undah bettah wraps, My Captain."

"Thank you, Dholit," Link said. "You two can return to your duties. You're dismissed."

"Thank you, My Captain," Dholit said, saluting. Lwamm quickly copied the salute. Link responded, and they left the cabin without a further word.

Irleen sighed again after the door closed behind them. "Link, sometimes I think you just need a good whack on the head," she told him in an exhausted tone.

"Sorry, Irleen," Link said. "But I couldn't just tell them I was hearing the princess's voice; they'd _really_ think I'd lost my mind. I-I didn't mean to use you or anything, but… I _needed_ you to tell them it might be possible that I was hearing her."

"Look, Link…" She paused as she searched for the words she wanted. "I… I know you want to believe that the princess is trying to talk to you, but just that gem _alone_ doesn't make it possible. I know I've said there's the occasion where people share dreams, but… although I've come to accept that you have been seeing these things because it's possible she has the gem, there's just no way for you to get messages to each other like that."

"Oh, my," the princess said to him. "No wonder there is so much doubt in my attempts."

Her words had caused Link to miss some of Irleen's statement, but Irleen continued, "… to all this stuff happening to you. I'd like to think it's possible, Link, I really would. But whether it's real or not, you need to remember that you have a crew relying on you."

"I know," Link said, resting his head on the desk. "It just seems like I can't do anything around here lately without the crew thinking I've snapped."

"Well, in your defense, it's a wonder you _haven't_ yet."

"Please have faith, Link," Princess Zelda told him. "_I_ know you are still rational."

Link gave a half-hearted chuckle at the desk. "Thanks."


	94. Are We There Yet?

Chapter 94: Are We There Yet?

…

~~Day 79 (Command, Day 42)

~~I'm beginning to think the universe as a whole is conspiring to make me look like I'm crazy. It probably doesn't help that things keep happening to me which I can't explain without sounding like a lunatic. Today, I had to get around explaining that I now hear Princess Zelda's voice in my head even when I'm awake. I was just trying to find out what Sello did with his couch, and she spontaneously laughed at the whole thing. It's a good thing we have Irleen aboard; I would've never been able to give a decent explanation. If I have to explain one more weird thing to my crew, I think I'm just going to let them think I'm nuts. I think I've already gone insane anyway.

~~On a less rant-y note, we're still sailing under the power of the technoworks. I can't really say for how much longer. The wind had shown a little promise this morning, but it just didn't work out. At this point, I'm mainly just glad we're still moving. We were slowed a bit by the rocks; they seemed a little thicker today. By my best guess, we're about four or five days away from South Sand Island.

…

"Link?"

"Yeah?" Link replied to the princess's voice as he glanced out over the main deck from atop the quarterdeck.

"Who is that by the front wheel? The person wearing orange?"

Link had to focus on the middle of the deck, trying to find Sello. He thought she was talking about the helm, and that made him overlook the forward capstan for a moment. He saw Sello's form leaning on the capstan and replied, "That's Sello, my chief engineer."

"The inebriated man from yesterday, correct?" she asked.

Link sighed. "Yeah…" After a quick conversation with her this morning (which took place on the quarterdeck to decrease the chance that someone would overhear him), Link had decided to introduce his crew one by one. This had been done as Link spotted each member of the deck crew; he had already told her about Cale, Leynne, Gold, Biluf, Dholit (kind of anyway; he found that her usual behavior toward him was beyond explanation, particularly since he did not have any), Twali, and Lilly. He had been expecting to have to describe the members of the engineering crew.

"He…" She had to spend a moment giggling. "He certainly seems to have a… a _unique_ personality among your crew. Not to belittle the rest of the crew, but he _does_ stick out."

"I _guess_," Link said, sounding a little bored. "I never really considered constant drunkenness a _personality_."

"Has he always imbibed alcoholic beverages?"

Link shrugged. "Ever since Irleen and I met him in a volcano."

"A-a volcano?" Zelda paused for a moment. "What was he doing there?"

"His father and a bunch of others had built a facility in the volcano. But… I think, after a while, he just… kinda _lived_ there. He'd used a distillery to make his own alcohol, although… something tells me that doing that hasn't really done him much good."

"Did he not have family?"

Link scratched the back of his head. "Well… we think they all might've… died. He told us that his father had died in a… a really _complicated_ accident. I-I don't remember all the details, but I remember that it sounded pretty gruesome."

"Oh, dear. I suppose that would explain the alcohol."

"Yeah, well… when Irleen and I went into the facility with one other person, we… well, we kinda… we flooded the facility with lava and _probably_ destroyed it. _Probably_."

Zelda gave a shocked sound. "Link!" she complained.

Link placed a hand over his eyes. "Look, I was having a bad week, okay? But, with everything that had happened, we _did_ make some progress. We found out that my old crew had brought the _Horizon's Eye_ back to the kingdom; we'd found the wreckage on the surface. And…" He held out his hands to indicate Sello. "Well, I found an engineer!"

She giggled at him. "It sounds to me as if he had no other place to go."

Link shrugged. "I don't think he even noticed. He seems to think that the facility is still there." Then he sighed and moved to the stairs. "I'd better get him off the deck before he does something crazy. It's a long way down."

"Something which I imagine very few really appreciate."

Link held back his grimace and crossed the weather deck. Lilly, not being assigned to watch the bow due to not feeling comfortable standing on the bulwark, had, during her patrol around the main deck, finally decided to approach Sello. She was prodding his shoulder with a finger when Link stepped up next to her.

She turned to him and said, "He's _sleeping_."

The mundane nature of the statement was beaten to a pulp by the fact that, despite all appearances, Sello _had_ actually fallen asleep. The gentle rock was not enough to dislodge Sello from the capstan. Although he seemed to have been simply propped against it, his wide stance helped ensure that most of Sello's weight rested against capstan, pinning his rear to this element of the deck. How Sello had managed to keep his arms crossed and his back straight while he was unconscious was anybody's guess. The most disturbing of all was that Sello had fallen asleep with his eyes open, which Link used to test Sello's current state by waving a hand in front of his face. It was eerie, especially when the breeze running across the ship should have made his eyes unbearably dry. The only true indication that Sello was asleep was the sound of him snorting air in and out through his nose. Zelda seemed to realize this faster than Link, as she was already giggling by the time Link could fully grasp the fact that it was possible for someone to sleep with his eyes open.

Link pointed an idle finger and told Lilly, "Go ahead and continue your rounds."

"Yessir," she replied, unable to control her amused tone or her smile as she walked away.

He glanced around a moment to make sure no one else was within earshot. Then he muttered to Zelda, "It's not _that_ funny…" Zelda broke into a louder, fuller laugh. This left Link astounded for two reasons. First, her voice somehow became even more beautiful as she laughed. The sound of her openly laughing at him rang every bit as enchanting as when he had discovered her singing to herself. Second, the fact that she could laugh so strong in spite of her plight amazed Link. Only three days ago, she had been every bit the emotional train wreck Link had been ever since the surface, maybe even more so since she was locked in a dark place Link had only had a glimpse of. But yesterday, she had acted as if none of it had ever happened. She sounded like she was really part of his crew, as if she had been here on the _Island Symphony_ from the beginning. He could not be sure if this was a good or bad sign. He hoped it was good, and he leaned further toward that opinion when she finally calmed down of her own accord.

"Will you be removing him from the deck?" she asked him.

Link leaned closer and was rewarded with a whiff of stale alcohol from Sello's clothes. He immediately snapped backwards and shared a disgusted sound with the princess. "Yeah, I'm not touching him," Link told her.

"Do you suppose he will return below if you wake him?"

Link shrugged. "It's worth a shot." He put his hand in front of Sello's face and snapped his fingers. "Hey. Hey, Sello? Wake up." Sello snorted louder and wrinkled his nose, but he simply fell back into his unresponsive state. "Sello!" Link said louder. "Wake up!" He waved a hand in front of Sello's face. "Helloooooo!"

"I, uh…" Zelda giggled. "I think you will have to change your mind about touching him."

Link groaned. "Yeah, I know." He put a hand on Sello's shoulder and gently shook him. "Sello?" When that had not worked, he shook harder. "Selloooooo…"

At first, Link thought Sello had finally stirred. But when he backed off, he discovered that his shaking had disturbed Sello's position. Sello's left leg shifted, and Sello fell to the deck with a painful thud.

Zelda at least had the grace to try to stifle her laughter this time. Link sighed and said more to himself than her, "Great. Now I gotta drag him."

…

~~Day 80 (Command, Day 43)

~~I wish we would get there faster.

…

~~Day 81 (Command, Day 44)

~~I've been talking with Princess Zelda for the past couple of days. For someone trapped in the brig of a demons' airship, she's actually been pretty level-headed. I hope it means that I was right, that it would be better for us to keep in contact. I would sure feel stupid if this whole situation really does drive us both crazy.

~~Today marks the second day that we've found Sello sleeping in a strange place. Well, stranger than usual anyway. Yesterday, he fell asleep leaning on the capstan while his eyes were still open. Today, Cale complained that he had done something similar in the berth deck, leaning against the interior of Cale's berth. According to Lawrence, Sello scared the hell out of Cale doing that, and Lawrence took Sello down to the engine room when he went on duty. We discovered that Sello's stock of alcohol is dwindling; it was something that both Leynne and I hadn't really thought about before leaving Might Island. I've since added it to the list of supplies we'll be needing once we find an island, whether it's South Sand Island or Bold Island.

~~The way we're traveling, though, makes me wish we would be at Bold Island right away. The wind hasn't helped for the past two days, and I'm thinking it just might be the same once we get to either island. At least we have the supplies if we happened to overshoot South Sand Island (aside from the aforementioned lack of fuel for Sello), but—Now I'm not sure where I wanna end up. With the way the wind has been, Bold Island would be better, but stopping at South Sand Island would give us some time to set up before going to Bold Island.

~~And I've just discovered how hard my desktop is. I'll be going to sleep with a concussion tonight.

…

Link stared on in anticipation at the sky ahead. This was a moment all his crew had been anticipating for some time. It was early in the evening with the sun on the western horizon, casting half the sky golden. Dubbl and Lwamm hung onto the lines, not worrying about standing on the bulwark this time. Link glanced to one side at Gold, who had a scowl drawn across his face as he ground the handles of the wheel in his hands. Link could feel his tension, although he wondered why Gold was acting that way. This moment felt as if it was going to drag on for another day. Link half-considered ordering the engine engaged, and his mulling it over made the moment last longer. In the end, he decided not to. The deck shifts had just changed, meaning there were a bunch of people walking around doing their own things; turning the engine on would knock them over and likely gift Link with their ire. So far this week, he had managed to avoid doing anything that made them think he was crazy.

Eyes shifted from port to starboard and back as they watched the large rocks approach. Then everyone released a sigh of relief as the _Island Symphony_ crossed the invisible boundary encircling the large region of rocky air.

"We're through," Link said to himself.

"'Uz_zah_!" Gold spat. He turned and flung a disdainful gesture toward the bow. "Good ri'ance and f—…" Link had been grinning at his helmsman's reaction, anticipating the curse words to fly as much as they had while Gold had piloted during the night shift for the past week. So when Gold had cut himself off, Link turned to see what he was doing. Gold wore a look of utter shock. Before Link could ask what was wrong, Gold asked, "Cap'n… I think… I think we're burnin'."

Link finally decided to follow Gold's line of sight. What he saw actually caused more confusion than actual panic, and he remained surprisingly calm about it. The boat deck, for whatever reason, was spewing an incredible amount of smoke. Most if it came from the opening in the poop deck, but thin clouds of it also seeped through the doors to the quarterdeck. The aft half of the poop deck was completely obscured. Normally, a sight such as this should be a source of horror for an airship captain and crew.

If the smoke was something other than bright purple.

Link really had no idea how he should respond to this sight. It took him a moment to remember what regularly took place and turned around to gesture to Dubbl. "Dubbl," he said once she was within speaking distance. "Uh… where-where's Biluf?"

"Afte' duty, she go to do… uh…" Link turned to find her trying to gesture, but even that appeared to be a bit of a struggle. "She… makes… zings…"

Link held up a hand. "It's okay, Dubbl, I think I get it. Let's go over there and make sure she's all right."

"Okay."

Although there did not seem to be any obvious need for urgency, Link and Dubbl crossed the main deck with a brisk pace. Link then started to wonder if anyone was on the poop deck when this started. This _did_ cause him to become concerned since anyone up there could mistakenly fall into the boat deck or down the stairs to the quarterdeck. And if Cale was still up there… Well, Link reasoned that even if it _was_ Cale, falling did not seem to harm him as much as it should.

Link and Dubbl were just reaching the quarterdeck when the doors to the boat deck burst open. As expected, Biluf came crawling out of a plume of floral-scented purple smoke (the scent being something Link and Dubbl had not been expecting). She was coughing hard as she crossed the quarterdeck and sat up against the rail across from the doors.

"Check if she's all right," Link told Dubbl as he made for the stairs up to the poop deck.

Then more coughing sounded, and Link paused at the base of the stairs. He looked back into the boat deck as two more figures crawled out and joined Biluf. Predictably enough, one of them was Cale. The other was Twali, probably having just come on duty before the smoke appeared.

Dubbl was staring at them for a moment, although Link could not quite tell what her reaction to them was. "Wabun xwicikak max?" she asked them.

Biluf was coughing too much to answer, but she nodded her head. "'Inan xwicikak," Twali said before succumbing to another coughing fit.

"You guys okay?" Link asked as he stepped over to them.

"I'm okay," Cale replied.

"Zey okay, too," Dubbl told Link.

Link indicated the smoke behind him. "What about that?" he asked. "We're not on fire, are we?"

"Biluf, 'ak 'afi'il roycathitak max?" Dubbl asked, leaning closer to Biluf.

Biluf waved one hand in dismissal of the idea. "Na', na'," she told Dubbl. "'Olwu sariyk. 'Inu nadkulwfya'ak rayss."

"Waba bisixak max?" Dubbl asked.

"Ay'a."

Dubbl turned to Link. "Only smoke, Kyabtin. No fi'e."

"No fire?" Link asked, unsure if he had understood that.

"Yes, Kyabtin."

Cale smelled himself. He coughed and said, "What is that… smell?"

"Flowers?" Link asked, glancing back at the boat deck.

"Flowahs?" Cale repeated. "From smoke?"

Link tapped Dubbl's shoulder. Then he jerked a thumb at the smoke. "This isn't gonna hurt us, is it?"

"'Ak sariyk manokak max?" Dubbl asked Biluf.

"Saaaaaaa…" Biluf breathed as she looked at the smoke. "Na'."

"No?" Link asked.

"Ze smoke, not dangedous," Dubbl said with a nod.

"Salya, waba sakalwithak 'anw sariyk," Biluf continued. "'Itab… 'ak sariyk nayx sifunak."

"We not want to… bleaze smoke," Dubbl said. "Ze smoke will go away."

"Okay, good," Link said. "Did she say what she was doing in there?"

"Biluf, waba liyxomtya'ak dhol?" Dubbl asked.

Biluf then launched into a long-winded explanation which Link found he could not follow even if he _did_ understand Geltoan. So while Dubbl listened, Link stepped around them and leaned over to check on Twali and Cale. "What happened?" he asked. "Why were _you two_ in the boat deck?"

"Ah, well…" Cale said. "When-when the, uh… when the smoke stahted rising from the boat deck, I wasn't suah if I should get you oh not. But befoah I knew it, the smoke was just so blinding that… well… I fell into the boat deck trying to find the staihs."

Link could not hold back a grin. "Somehow I figured."

"Giyroxwan," Twali spat at him, giving his arm a light smack.

"Ah, what?" Cale replied, surprised but quiet with his tone.

"Foltab waba samxya' 'inoy, 'inu yadhibya'ak," she told him. She then crossed her arms and appeared to sulk.

"What'd you do?" Link asked with a grin.

"Well…" Cale said, his head tilting to indicate his discomfort. "I… I might have… grabbed heh shiht befoah I fell."

Link chuckled and shook his head. "Cale…" he started. But he stopped when he realized that he was not sure what to tell Cale. Everything that came to mind seemed to be a joke at his horrible tendency to fall into something. So he said while holding back the urge to laugh, "I-I don't know what to tell you." Then he noticed that Biluf had stopped talking and turned to Dubbl. "What'd she say?"

"Uh…" Dubbl droned as she seemed to be thinking through what she had just learned. "I not unde'stand," she admitted. "She say she made mo'e… byu-bullets?"

"Bullets?" Link asked. "You mean shells for the flare guns?"

"Yes," she said, nodding. "But… she made mistake… and I not unde'stand. I not unde'stand in Gilto language, eithe'."

Link sighed. "That's okay," he said. "Just as long as no one was hurt, it's all right. Tell her she can return to her work or clean up as soon as this smoke clears, whichever she prefers. And… well, maybe avoid doing it again."

…

~~Day 82 (Command, Day 45)

~~We're finally out of the rocky area of the sky between West Iron and South Sand Islands. With this, we should be able to maintain a straight course due south. Whether it'll be a steady course I think will rely more on the wind. Which hasn't been any more cooperative today. Earlier today, we'd been getting hints that the wind might actually shift northeast instead of northwest. It would be good if we needed to move east, but it really wasn't that strong anyway. So we've been moving with the technoworks again. I checked on them, and I was surprised to find that there wasn't any dirt on the outsides. I asked Irleen about this just a minute or so ago. She says that, since we're moving, it's possible the breeze from the wind and the ship is blowing the dirt off as the cubes excrete it. (Man, that sounds weird.) I guess it makes sense since dirt doesn't seem to grip onto the technoworks too well anyway.

~~We found Sello sleeping under the forecastle today. Probably the only reason we noticed was because he nearly lost his foot in the steering mechanism. I've asked the engine crew to tie him down if he tries to leave the room again; I really don't want him to wander the ship like this. It's a little scary.

~~Biluf gave us an interesting evening. She flooded the boat deck with purple smoke. She hadn't set the ship on fire, and I didn't really believe she actually had. You know, again. I mean, how does burning wood produce bright, purple smoke that smells like flowers? She was a little hard to understand, even when she was speaking Geltoan with Dubbl. But, from what I gathered, she's making more shells for our flare guns. Now that I'm thinking about it, if she's making shells which use smoke instead of the bright flares which we've been using, those might actually be pretty useful. It's hard to see flares in the day sometimes, so making shells that produce smoke would be great.

~~I haven't heard anything from Princess Zelda today. I don't know if she was just being quiet or if something might've happened back on Cunimincus' ship. Or she probably just couldn't make contact today. It's been happening so frequently lately that I already miss talking to her.

…

~~Day 83 (Command, Day 46)

~~Saw a pair of ships heading north this morning, though we were too far east to hail them. Saw one more ship this afternoon, too. It's gotta be a good sign; those should be miner ships traveling into the rocky region behind us. We've gotta be close to South Sand Island. After the third ship, Leynne suggested changing our course so that we would sail in their wake and come closer to South Sand Island.

~~We found Sello sleeping on the countertop in the galley, though it wasn't for lack of trying; he somehow brought up one of his empty crates with him. No one really noticed him until Lwamm came running onto the deck declaring that something was making a crate in the galley float. It turned out that Sello was sleeping on the counter with one of the crates tied to his back. We moved him back down to the engine room and filled one of his bottles with grog. Maybe it will keep him in the engine room until we can reach the South Sand Island.

~~I still haven't heard anything from Princess Zelda. I'm getting a little worried.

…

"Link? Can you hear me?"

Link snapped out of his daze to realize he was standing on the quarterdeck of the _Island Symphony_. He had been leaning on the waist-high rail overlooking the main deck. He shook his head and turned to see who was talking to him.

He was more than a little surprised to find himself looking at Princess Zelda. He had to shake his head and look again to make sure he was not seeing things. "Princess?"

She smiled at him. "I'm sorry, Link," she said. "Are you all right?"

"I'm-I'm…" Link replied as he glanced over the main deck. He found it to be the middle of the day, but no one was making rounds on the deck nor standing at the wheel. The sails were open and set to be driven by the engine. In spite of that, the breeze across the deck came from starboard. He could hear the subtle creak of the ship's timbers as it rocked. The atmosphere, despite all appearances of a calm afternoon, felt very eerie to him. "I'm… I'm confused."

"You're in a dream again," she told him with a giggle.

"Oh," Link said with a slow nod. "I-I was hoping my crew still… existed… somewhere." He glanced up toward the poop deck. "How are you doing this?"

"All I have seen of the ship and all you have told me of your crew have been on my mind for the past two days, Link," she explained. Link thought he could hear a sad tone in her voice as she continued, "For the past two days, I… I have somehow relived those days during which we spoke. Though it may have been little compared to the feeling of eternity I have spent on this timeless purgatory, I feel as though I have walked these decks myself. So I endeavored to bring the both of us here. My memories of the _Island Sonata_ have felt distant lately; it has become difficult for me to remember any place in which both you and I have stood." She looked down at her boots. "You… you must think it silly."

"Well…" Link said, giving her an uncomfortable look, "with all that's happening, I really can't say it's all _that_ silly. I mean, I've spent the past four days finding my half-drunk chief engineer _sleeping_ in weird places. This is…" He shrugged. "I guess it's just _normal_."

"I find communicating with dreams to be quite _abnormal_, actually," she told him, her tone sounding a little heated.

"Wha—I just mean that I'm _used_ to it," Link replied, raising his hands in defense.

"Ah, no, I'm sorry, Link. I…" Zelda started scratching her head, caught herself, and quickly placed her hands behind her back. "I misunderstood you. I suppose I should realize that, with the time you've had since our parting, you have had some truly unique experiences." She then sighed and stepped closer to the rail. She leaned her rear against it, looking up at the sky with what looked to Link to be tired eyes. "I, however, have been held within a cage since then."

"We're doing our best," Link told her.

"I know, Link. I just wish… I wish you would be here sooner. As much as it has helped to meet your crew, I cannot forget that I still exist here." She gave her head a gentle shake. "But that is a discussion that we could have a million times and reach no satisfying conclusion. And I find myself unwilling to continue it." She gave him a smile and asked, "Has your engineer, Mister Sello, still been finding strange places to sleep?"

Link snorted and pressed a hand to his eyes. "Oh, _man_," he said with a shake of his head. "He's worse than _Line_. Line, I could count on to just flop to the deck wherever he is. But Sello… well, I've found _socks_ in saner places. Yesterday, he nearly got squeezed into a pulp because he was asleep under the forecastle near the steering mechanisms. Today, he was asleep in the galley with a crate strapped to his back."

Zelda placed a hand over her mouth, but Link could see the laughter in her eyes. "Oh, dear," she said as she struggled to keep her laughing in check. "What is to be done with him?"

Link shrugged. "Well, we filled a bottle with grog and left it with him. It'll probably be weak compared to what he usually drinks, but we're hoping it'll keep him out of trouble."

"One can on—"

"Kyabtin?" The second female voice caused Link to blink in confusion.

And then Link was in his bed again. He mentally cursed his luck and yawned.

"My Kyabtin?" Through his hazy mind, he could make out the distinct sound of a Geltoan accent and rolled onto his back. In the darkness of his cabin, he could just barely see Dubbl's silhouette against the only subtly brighter far wall.

Link sighed and rubbed his eyes. "What is it?" he asked.

"We saw island," she replied.

Link felt his exhaustion get pushed aside by a spark of alertness. "Okay," he told her. "Thank you."

"Yes, My Kyabtin," Dubbl replied.

But she did not leave as he expected, so he added in an irritated tone, "Dismissed."

"Ah, yes, My Kyabtin," she replied. She quickly shot him a salute, but she was out the door before Link had the presence of mind to answer it.

Link was dressed and standing on the forecastle a few minutes later. Without a watch, he could not quite tell the time, but he was under the impression that it must have been close to midnight by now. Gold had already raised the ship above the level of the island to help mask their approach. However, their running lights were still on. Link was not worried by this; it only meant that people could see a ship approach, which would save them from ramming the _Island Symphony_. He had only ever been to South Sand Island a handful of times, but he knew what island it was because he knew Bold Island better.

This was not Bold Island. But that probably made it better than he had dared to hope. This was a start.


	95. Rest Area Ahead

Chapter 95: Rest Area Ahead

…

As eager as Link had been to dock at any island they happened across, he had not been woken out of bed just to do something stupid. Gold had stopped the _Island Symphony_ and ascended the ship to a point where it could not be readily identified. Link gave him a verbal pat on the back and had Dubbl and Lwamm stow the sails to keep the ship holding still. Then, after waking and speaking to Irleen, he forced the technoworks blocks to become dormant so they could be removed from the bulwark. This all took about an hour to finish, and it was still the middle of the night, so Link told the night crew to be especially watchful of vessels approaching them. He asked them to wake him if another ship neared, otherwise let him sleep until the sun came up. He was not sure if it was a result of Zelda contacting him in his sleep, but it felt as if he had not gone to bed at all.

Link half-expected to find Zelda in his dreams. Instead, he was treated to a confusing vision of an enormous fish-like creature daring him to play Dodge-Link with a stupid-looking statue of himself dangling from a rope hanging somewhere in the air. Somehow, not wearing any pants was making him lose by the time Dubbl woke him up again.

South Sand Island did not have a very extensive port area, at least as far as Link could tell with the duoscope to his face. It made sense for two reasons. One, the island itself did not have very much room in the first place. Link could not be sure, but it appeared that there were not really any homes on the island. The eastern half of the island was uninhabited due to its namesake: a large area of sand which reminded Link of the Sand Realm back on the surface. Two, South Sand Island did not need a large port since Bold Island was (usually) just an hour away. It was the reason Link did not really remember visiting the island before; the _Grand Sails_ had usually sailed past because it was not a very important port. If anything, it could occasionally be a stop on the way north if a ship needed it.

This left the port nearly deserted save for maybe a couple of schooners and a handful of junks, none of which appeared to be set for sailing today. There was very little movement in the surrounding skies as well; about the only thing of interest was a brig whose spanker had caught fire, and the crew had put it out in almost no time at all. No ship was flying a black banner, much to Link's relief.

So he got up from the nets around the beakhead and stepped back onto the forecastle where Twali, Dubbl, and Gold were waiting. "Mister Gold," Link said as he crossed, handing the duoscope back to Twali, "take us in on the engine. Dubbl, you and Lwamm can open the sails back up."

"Aye aye, Cap'n, Gold replied while Dubbl answered, "Yes, May Kyabtin."

"Twali…" Link said as he turned back around. But he paused for a moment as he tried to think of the word. "Uhh… tay… tay-tay… tayjolan?" Then he snapped his fingers and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "Tayjolan."

Twali put on a contemplative look and glanced down at herself. She jumped in place a couple of times while she seemed to be focused on her chest. "'Inu nadmoytokak tab 'inu sadhox, May Kyabtin," she said. She shook her shoulders. "'Imayn 'aman dhijilwak Dholit dha' tac."

"Uh… what's she doin'?" Gold asked.

Link shook his head. "I-I don't know," he replied in an exhausted tone. "I was trying to tell her to return to her post."

Dubbl, who had stopped at the top of the steps when she had heard Geltoan, turned around and said, "Twali, tayjolwan."

"Ha?" Twali asked, ceasing movement. Link turned in response to her voice.

"Tayjolwan," Dubbl repeated, pointing aft.

Twali seemed to take a moment to process what was going on. Then Link thought he saw her flush before she bowed her head. "Oh. Ay'a." Link stepped out of the way as she started walking back to the poop deck.

Dubbl shook her head. "Not lea'n flom Dholit, Kyabtin," she told Link as she walked away.

"'Not learn flom Dholit'?" Gold asked. He grinned. "She teachin' yeh tae speak dir'y Geltoan?"

Link gave his head an exhausted shake. "I don't know anymore," he admitted. "I tried to ask Layna how she was doing last night, and Biluf—she was there in the room, too—she just started _laughing_. It might've lasted longer if Layna hadn't thrown a blade at her."

Gold's grin became larger. Then he turned and started shifting levers. "Layna, that's the one that got 'urt, right?"

"Yeah," Link said with a nod. "She's also the one that likes to _kill_ people." He glanced out at the sky for a moment. "It's just occurred to me. It's been about two weeks, so she should probably see a surgeon while we're here."

"'Ow's our supplies?"

"Well, other than Sello's needs, we should have enough to make Bold Island as we are. But we might stay here for a bit. Now's probably the best time to get a few things done."

Gold turned back to the wheel. "Such as?"

"Well, taking Layna to a clinic, obviously. And I hope we can find some alcohol for Sello; I'm worried it's only a matter of time before he walks straight overboard. Then there's the cutter."

Gold gave Link a blank look, making Link wonder how exactly he had interpreted the phrase. "What 'bout the cu'er?"

Link returned his peculiar look with one of his own. "The boat on the boat deck," he answered, indicating such with a thumb. "We're going to fit it with a ballast system and an engine so we can use it."

"Oh," Gold responded. "I see."

"Something like a cutter would be useful for getting to Bold Island; there's _bound_ to be Skyrider ships there."

"Got it, Cap'n."

…

A little over an hour later, the _Island Symphony_ was docked at the end of a floating pier, the only space along the port where the ship could fit. Since they would be taking on some supplies (particularly whatever junk Sello scrounged/stole), Link decided it would be best to level the cargo hold to the pier and open up one of the large doors. Due to them docking close to the shift change, Link had asked Gold to maintain watch over the helm in case they needed to bolt. Dubbl, Twali, Biluf, and Lwamm were to maintain the watch with Dubbl firing one of Biluf's new smoke shells should a Skyrider ship appear. Cale and Lilly were going to… some destination unknown to Link, ostensibly to look for any indication that the King and Queen of Hyrule had docked here. Leynne, while still in possession of most of the money he had made on Might Island, was going shopping with Sello to find parts they could use to make a launch out of Rosaline's cutter. Link decided to take Layna to whatever clinic he could find to have her examined. Dholit would be going along with him to translate and keep her from annoying the rest of the crew.

That had been the plan, but, one hour after they had docked, Link still stood in the hold waiting. He was not alone; Layna stood next to him, and Irleen hid underneath his hat. Layna was still as a statue, but Link could feel Irleen moving around against the top of his head. Link's ears told him the rest of his crew was trying to get organized as footsteps seemed to dash from one end of the ship to the other.

"Ugh!" Irleen finally growled, jumping out from under Link's hat. "What's going _on_!? Are we gonna do stuff or not!?"

"Calm down, Irleen," Link told her. "I think they're still getting ready; we've got a lot to do today."

"How long could it take?" she asked, bouncing around in the air.

Link caught a glance of someone coming up the starboard steps and said, "Look, someone's here now."

Then he and Irleen cringed as that person, upon catching his foot on the top step, hit the deck with an incredible thud. "Didn' hurt!" Sello shouted.

"Tha's the only thin' ya said tha' I believe, Chief," Harley said as he stepped up onto the deck behind Sello. He grabbed the back of Sello's waistcoat and hauled him back to his feet. "I go'a tie ya ta somethin'?"

"Moose," Sello replied as he started across the deck.

"_Wha'_ is a moose?" Harley asked while he followed Sello, throwing his arms wide to indicate his confusion and exhaustion.

"Is everything okay?" Irleen asked as they came closer.

"Exactly," Sello said. He stopped in front of Link and Irleen and wiggled his eyebrows at them.

"Exactly _what_?" Irleen asked. "What the hell was _that_ look for?"

"Two beans."

"Oh, shut up."

Link looked around Sello and Harley to find that Leynne and Lidago had just stepped into the hold. "Something going on?" he asked Harley.

"Leynne asked us t' go 'long," Harley said. He held up an arm and flexed it. "Y'know. Muscle."

"I also considehed that a Goron may stand out betteh than a teenaged captain," Leynne said as he stepped up next to Harley. "It would sehve to attract attention away from you. The local population will remembeh Lidago moh, and any Skyridehs that show up afteh us should be confused."

Link gave his head a small tilt. "Eh… maybe. But if it's North—"

"If it's _Nohth_," Leynne interrupted, "then it won't matteh. But the longeh we keep otheh Skyridehs guessing, the longeh we have to keep moving towahd ouh goals."

"Hm. Nice," Irleen said.

"Dudes, twenty-seven wurdz," Sello spoke up. "Fried. Table legs."

"The Chief says i' sounds like a good idea," Harley said with a grin.

Lidago let out a confused groan. "Lidago heard something else."

"That's just the air whistling through Sello's head," Irleen said.

Link stepped to one side and indicated the open door. "Go ahead and get what you need."

"Le's go, Chief Ding-Dong," Harley said, pushing Sello forward.

"Hotdog!" Sello replied.

"Well _I_ ain' touchin' i'," Harley told him.

Leynne paused before stepping off the ship. "I should wahn you that this may take some time, given the amount of supplies we requih in addition to Sello's proclivity foh gathering strange items."

Link held up a hand. "It's okay, Leynne. I'll be back soon to relieve Gold. And there's no rush; I was intending to give the whole crew a bit of leave before we go to Bold Island."

Leynne nodded. "All the same, we'll be back as soon as possible." With that, he held up a hand as a parting gesture and jogged down the pier to catch up with his group.

Link heard someone stumbling across the deck and turned to find Lilly and Cale standing in front of him. Both of them looked out-of-breath and a little disheveled, Cale looking the worse of the two. Link blinked at them for a moment. "You… are you two okay?" he asked.

"We fell," Cale said at the same time Lilly said, "We ran into a door." They exchanged looks, and then Lilly said, "We fell," while Cale amended, "We ran into a doah."

Link placed a hand over his eyes and sighed in exhaustion. "I'm not gonna ask," he told them. "Just go do what you need to do to find the king and queen."

"You know," Irleen added. "Somewhere between your makeout sessions."

"You don't trust us?" Lilly asked, raising an eyebrow.

"To not start kissing and groping each other like a pair of crazed teenagers in a trashy romance novel?" Irleen replied. Link immediately felt a memory of accidentally reading such a novel and started blushing madly, embarrassment so evident on his face that he was glad no one was actually looking at him. "Not really, no."

"We-we can take it seriously," Cale argued, trying to tug the collar of his shirt into a more comfortable position.

Link hid his face behind his hand to maintain the guise of exhaustion while hiding the fact that some of the images that were popping into his head were causing his face to turn even redder. "Just… just go," he told them in as steady of a voice as he could manage. Both Lilly and Cale, believing that they were annoying their commander (which was partially true), quickly moved past him and started down the pier.

And Dholit was revealed to have been standing behind them. "Well," she spoke up, causing Link to jump in surprise. "I believe that ouh valiant commandah is embarrassed by the antics of ouh lovahs."

"Is he?" Irleen asked.

"Dholit, don't start," Link groaned.

Irleen dropped to eye-level with Link and hovered around his face. "Wow, Link," she said. "You're red as an apple."

"That would be all of that misplaced blood, deah."

Link felt his anger rise along with his embarrassment, and he snapped at her, "Dholit!"

Dholit raised her hands. "Yes, I'm awah that I am evah-so-slowly approaching my limit, but I had been saving that pahticulah innuendo foh some time now."

"Oh, really?" Irleen said in a challenging tone. "How long?"

"Evah since we met," she replied, grin widening. "But my attempt to use it met with failuah."

"Huh?" Irleen asked, dumbstruck. "_You_ missed a cue for innuendo? How come?"

"Cehtain cihcumstances," Dholit said.

"She fell and hit her head," Link blurted out, finding relief in having a way to turn the conversation against her.

"Sh—… She _what_?" Irleen asked.

"Ah," Dholit breathed, looking at the deckhead. "Of all the moments I've had with Link, _that_ specific moment is the one which he wishes to invoke against me." Her grin had not broken, and it seemed to even turn evil as she told him, "If that's the situation, shall I remind My Captain that, between the two of us, I can command his lovely little assassin?"

Link, not cowed by the response, grinned his own malevolence. "So she won't attack if I point a finger at you?" he asked.

"I will tell heh to break youh fingahs befoah you can considah it," Dholit answered in a cool tone.

"'Imayn Kyabtin?" Layna asked.

Link turned to her and, upon remembering that they still had to take her to a clinic, let the scowl melt away in a show of concern. He sighed and said, "C'mon, we should get going." He turned and started across the door.

Irleen and Dholit exchanged looks. "I feel as if Layna has made moah progress with him than eithah you oh I," Dholit commented with a humored look on her face.

"You know," Irleen replied, "I know _exactly_ what you mean by that, and I can't help _agreeing_ with you."

"The question is whethah we should show some suppoht foh it oh not," Dholit said. "Afteh all, I've come to find that a young man's fihst love is quite precious to him. On the otheh hand, I'm ratheh jealous of competition."

"I'm standing right here," Link said with an annoyed tone, having stopped at the edge of the door when they started conversing.

"Yeah, we know," Irleen said. "But you never seem to pay attention to the important things anyway." Link sighed and waved at Layna to follow him. After giving Irleen and Dholit a curious look, she decided to follow without question. "I'd be inclined to support Link, but I'm worried it would distract him," Irleen continued with Dholit. "I mean… well, not to sound self-centered, but I'm still a fairy."

"Oh, Ihleen," Dholit replied, shaking her head. "As long as you ah a gihl, you will _always_ be in competition foh Link's heaht."

"That isn't what I mean, and you know it," Irleen snapped.

Dholit gave a faux-helpless shrug. "Oh, come now, Ihleen," she said. "You can't tell me that you can show this level of affection foh him and not develop deepah feelings foh him."

Irleen's wings started beating faster, and her form shook in the air. "That—… That isn't how someone falls in love!" she shouted. "Nàpi katàh ō? Kūlhònàtūc nūc?"

Dholit blinked at her. "Um… Ihleen, ah you awah that you ah no longeh speaking Hylian?"

"Nūc? Luc kárōlat ō." There was a pause in between their conversation. Then Irleen spun to find that Link and Layna were halfway down the pier. "Līnca!"

…

Conversation had died between them, especially now that both Link and Dholit had acknowledged that they had a way of turning their injured companion against each other. For Link, it was more so Dholit would not have a reason to start telling Layna things that might work against him. For Dholit, she had simply lost interested and took secret pleasure in pushing Link ever closer to the edge. She never took the threat seriously.

Link spent most of the walk observing Layna, looking for any indication that she might be in pain. It was difficult; Layna was good at catching him, and Link would not stop turning away when she looked at him. As far as he could tell, if she was in pain, she was a master at hiding it. The way she walked was smooth, and she kept her face calm as if things were simply casual. Until she caught him, that is, when she would give him her usual show of silent confusion.

They found a clinic some distance from the docks and spoke with the orderly at the reception desk. After a brief explanation and Link handing over the letter from Doctor Albert, all four of them (Irleen had gone back to hiding inside Link's hat) were taken back to a stitching room. Layna sat on one bed, and Link sat in front of her on another bed. Dholit was looking at a nearby medicine cabinet when someone else finally entered.

The doctor, dressed in a casual tunic and slacks with a white coat over the top, was probably in his late thirties and a little wide around the belly. "Well," he said as he looked up at the room's occupants. "Nice to meet you, folks. I'm Doctor Gale."

"I'm Link," Link volunteered. He pointed to each Gelto as he introduced them, "This is Layna, and that's Dholit there."

Doctor Gale gave the two young women a confused look. Then he sighed and said, "So, I understand that Layna here has seen a bit of action."

"We both have, really," Link said as Dholit stepped up beside him. "But she took more of it."

"Given the details of that letter, I can certainly imagine," the doctor said. He removed a stethoscope from one of his coat pockets and placed one end in his right ear. "I'll just give her a quick examination and then see if she needs anything else done." He placed the other end of the stethoscope against her chest. He pondered for a moment, and then he stepped around her. He tugged on Layna's shirt and placed the stethoscope against her back.

And he was promptly elbowed in the jaw for it. "Doh!" he cried before he landed on the floor.

"Layna!" Link snapped while Dholit clapped a hand over her mouth, struggling not to laugh aloud.

"'Ak maddix binwikak!" she cried out, looking horrified with herself. "'Inu nadmicalwnya'ak zansiyxw zhal!"

"Doctor, are you all right!?" Link asked as he made to jump off the edge of the bed.

The doctor picked himself up on the other side of Layna's bed. "Yeah, I'm fine," he said, cradling his jaw with his free hand.

Dholit let a giggle escape before telling him, "I'm afraid you'll have to fohgive heh, Doctoh. The device you ah using is cold. And ouh pooh Layna has some very adamant reflexes."

"It's all right," he assured her, bending over to pick up his stethoscope. "I've been struck by worse."

"Good thing it wasn't a blade," Irleen commented under Link's cap.

"I'm sorry?" the doctor asked, glancing at Dholit.

"Oh, nothing," Dholit replied.

The doctor placed the stethoscope back in his ear and carefully touched it to Layna's back. She visibly shivered, but she restrained herself and allowed the doctor to examine her against the instinct to reach around and jab out one of his eyes. The doctor then removed the stethoscope. "Well, her heartbeat and her breathing appear to be normal," he told them as he pocketed the instrument. "Has there been any bleeding or drainage?"

"Theah was some bleeding not long afteh we left Might Island," Dholit said. "It promptly stopped afteh she was confined to quahtahs."

"I'm sorry, 'confined to-to quarters'?" the doctor asked.

"It was a punishment," Link replied. "She picked up the chief engineer and threw him against the deck."

"Ah," the doctor said. This was followed by a few minutes of glancing between Link and Layna as he tried to understand the circumstances behind the punishment. Then he shrugged and asked, "And you said there hasn't been any bleeding since?"

"None that I've seen," Dholit said with a nod. "A bit of pus, but it only lasted as long as heh wounds weh open."

"Any sort of discoloration or tender spots?" the doctor asked.

"I have not noticed any discoloration," Dholit said. "As foh tendehness, she has not complained of any."

"Unusual fever or sweating?"

Dholit nodded. "A bit at fihst," she said. "It tended to disappeah when we provided heh with medicine from the Might Island clinic."

"Okay," the doctor said with a nod. "I understand that someone removed some stitches?"

"I removed some of them," Dholit said. "Othehs, I could not be cehtain that she had finished healing oh I felt uncomfohtable trying to remove."

The doctor nodded. "Okay. I'll go get an instrument tray, and we'll see about removing the rest."

He stepped out, leaving the room in silence again. Link was relieved to have a more detailed report of what had been happening to her since Might Island, especially since they were things that Link would have never thought to ask about. The doctor had sounded impressed with her recovery, and this made Link hopeful that he could put her back on duty; he still felt guilty about having to punish her just to make her settle down long enough to heal.

The doctor returned with a moving tray on which were a number of steel instruments. Link cringed when the doctor left them sitting between him and Layna. "You may want to ask the young man to step out before she disrobes," the doctor said as he retrieved a stool from a corner of the room.

"That's okay," Link said as he stood up, careful not to hit the tray. "I can go wait outside."

Layna, watching Link stroll toward the door, sounded panicked when she shouted, "'Imayn Kyabtin!" The shout prompted Link to stop and turn around. But Layna addressed Dholit, "'Imayn Kyabtin safunatak hukwo?"

"My Captain coysafunatak kambi zatayskw," Dholit told her in a calming tone. Then she put on a grin. "'Itab 'al waba sakilwubak zhal wabin sannit…"

Layna seemed to shrink for a moment. Then she nodded. "Zhi yascobalak."

"She wants you to stay," Dholit told him.

Link felt heat rise to his face. "Are you sure?"

"She won't do it without you," Dholit replied.

Link gave a reluctant nod and returned to the bed he had been sitting on. "Okay then," the doctor said. "Uh, let's start with the shirt."

"Layna, foythofan wabin taliyf," Dholit said. Layna closed her eyes and pulled her shirt off over her head. Link found himself staring in awe.

Scars. Almost a hundred of them adorned her chest and abdomen, splotches of dark red against her brown skin. He could tell some of them were wounds from the bullets she had taken on Might Island. Others, however, appeared much older than that. Most of them looked like scars left behind by a blade. A few of them looked like healed burns. He knew what both looked like due to years of listening to other airmen bragging about their scars. But Link had never seen so many on a single body, let alone a woman's. The Gelto often did not seem to dress in clothing appropriate for anything but warm weather, but Link began to understand why Layna was not willing to even bare her midriff like the others. She was self-conscious of them; she tried to hide part of her stomach with a forearm when she realized that he was staring. This only prompted Link to look up at her chest.

It turned out to be a huge mistake.

"CAPTAIN LINK! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

"Yikes!" Link cried out. He kicked his legs and hit the tray holding the doctor's instruments, toppling it and scattering the instruments onto the floor.

"What the hell, Link!" Irleen shouted as she darted out of Link's hat. "What are you screaming about?!"

"HOW COULD YOU BE SO INDECENT?!" Link realized with utter horror that, as the other occupants in the room stared at him in surprise, Princess Zelda was the one screaming at him. His glancing at Layna caused her to snap, "LINK!"

Link immediately dug into his pocket and pulled out both of Irleen's gems. "Irleen, Dholit, stay here," he told them as he placed both on the bed. "I'll be right back."

"Wheah ah you going?" Dholit asked.

"Don't worry about it," Link called over his shoulder as he left the room. He rushed through the clinic, out the front door, and into a nearby alley. He glanced around to make sure no one was watching him from the street. Then he asked, "Princess?"

"Yes, Link, it is," Zelda replied with a heated tone. Then she commenced to shouting, "How _dare_ you be so lecherous! I am appalled to know my future lies in the hands of a _pervert_!"

"It's not like that!" Link cried out.

"Isn't it!?" she demanded. "Imagine my surprise when I went to sleep expecting to have a decent conversation with you only to open my eyes to find them staring at a woman's chest. You disgusting little—"

"Would you just let me explain!?"

"Yes. Yes, I would like to hear what kind of debauchery brought you to stare at her with your tongue hanging from your disgusting mouth. Did you order one of your crew to remove her shirt? Did she plead with you before you—?"

"We're at a clinic!" Link quickly rounded the corner to look at the sign hanging over the door. "Look, see?" Zelda had fallen silent, and Link took the opportunity to get a word in before she started shouting at him again. "We came here so Layna could be examined. She didn't want me to leave when the doctor mentioned taking off her clothes; I-I don't _know_ why. I-I wasn't staring at her chest; I was staring at her _scars_."

"Oh," was all Zelda said for a moment. Link ducked back into the alley and rested against the wall behind him. "Oh, my. I-I am sorry, Link. I appear to have misjudged you."

"I'll say," Link answered. "I mean, I probably shouldn't have been staring, but I'd never seen someone with so many scars."

"Yes, now that I think on the memory, I can see the morbid fascination," she admitted. "Dear me. Is she the crewmember you described as a killer?"

"An assassin, yeah. I-I guess you don't get so many scars for playing nice."

"Indeed."

He sighed. "I wish you'd tell me whenever you're looking through my eyes."

"Perhaps I should. I did not mean to overreact. I think part of me just wanted to ensure that it was not _I_ dreaming of staring at a woman's bare chest."

Link gave a weak chuckle. "I suppose that would be even more embarrassing for you."

Zelda made an affirmative sound. Then she asked, "Are you on an island right now?"

"Yeah, we're on South Sand Island. We docked earlier this morning."

"Oh, good! So, what is your plan from here?"

"Leynne took some of the engine room crew to find parts to put together a ballast system and an engine for the launch. Cale and Lilly are searching for leads concerning your parents, but I'm inclined to think they'd already moved on to Bold Island."

"But if they were unable to make the journey without the Sky Lines, would they have really missed this island?"

Link shrugged. "That's what we're gonna find out. I was planning to let the rest of the crew have a bit of shore leave before we move; so far, there hasn't been any sign of Skyriders."

"I imagine your crew will be thankful. I should remember to think better of you, Link. I apologize for what I called you, what I said about you."

"Well… I'm a little glad that you did, actually. I… well, like I said, I was staring at her scars. I don't think she appreciated it." He scratched the back of his head. "I guess I should thank you."

"You should probably go back inside. I'm sure I've caused your crew to worry."

Link nodded and walked back into clinic. When he stepped into the stitching room, the doctor had asked Layna to lie down and covered her with a sheet while he removed stitches from a wound in her thigh. Link sighed with relief and returned to his seat on the bed next to hers. The doctor glanced up at him before he returned to removing the stitches.

"Ah you okay, My Captain?" Dholit whispered in his ear.

He felt her press Irleen's gems into his hand. He glanced at her for a moment. Then he replied as he watched the doctor work, "I needed to get outside for a moment."

"Foh youh sake, I'll refrain from speaking foh all to heah," Dholit said. "But it seems to me that, if you weh embarrassed to be gazing upon Layna's naked flesh, you took quite a bit of time to realize it." Link did not even have to look at her to know she was smiling at him. He just attempted to sit in silence while his face burned furiously.

…

With Layna's stitches removed, Link had seen fit to tell her that she was allowed to return to duty. He wished he had waited until they had returned to the _Island Symphony_. The moment Dholit had translated Link's statement, Layna had disappeared so fast that both Link and Dholit wondered aloud if she had even left the clinic with them. Link was happy for her; she seemed very passionate about her duty, and Link was worried that restricting her any further would cause her to do something crazy.

When they returned to the ship, Link was a little shocked and angry to find Leynne, Harley, and Lidago unloading a cart full of various pieces of metal and scrap. This was mostly because some of it looked to be parts of a cargo crane, the kind that would be found at a port much larger than South Sand Island. They were some of the larger parts, and Link even saw a pane of glass from the operator's booth. Link asked where the crane parts had come from, and Leynne assured him that the crane was out of commission and that only two or three things in their cart had actually been stolen. Naturally, Link asked what was stolen, and Leynne explained that a ceramic tea set, a can containing a film reel, and the top half of a grandfather clock were the only items that he could not pay for because none of them had seen Sello grab them. Next, he asked why Sello was not unpacking the cart with them, and Harley told Link that Sello had been dealing with some serious separation anxiety, which included him spinning in circles on the ground and clucking like a cucco until the ship was in sight. He also listed babbling like a moron, but Leynne quickly pointed out that Sello babbled like a moron anyway. Link told them to get the junk stowed and secured before returning to duty. In the meantime, he released Lawrence, Helo, Twali, and Dubbl for a bit of shore leave, as he planned to do for Biluf and Lwamm once Cale and Lilly had returned.

Link was looking over the southern sky with a duoscope when he heard footsteps. He turned to find Cale and Lilly stepping onto the forecastle. "Good news, Captain," Lilly spoke up.

"I'm listening," Link replied.

"They were here."

Link heard a sharp breath and dismissed it as Zelda's reaction, given that she has still been chatting with him since he had been left alone on the bridge. "When?" he asked, keeping his tone even.

"Almost three weeks after they left West Iron Island," Lilly said.

"We spoke with the clinics which also sehve as phahmacies," Cale spoke up. "One told us of a paih of knights that approached them with a list of medication. Half of it was filled heah, but the phahmacists told them that theih supply of some of the otheh medicines had yet to reach them."

"A… a list?" Zelda uttered just before Cale finished his sentence.

"Wait, hold on a second," Link said, raising a hand. "A list? What kind of a list?"

"A…" Cale droned, glancing at Lilly. "A list of medicine, ostensibly."

Lilly suddenly gripped Cale's arm. "Oh, no," she said. "I hadn't felt about it, but… the queen, she…"

"She has become worse," Zelda finished, her voice sounding a little distant. "She needs her doctors."

"Where'd they go? To Bold Island?" Link asked.

"We can only hope," Lilly said. "No one we spoke'a saw them leave."

"Noh theih ship," Cale added. "But, given the amount of travel time between heah and Might Island, Bold Island would be a safeh choice if anything drastic happened. Oh, one otheh thing."

"Yeah?" Link asked.

"It's… there's been rumors about Bold Island," Lilly said. "From what we heard, I guess that Bold Island has closed off its port. Specifically, they won't let Skyriders or anyone representin' the royal family in."

"It also sounds as if theah is a problem with the island itself," Cale said. "Unfohtunately, no one would elaborate. I imagine that, weh a problem to arise with the whole island, it could be due to intahference with the nohmal operation of the technowohks."

Link nodded. "So, either way, we could be looking at a long stay at Bold Island," he said more to himself and Zelda than them. He looked up at them. "Good work, you two. If you could, find Dholit and tell her that Biluf and Lwamm can go ashore for a bit if they want to."

"They weh unloading that caht next to the ship when we retahned," Cale said, pointing a thumb over his shoulder.

"I know. But I'd like everyone to spend a bit of time off the ship; I plan on leaving this island tonight."

Both of them nodded. "Okay," Lilly said.

"And tell Dholit to go with them to make sure they don't cause trouble," Link added as they turned to go down the stairs.

"Right," one of them responded.

Link did not know which had answered, as Zelda was already asking him, "Link, what if Bold Island turned away my parents? If my mother is missing the medicine she needs…"

Link turned to look out across the bow. "We'll try to reach them as fast as we can," Link assured her. "But first, if Cunimincus' men landed at Bold Island and caused the technoworks to malfunction, we have to stop them."

"I understand," Zelda said. "I… just wish you could get to them faster."

"If we can get the Sky Lines back, they might make it to Castle Island on their own," Link suggested.

"Then please, Link. Do it as soon as you can."

…

~~Day 84 (Command, Day 47)

~~I've just realized that I'm coming up on three months since I started this journal. I look back through these pages and I always seem to realize that so many things have happened in all that time. This time I tried flipping forward, and I realized that I don't know what's going to happen tomorrow, next week, or next month. It would really help at this point. I'd like to know if we succeed in restoring the last of the Sky Lines. And I'd really like to know that I'll find the king and queen before something bad happens. With this news that the queen's condition might be getting worse, I'm becoming concerned for Zelda as well. It might've been better that we didn't keep in contact after all, but we're too far into it now. Things might get harder without her.

~~We docked at South Sand Island this morning. We resupplied Sello, had Layna checked out and cleared for duty, and the whole crew has had the chance to enjoy a little time off the ship. As much as I want to let them have a few days, we left just before sundown for Bold Island. Something seems to be going on there; Cale and Lilly said that the port's closed itself off to Skyriders, and there might be a problem with the technoworks. You know, other than the fact that Cunimincus' airmen are probably tearing it apart.


	96. On the Road Again

Chapter 96: On the Road Again

…

_BANG! BANG BANG! BANG!_

_WHAM!_ "What the hell is all the noise!?" Link hollered after throwing open the doors to the boat deck. He had only had enough time to put his trousers and his boots on before he had lost his patience with the sound. "I can't sleep!"

"One pluz one iz three wifout me!" Sello replied from somewhere at the back of the room. _BANG! BANG!_ Link had to move along the front wall to find him sitting on the floor amidst a smaller pile of his scrounged-up junk. He held a frying pan in his hand and—_BANG!_—was in the process of flattening a length of stove pipe with it. But that last swing was actually a demonstration of Sello's horrible aim as he laid a clean strike on the deck, which might have been the reason he was using a frying pan in the first place. Not that Link would ever dismiss the thought that Sello had simply decided to use the frying pan because was drunk. Amazingly (for Sello), he glanced down at the pipe with a thoughtful look on his face. "Hmm…"

"Sello!" Link snapped.

"Mustard?" Sello responded, looking up.

"Sello, my cabin's right below you," Link said, his tone still heated but a little more relaxed. "If you're going to hammer things out, at least use the table over there." Link pointed to the other side of the room, where Bulif still had her table set out for her usual experiments. She had cleared it, which was why Sello would be fine using it since he could not steal her chemicals again (assuming he had not already done so).

"Table?" Sello asked, glancing around the back of the boat. He had to lean further around the side before he saw the table. Then he nodded. "Dat'll do."

Link had expected Sello to take the pipe and the frying pan to the table. Instead, Sello staggered around the back of the cutter, dropping the frying pan onto the deck. He stepped up to the edge of the table and leaned over to inspect it at eye level. Then he grabbed the two legs near him and attempted to drag it to the other side. But the table was too wide to fit between the rear bulkhead and the boat's hull. Link was about to step over to help Sello turn the table. Sello, however, decided to roll the table on his own. Then he dragged it up the side of the boat's hull, knocking over Biluf's partition and tugging on the spare sails covering the boat. Link cringed, expecting to hear the sails rip. Sello succeeded despite how awkward the ordeal was, but he was now holding the table upside-down. Link was not sure if Sello noticed until Sello, holding the table at about the middle with the end pressed into his stomach, positioned it so that the opposite end of the table floated over the pipe he had been trying to flatten. With a thud, the table fell.

And, in spite of using a piece of furniture, he still missed the pipe. Worse, Sello's grip slipped. He dropped the table on the toes of his boots. However, instead of reacting, he just gave the pipe a confused look. Then he turned to one side and, still not aware that his feet were under the table, tripped. He landed on top of a steel rod with a thud, causing the rod to fling itself upward. The bucket on the end, full of various tools, swung upward as well and slid down the rod on its handle. The swing was enough that the bucket, when reaching the other end of the rod, was in perfect position to bash Sello over the head with a hollow, metallic smack.

Link placed a hand over his eyes and looked up toward the deckhead. "Sello," he asked with exhaustion prevalent in his voice, "are you okay?"

"Loogget me, I'm inna tree," Sello replied in an odd tone of voice, almost as if he was delighted to have been struck over the head with a bucket full of tools. He chuckled and added, "And da cheese'n da moo-dog flew inna da sea."

Link sighed. "I'm never gonna get any sleep…"

…

Irleen giggled at Link as he sat at his desk with his head resting on the surface, staring at the door. "Wow, Link, you look beat," she commented.

"I _feel_ beat," Link replied, turning his head to glance up at her. "Sello woke us up this morning; that's what all that noise was."

"And all the noise _after_ you went up there?" she asked.

"I suggested he could use the table for his work," he said. "He tried to use it in place of a hammer. Then he fell over and took a bucket of tools to the head."

Irleen snorted, earning her an irritated look. She cleared her throat to help steady her voice. "Well, at least he's quiet now," she pointed out.

"Yeah, I'm… not sure how that happened," he told her. "It's completely possible that he killed himself."

"You don't sound very convinced."

Link shrugged. "Well, with as much as he drinks, he should _already_ be dead."

"You don't think he's immortal or something, do you?"

He shrugged again. "It wouldn't surprise me if he was." He paused to think for a moment. "Maybe we should chuck him overboard and see."

"Wow, Link. You're being kinda _dark_ tonight, aren't you?"

"Well, it's not like that's the _only_ problem I had today." Link then sat up and slouched into his chair. "I spent most of the day on-deck with Layna stalking me."

"Doesn't she do that anyway?"

Link gave her an exhausted glare. "Yeah, but she at least had the decency to leave me alone while I was on the head. I had to find Dholit just so Dholit could tell her to stop following me everywhere."

"I wouldn't be _mad_ at her for that, Link," Irleen told him in a sympathetic voice. "She's probably just being grateful to you by… letting you know she's always watching… you…" Those final words came out awkward as she realized how creepy the situation actually sounded. "Maybe you can trade her to another ship when we reach Bold Island."

"Irleen," Link tried to snap. Then he added, "It won't work; I already thought of it. On top of not being able to understand that she's being assigned to another ship, she'd just sneak back aboard."

"Well… I suppose you can always wait until she beats up Sello again."

Link shook his head. "If there's one thing I've taught her, it's that I don't like seeing my crew hurt."

"Hmm… well, I'm out of ideas. So, what else happened today?"

"Huh? Oh, uh…" Link had to pause to remember why his day had been miserable. "Oh, yeah! Dholit and Dubbl got into a fight."

"Dholit and… Dubbl," Irleen repeated. "Huh. What happened?"

Link sat up straighter in his chair. "I don't know," he said. "The deck crew was changing shifts, and when Dubbl stepped onto the deck, Dholit made a comment. They started arguing, and then they started wrestling on the deck."

"_Really_? Any idea what she said?"

He shrugged. "She didn't explain it to me. I was about to run at them from across the deck, but Lwamm and Biluf grabbed them and took them below."

"Well, considering _Dholit_, she was probably pushing more innuendo around again."

"Probably. So I chased them down to the hold, but they disappeared. I kinda wandered around for a moment, then I heard screaming from the deck below. So I go down _there_, and I find…" He visibly shivered. "I found Lwamm and Biluf standing in front of Dubbl's cabin, guarding the door. I _tried_ to order them aside, but… well, you know they don't speak Hylian."

Irleen settled on Link's desk, which saved Link the discomfort of having to look up at her. "Yeah, I can see that being a problem."

"Well, I was there for… eh, _maybe_ a minute, and Dubbl just stops screaming. Do you remember that one time when Dubbl attacked me, and then Dholit dragged her off. And then, when they came back, Dubbl was _really_ quiet?"

Irleen paused. "Oh, don't tell me," she said in a horrified tone.

"Yeah, it was kinda like that," Link told her, his tone a little disgusted. "I mean… I _want_ to know what she keeps doing to Dubbl, but… at the same time, I just _don't_ want to know. You know?"

"More than you're willing to believe."

Link sighed. "Yeah, that's… that's more-or-less it. I mean, it doesn't seem like much now, but… I don't know. That seems about average, right?"

"Maybe if it was Dubbl and _Leynne_ arguing."

"That hasn't happened in a while, actually. I'm kinda surprised. I suppose having them work on different shifts helps; they don't see each other enough to start fighting."

"And now that you've said that, the next time anyone fights around here, it's gonna be those two."

Link gave her a strange look. "How do you figure?"

"Well, since I said that, what are the chances _now_? We know they don't get along, and Dubbl likes to hit anyone she doesn't agree with."

Link shook his head. "I don't think so. That was why I put them on different shifts to begin with. And it's mostly Sello and Leynne working on the cutter. Dubbl might have to fit it with sails later, but—" Link froze mid-sentence. "Oh, crap. They're gonna have to work together."

Irleen giggled at him. "See?"

Link pressed both of his hands to his face and groaned. "Okay," he said after uncovering his mouth. "Okay, maybe they can do it. I mean, they _did_ work together to put together the masts, so they can't hate each other _that_ much. And it only comes to decisions of _command_ anyway."

"Eh, not quite, Link. Remember when we came back from the Ocean Realm? And Leynne had put everyone else in the closet?"

"Okay, now you're just making me worry," Link told her in an annoyed tone. He waved his arms to indicate the end of the discussion. "Let's just see what happens tomorrow. If we're lucky, one will kill the other, and we won't have to worry about it anymore."

"Still being dark, Link," she told him, her tone indicating an amused grin behind her words.

Someone knocked at the door. "Maybe this'll be a ray of light for you," Link commented. Then he called, "Come in."

The door opened, and Dholit poked her head in. "Would My Captain like a good-night massage befoah settling down foh the evening pleasuahs?" she asked with a grin.

"Dholit…" Link half-way snapped, finding he did not have the energy to raise his voice further.

"Dholit, stop messing around," Leynne told her as he shoved her from behind.

Dholit, with a hand still on the doorframe, spun into the cabin and stopped to face Link with her arms held out wide as if she was dancing. She turned her head to the door as Leynne stepped inside. "My, Leynne, you don't mind being assehtive, do you?"

Leynne shook his head and adjusted the thin, paper-wrapped package under his arm. "Ah you experiencing some type of dry spell that makes you act insane?" he asked her, annoyed.

"Why, Leynne," she replied, sitting down on Link's footlocker and crossing her legs. "Is this an invitation to end the spell?"

"Dholit…" Irleen sighed.

"What?" Dholit asked. "It was a straight-fohwahd question."

"Did you two need something?" Link asked, sounding a little more irritable than he intended.

"He's mad," Dholit said, immediately standing up. "Let's give it to him tomohrow."

"Dholit…" Leynne said with a warning tone.

"Three people have said your name, Dholit," Irleen said. "It's time to stop joking around."

"Daaaw…" Dholit replied.

"What is it?" Link asked.

"Something we picked up foh you while we weh on libehty on South Sand Island," Leynne replied as he stepped forward and placed the package on the desk. Link gave the flat package, wrapped in brown paper with a simple string, a curious look before he set to unwrapping it.

"Actually, it was Layna's idea," Dholit spoke up. "She said that this pahticulah gahment makes it easiah foh heh to follow you."

"And, considering how populah youh image is to anyone who doesn't like how things have been lately," Leynne added, "we thought it would be appropriate enough."

Link had finally torn away the paper to discover a folded item of clothing inside. Heart beating and eyes wide, he stood up and pulled the garment out to reveal a green tunic. It looked new and clean, just the way his first tunic had looked. The material felt a little thinner as he rubbed it between his fingers, but he nonetheless smiled at Dholit and Leynne. "This is amazing, guys," he told them, the words just a grade lower than his normal volume. "Thanks."

"I've ratheh missed you running about in a green tunic myself," Dholit said, tilting her head as she admired Link pressing the tunic to his chest to check its fit. "Things around heah just haven't felt the same since you left it on Might Island."

"It wasn't easy," Link admitted. "That tunic was given to me by the princess. I still hope I can eventually recover it, but it's nice to have another one." He tugged on it. Then he realized something. "Wait a minute. That old one was a little large for me, but this one looks just right. How'd you know my size?"

"Oh, My Captain," Dholit said. "As someone who has obsehved you foh all this time, would you find it so hahd to believe that I can imagine youh body pehfectly."

"Dholit…" Link, Leynne, and Irleen groaned simultaneously.

Dholit looked around at them, undisturbed by their annoyance. "Despite the innocent spirit with which I said that," she told them with a grin, "I would like to point out that it takes a mind of similah pehvehsion to spot the innuendos within my statements. In essence, I am not the only dihty pehson in this room."

"Maybe not," Leynne said, "but you'h the only one who uses it on a regulah basis."

She wiggled her eyebrows. "Well, I have to use _one_ of my talents daily." Then she folded her arms behind her back and threw out her chest in Leynne's direction. "Even though I'd prefah to multitask."

Link and Leynne blinked at her in confusion. But it was Irleen who said, "Okay, that one went over even _my_ head."

…

~~Day 85 (Command, Day 48)

~~I've often heard other airmen say that the world likes to throw us a day where everything goes bad only to make us appreciate the good it delivers in the end. I didn't think I'd ever live such an extreme day. I was so certain my day would end with me getting no sleep while my crew started to tear each other apart. But then Leynne and Dholit came into my cabin and gave me a present: a new tunic. According to them, the crew just doesn't feel right without me wearing one. And I have to admit that I've missed it. I don't know if I'll ever get my first tunic back, but, somehow, this makes me feel wonderful. I definitely won't let this one get away from me.

~~If we're to trust what people said about the journey from South Sand Island to Bold Island, we should be there in at least three more days. We've had to run on the engine for most of the day; the winds still won't cooperate, but they at least gave us a good push away from South Sand Island.

~~Work is proceeding on the cutter, so we should have a usable launch soon. I think Leynne said that Sello was still working on the engine, although I'm surprised that he's doing it so quietly now. I hope he stays quiet; I need the sleep.

…

_Whump! BAM BAM! CRSH! BAM! Whump! BAM! Crack!_

_WHAM!_ "WHAT IN THE _HELL_!?" Link screamed into the boat deck, angry that, for the second morning in a row, noise against the deckhead of his cabin had awoken him. This time, he figured that it could not have been just Sello, as Sello had not even made that much sound on his own. And he was right.

Because it was Sello, Leynne, and Dubbl. And the three of them were lying on the deck amid spare parts, tools, and torn pieces of fabric from the spare sail that used to cover the cutter.

The lack of covering on the cutter had been justified; they had flipped the cutter over in order to gain access to the boat's weather deck. As for the fact that the sail had been torn to pieces, well… that actually appeared to have been Sello's doing, seeing as how his lower half was wrapped in part of the sail with his hands bound to his sides as well. Leynne and Dubbl did not look as if they had any sort of involvement with that situation since Leynne was straddling Dubbl with her wrists restrained in his hands. Dubbl was holding a small mallet which seemed to have a spot of blood on one of its blunt surfaces. All three of them had frozen in place when Link had startled them. And, now that Link was looking at all three of their faces, he saw that Leynne's right eye appeared to be swelling again while a line of blood was tricking across Sello's forehead.

Link's anger subsided for the moment, leaving him stymied by the sight before him. What was he to make of this? His first thoughts were that Dubbl and Leynne had gotten into another argument which had escalated once again. But then… Sello was the only one who was overtly bleeding. And why was he wrapped in the sail?

Finally, unable to fully comprehend the situation, he asked in a genuinely perplexed tone, "What is… Just _what_ were you guys doing?"

"Link," Leynne spoke up first. "I should wahn you that appearances may be a little deceiving."

Link's anger returned with vengeance, and he responded in a heated tone, "I don't care. Stand up, all three of you."

"Problems, My Captain?" Link turned around just as Dholit and Biluf stepped off the stairs to the quarterdeck and approached him.

"Where's Layna?" Link asked.

Dholit pointed to Link's right shoulder. "She's rig—"

"Gah!" Link shouted when he discovered Layna standing over his right shoulder. He turned back to Dholit and hissed, "Would you tell her to stop doing that!?"

Dholit grinned and told Layna, "'Fizhuban 'anw yathiyb 'axiltin,' to My Captain coynagthya'ak." Layna's response was a flustered look.

Link did not see the exchange. Instead, he had turned back to Leynne, Dubbl, and Sello to find them standing in a row. Well, _two_ of them were standing; Sello was swaying in place, probably due to a combination of intoxication and being unable to free himself from the sail. "Now," he told them, "who wants to be the first to explain?"

Sello ripped a hand free and saluted, nearly clobbering Dubbl with his elbow in the process. "Lunchbox," he said in a serious tone, his voice absent of its usual slur. "The fruit of my tushie doth hath flown into the river of blueberry waffle paste to dress finely the composite steam of early veganism. However, I am a lizard, so, before the sweet doors of yellow whoopee give cries of immediate lactation, three spare wheels must die in the most stoutly cereal that ever forded a sea lemon. The cheese shan't endeavor to nettle my clockwise hammer, for you slake to become one of a brotherhood of goblin egg spankers. Just so I can pestle my longitude, very small shimmers do not grabble against the floorboards that I cannot yolk. Be they a Stalfos consigned to whacking a loogie with a bra, I spackle twenty folds of bananas to drill beyond the green of spunk. Rah rah rah."

All four present that were capable of speaking the Hylian language were understandably surprised. After a long silence, Dholit asked, "Did… we just witness Sello have a sobeh moment?"

Sello dropped his hand and put on a stupid grin. "I win," he told them.

"Ladies Above, I _hope_ not," Leynne replied. "He makes moh sense _when_ he's drunk."

Link shook his head. "What about _you two_?" he snapped, pointing at Leynne and Dubbl.

"Misunde'standing," Dubbl said, raising her hands in innocence. Link eyed the mallet still in her hands until she realized that she still held it. She threw it over her shoulder, leaving it to bash against the cutter's deck somewhere. "Big, _big_ misunde'standing."

"Wasn't placing you two on different shifts enough?" Link asked.

Dubbl shared a confused look with Leynne. Then Leynne said, "Wait. You… You thought we weh _fighting_ again?"

"You weren't?"

Both of them sighed in relief. "No, no, that wasn't it," Leynne said. "I mean, maybe it was the end result, but the story behind it is fah less antagonistic."

Link crossed his arms. "I'm listening," he said, not aware that Dholit, followed by a curious Layna and Biluf, had mimicked the pose behind his back.

"Well, this was afteh we flipped the boat oveh," Leynne explained. "Dubbl and I weh discussing the idea of a collapsible mast so that the boat could be stohed again without concehn foh damage to the mast from the _Island Symphony_'s regulah transit through the Sky Lines. What we had not realized was that _Sello_ was trapped between the sail and the hull while we weh talking. When we finally noticed, we cut him out.

"Well, Sello reached out and…" Leynne trailed off and glanced aside at Dubbl. In response, Dubbl crossed her arms as if to protect her chest and spun on her heel to face away from Link. "Well… ah, he-he grabbed Dubbl. She picked up the nearest thing and struck Sello across the head—I assuh you, she was only defending hehself. Both stahted to get unruly, so I tried to stop Dubbl since Sello had gotten himself tangled in the sail." He shrugged. "Sohry foh the noise. I imagine you'h angry because we woke you up."

"I'm a tuna fork," Sello added, nodding his head.

Link pointed to his own right eye. "And the black eye?" he asked.

"Do I have one?" Leynne asked, feeling around his right eye. "Oh. It feels like I do. Don't wohry; it's completely unrelated. I was looking through some of the items Sello had laid out, and something—I think it was a metal ball of sohts—it hit me in the face."

"My liver," Sello said.

"Lohakwan," Dubbl hissed at him in annoyance.

"Is that what happened, Dubbl?" Link asked.

Dubbl turned around. "I not hit Leynne," she asserted. "I hit dlunk stubid man."

Link sighed and shook his head. "Look…" he said. "Guys, just remember that my cabin's right under you, okay? I'm letting it slide _for now_. But the next time a ruckus like this starts, the people involved, innocent or not, are going _straight_ to Dholit."

Dubbl's eyes widened. "Y-yes, Kyabtin," she said.

Leynne caught the evil glee in Dholit's smile and told Link, maintaining an even tone, "Undehstood."

…

~~Day 86 (Command, Day 49)

~~My crew seems to be developing new ways of bothering each other as we continue on. It's a wonder no one's died on this ship yet.

~~We're still running on the engine toward Bold Island. This is probably one of the few times we'll ever need to rely on Sello's engine alone, so it'll be interesting to see how it actually moves the ship.

~~Speaking of Sello's engine, it appears he managed to build and fit an engine into the cutter (which, in keeping with the ship's name, we've renamed the Conductor because no one can remember its first name) in just two days. It looks impressive, but neither Leynne nor I can figure out how it's supposed to work. I decided to wait until we reach Bold Island before trying it; I'd rather not have an incident on our hands without there being a large island for us to crash onto if we need it. Leynne has managed to put most of the mounting frame for the technoworks-based ballast system in place. Once he finishes it in the morning, Irleen says that she might be able to help us waken the technoworks and figure out how to control them. Leynne said his plan involves using sliding shutters to expose the technoworks blocks so that they can take in what they need from Goron poop.

~~That last sentence is going to stick with me for a while.

…

"Can you heah it?" Leynne asked as he slowly pulled backwards on the lever.

The boat's response was a low, subtle grind from somewhere under the _Conductor_'s weather deck, a sound probably only audible for as long as the boat was under the deck. Link nodded. "Yeah," he replied. "That's the shutters?"

"Yeah," Leynne replied. "What do you think?"

Link nodded. "You think that's useful for telling whether the shutters are working right or not?"

"It'll have to be. I used metal wiring to get all three shuttehs to respond as one. I would've prefehred to use something moh rigid, but Sello's 'engine' got in the way."

"The engine?" Link asked. "Where is it?"

Leynne stepped backwards to the boat's transom and pointed out on either side. "From what I've found, the engine takes up almost three-quahtehs of the reah half. He also has some kind of structuring pieces in the front." He indicated the stairs down into the deckhouse. "I couldn't even get below the deck. I had to cut a hole in the bow just so I could install the fohwahd shutteh."

"So you _did_ decide to use only three."

"I didn't have much choice. I couldn't access eitheh side of the bow thanks to _Ding-Dong_, so the next best thing I could figuh out was placing one central to the fah end of the bow. I can only hope that, once we place the technowohks inside, the engine is heavy enough to offset the difference in lifting fohce. Othehwise, we've only made a stupidly-elaborate catapult." Then he shrugged. "Although, considering Sello, I'm suhprised we haven't already."

Link nodded. "It'll work," he said. "Somehow… it just feels right."

"Oi, Cap'n," Lawrence asked as his head popped up from behind the transom. "Yah noticed this 'ole down 'ere?"

Link turned around. "Hole? What hole?"

Lawrence tapped something on the transom, creating a thin, metallic sound. "Righ' 'ere."

Link placed his hands on the transom and looked over the side as Leynne said, "Paht of Sello's wohk, ostensibly. Theh's similah structural modifications to the fohwahd end as well, though I can't imagine why. If anything, the hull is compromised and no longeh appropriately smooth."

"Well, I don' think this boa'll be seein' any lakes, Chief," Lawrence said.

"You don't know much about physics and laws of motion, do you, Misteh Lawrence?" Leynne asked as Link gestured to Dubbl.

"Doub' if I could even _spell_ tha' firs' word," Lawrence replied. He chuckled. "Tha' second one sounds like somethin' yah experience in _bed_."

"You have _got_ to be kidding," Irleen said as she rose from the deck below. "Are you taking entendre classes from _Dholit_?"

"Nope," Lawrence said with a grunt as he hauled one of the technoworks cubes onto the transom. "No, tha' was all me."

"Oh, great…"

"Are you about ready for a performance?" Link asked her with a grin.

"Link!"

Link blinked at her, his smile fading. "What? What'd I say?"

"Huh? Oh…" She slowly descended before bouncing up to eye-level with Link. "Sorry, forgot who I was talking to. Yeah, I think I can do this. As long as we aren't doing it in the middle of the night."

Link gave an exhausted sigh. "I said I was _sorry_…"

Leynne took the block from Lawrence and examined it. "This is almost clean," he remarked. "How'd you get the rock off?"

"Helo made a snack o' i'," Lawrence said. "We knew yah'd need 'em clean, so 'e wen' a' 'em."

"He didn't bite into any of the _technoworks_, did he?" Irleen asked, sounding alarmed.

"I think the technoworks turning _red_ would've surprised him," Link commented.

"Well, they didn'," Lawrence said as he hauled another one onto the transom. "Ate righ' 'round 'em." He rested his arms on the transom for a moment. "Since I'm talkin' t' yah both, I go' a question. Anyone find a crate o' Chief Din'-Don's booze?"

Link exchanged a look with Leynne. "I beg youh pahdon?" Leynne asked Lawrence.

"The chief. Sello. One o' 'is crates is missin'. I noticed i' this mornin'."

"When did it go missing?" Link asked.

"I don' know," Lawrence said with a shrug. "I stepped ou' t' visi' the 'ead, an' when I go' back, one was missin'."

Leynne placed the second block on top of the first. "Has Sello said anything?" he asked. Lawrence shook his head. "Well, I know we bought him a few different varieties. What went missing?"

"Dunno," Lawrence said before he turned around to accept another cube from Dubbl. He nearly dropped it over the transom, forcing Link to catch it before it fell on his foot. "Sorry, Cap'n. All I know is i' wasn' even open."

"Foh all we know," Leynne said as Link passed him the third cube, "that idiot found somewheh to hide it all. My best guess would be the generatoh room. It isn't exactly a high-traffic area."

Link snapped his fingers. "Maybe _that's_ why Sello cut open the front of the hull," he said. "Maybe part of his engine uses a wind generator."

_Tunk._ "Ow! Damn…" Leynne growled as he stepped away from the boat's wheel.

"Yah okay there, Chief?" Lawrence asked.

Leynne huffed and rubbed his knee. "I hit this damn handle. I've been striking my knee against it all mohning. The damn thing's locked in place." He turned and glanced down at a T-shaped handle protruding from a round, metal plate crudely nailed into the side of the pilot's station. The handle was made of polished wood (which looked like it came from the top of someone's walking cane) with a metal button protruding from one end. "I'd break it off foh tuhning my knee into _powdeh_ if I knew what it did."

"Hey, Dubbl," Link called over the side. "Hold onto that fourth one; we might not be needing it."

"Yes, Kyabtin," Dubbl replied.

"Misteh Lawrence, theh ah a numbeh of tools and spah pahts down on this side," Leynne said, pointing to the port corner of the boat. "They'h in a bag. Would you retrieve them foh me?"

"Sure, Chief," Lawrence said, already descending.

"What's that for?" Link asked.

"I didn't anticipate the rock missing," Leynne responded as he stepped around the pilot's station. "I need to make some adjustments so the technowohks can fit; I didn't know Misteh Helo was going to _eat_ the rock. Shall I wait foh you to activate them befoh installation?"

"Only if you want to fly up after it," Irleen replied.

"Chahming," Leynne said with a sneer. He had to double back to retrieve a large, leather bag from Lawrence, which forced him to tuck the technoworks block under one arm. "I'll be a moment." He stepped around the deckhouse and strode to the bow.

Link glanced around at the deck. "Are you sure the music from the blues harp will make it to all three blocks at the same time?" he asked Irleen.

"I couldn't see why not," Irleen replied. "If you're so worried about it, you could probably try playing under the deck."

Link shrugged. "We'll see."

Link, Lawrence, and Irleen chatted for a while as Leynne mounted the technoworks under the _Conductor_'s deck. Then, when it came time to turn them on, Irleen read the blues harp as she had done before. Her directions were interesting: while Link was playing, Leynne had to stand in the pilot's station and hold the shutters' control lever to the close position until he was signaled. Then Leynne had to shift the lever to its full-open position, wait for another signal, and then push the lever back to closed. Link decided to stand at the top of the blocked-off deckhouse, hoping that the position would ensure that all three blocks could hear him. After he played the note to wake the technoworks up, he waited until Lawrence and Dubbl checked that all of the blocks had responded. Amazingly enough, all three were responding, so Link began.

The piece Link played sounded like a soft tune until Irleen told him to pause before beginning the second part. After Leynne had opened the shutters, she told him to play the next part, which lit up on the instrument's emeralds. Link was a little surprised by the faster pace of the second part, especially when it came to the end where he had to jump between two notes rapidly. He had to play it twice before the blues harp gave him the third part, at which Irleen told Leynne to return the shutters to their closed positions. The final piece also showed up on the emeralds and was not as difficult to play.

At the end, the emeralds stopped glowing. "Okay," Irleen said. "Now we get to see if it works."

"Leynne?" Link said as he turned and stepped back behind the pilot's station.

"Okay," Leynne called out. "Loosen the lines; we'll take this slowly."

The boat shifted slightly when the ropes holding it to the deck slacked a bit. Leynne then slowly pulled back on the control lever. At first, it seemed like nothing was going to happen. Link started glancing around, wondering if the boat would tip over and fall before it got off the deck. Then the boat shifted again, and Link flung his arms out to help keep his balance. He watched the back of the cabin as the ship steadily rose until Link was looking at the poop deck from one side. As well as Cale's shoes.

Link looked up to find Cale's astonished face watching him. Link grinned and said, "It flies."

…

~~Day 87 (Command, Day 50)

~~The Conductor flies. And now that we know that it can fly on the technoworks, Dubbl and Leynne are going to fit it with a short sail so that it can be turned. We haven't tried using Sello's engine yet, and, really, I'm a little afraid to. We still don't know what kind of engine he made for it, but I have this strange feeling that it's something we've never dealt with before. Which seems appropriate enough; that was the same problem we had with Sello.

~~We're still moving on the engine, but, if the estimated distance between South Sand Island and Bold Island is correct, we could be there by tomorrow evening at the earliest. We should still have fuel to keep the ship aloft even if we can't refuel at Bold Island, and, if it comes to it, we should be able to return to South Sand Island to get some more if we can't get the Sky Lines back.

~~I'd like to think that I'm prepared for whatever we find on Bold Island. Irleen knows what Cunimincus sent there, and we know how to control the technoworks. Nothing can surprise me.

…

_Ban ban ban!_

"Ūuuuuuh," Irleen groaned. Then, when she woke up enough, she snapped loud enough to startle Link, "Tān nūc háta!?"

"Yah!" Link shouted, scrambling to throw off his sheets. "What!? What's going on!?"

"Kīt hì cìnupa!" Irleen shouted.

"Captain, it's Dholit," a female voice said from beyond the cabin door.

Link could hear the urgency in her voice and stood up from the bed. "What is it? Is something wrong?" he called. "Is it trouble?"

"Well, not quite," she replied. "But… you should come out heah and see this."

Link was already pulling his trousers on, which allowed Irleen to ask clearly, "What did she say?"

"She needs me to look at something," he replied. He paused to pull his shirt on. "It sounded important."

"It was Dholit, wasn't it?" Irleen asked. "Because I'm gonna be even madder if she's in heat."

"I don't think it's anything like that," Link said as he pulled on his boots. "I'll be right back."

Link stepped out into an early morning with the sun hidden somewhere beyond the port side of the ship, casting the sky a golden color from his left. Dholit, wordless, led him across the deck with a brisk pace. Link could not immediately see anything which would cause a problem. But as he started thinking a little clearer, he realized that he was following Dholit. "Dholit, isn't it early for you to be on-duty?" he asked.

"I was planning to sneak into youh bed when Lwamm called attention to me," she replied over her shoulder.

"You were _what_?" Link asked, waking into surprise as they stepped up onto the forecastle.

"A'oy, Cap'n," Gold greeted him, although it was without the jovial tone he preferred to use.

"What's going on?" Link asked him.

"Well, we're 'ere," Gold said, indicating the bow with a hand. "And the Gelto are spooked."

"Kyabtin," Dubbl said as she approached him from the bow. She handed Link a duoscope. "You look. Please."

Link's glance went from Dubbl to Gold to Dholit. Then he accepted the duoscope and stepped around Dubbl. When he descended onto the beakhead, he saw Lwamm already lying on the net connected to the bowsprit. He got to his knees and crawled out onto the opposite side.

The movement caused Lwamm to look up and over the bowsprit at him. "Nway naddhoysonak 'inoy, Kyabtin," she told him, her voice sounding grave.

After glancing at her, Link looked through the net. The island was closer than he had expected, close enough that he could see vessels in the air around the port. At first, he thought the crew's uneasiness was caused by the blockade, which Link had been expecting and had even warned most of the deck crew about. Still, he felt it a good idea to look around anyway and put the duoscope over his eyes. As expected, none of the vessels around the island or pulled in the port sported black flags. It kept with what Cale and Lilly had told him about the port turning Skyrider ships away, although he did not necessarily doubt that the Skyriders would not try to disguise themselves to get by. Just to keep himself busy, he looked across the island for signs of a group wearing black tunics, a laughable thought since even the duoscope could not see that far.

Then he felt his heart slam into his chest, and his spine crawled. One thing Link had never seen until waking in Whittleton was a dead tree. But even from here, he recognized the twisted, graying forms of leafless trees in between some of the buildings. His eyes fell over the eastern edge of the island, where he had seen forests growing. Grey was all his eyes met. The whole island, save for a few spots of color in the town itself, had dyed itself drab and uninviting. He saw more streets than people wandering about, almost as if the island had been abandoned, and he was not sure it was the early hours of the morning which had caused the island to look like that. His gut told him that more had happened here.

He was prepared to repair the technoworks if he needed. But he was _not_ prepared to see a dying island.


	97. Anything That Doesn't Wanna Kill Me?

Chapter 97: Is There Anything That Doesn't Wanna Kill Me?

…

"Ahoy there!"

Leynne glanced to port as a four-masted schooner slowly crept alongside the _Island Symphony_. He crossed the quarterdeck to meet a thick-set man wearing a white duster over a sky-blue shirt and black slacks. Leynne winced at the spot of sunlight that reflected off his smooth head. Then he looked down the deck of the schooner to see just a few men wandering about, probably on their regular watch. He was amazed to find how drastic a difference there was between an actual vessel's crew and the _Island Symphony_'s meager crew; the deck crew alone outnumbered everyone on the _Island Symphony_.

Not that he was worried; Leynne was certain just one on the current shift could kill them all in an instant.

Leynne raised his hand and hollered back, "Hello theh!"

The man on the aftcastle of the other ship spoke a word to a husky man manning the helm before he approached the bulwark. "You folks all right?" he called to Leynne.

"Yeah," Leynne replied. "Yeah, we'h all fine."

"You in charge?"

Leynne was cautious to glance down with just his eyes at Link, who was hidden behind the bulwark right in front of him. Link gave him a thumb-up gesture, and Leynne responded, "Yeah."

"You guys didn't run outta fuel or anything, did you?" the other captain asked.

Leynne shook his head. "No. I just… lost myself in a moment of deliberation. We could use the supply, though. Ah ships allowed to dock heh?"

The captain turned his head in a gesture of uncertainty. "Well, that kinda remains to be seen." He leaned on the bulwark of his ship. "We're trying to keep our eyes out for troublemakers; there's been quite an outbreak of them. Most of the port area's been abandoned anyway; you probably won't find your branch office out here."

Leynne pointed beyond the schooner. "We undehstand that theh's anotheh island neahby. What about docking theh?"

The other captain gave him a confused look and glanced over his shoulder. Then he grinned at Leynne and said, "You're not from around here, are you?"

"Well, if it should come up, I'm actually from the Forest Realm."

"The Forest Realm? You mean the _surface_?"

"Yes."

The other captain bowed and shook his head for a moment. When he looked back up, he was still grinning. "Sorry you had to come all this way."

Leynne's eyes flickered down to Link before he replied in a confused tone, "Ah you?"

"You probably picked the worst time to visit the sky here. But I don't wanna bore you with details…"

Leynne raised an inviting hand. "Boh away."

The other captain paused as one of his airmen approached him and spoke. The captain nodded at him before returning to addressing Leynne. "Well, there's been some big mistake made with one of the airship companies up here. Now they're going around hunting people. I'm sure you've bumped into them once or twice. Black flag, black uniforms?"

Leynne nodded. "I believe theh weh some people dressed like that back on Might Island. Who ah they looking foh?"

"Damned if we know anymore. Something about a kid wearing green, I think. That started over a month ago; I'm sure they've realized searching around for a kid wearing green is one of the dumbest things they could be looking for."

"It _does_ seem to be an unfohtunate description."

"He's supposed to be crew on an airship up here, but we've probably seen three or four of them in and out of here by now."

Leynne nodded toward Bold Island. "And the blockade?"

"We don't much like the guys in black or anyone who represents them. Mostly, they've been taking things that don't belong to them. We may not have many guns out there, but the princess is going to have to blow all of us out of the sky if they want to set foot out here. I know it sounds kinda stupid, but it's all we've got to work with right now."

"I'm cehtain drastic measuhs had to be taken," Leynne said with a nod. "How about _this_ vessel? Will you allow us to dock?"

"I can't really allow it," the captain said with an apologetic tone. "Look, I'm sure you and your crew are some really nice folks. But one of the problems we've been having is with stowaways. If you've been out as far as Might Island, I'm really not sure I should let you dock. No offense."

"That _would_ be my luck…" Link groaned to himself.

Leynne took in a breath to steel himself against laughing. "What about the otheh island?"

The captain glanced over his shoulder. "That's Remnant Island. I'm afraid you aren't going to find anything over there unless you're a nature lover. No one lives there, and most of it is covered in trees. There isn't even a dock. You'd probably have to tie up to a tree." The remark earned an annoyed sigh from Link, and Leynne could not avoid giving him a brief glance. "Sorry you had to come all this way, but we really don't wanna chance it."

Leynne scrunched up his face to feign thinking. "We have a launch aboahd," he called back. "Would you pehmit us to retrieve supplies with _that_?"

"You got the fuel for it?"

"We should."

The captain shrugged. "Okay, have at it. Just don't bring your ship too close; some of these guys are a little too eager to blow someone out of the sky."

"Noted. Thank you. We might be around foh the night."

"That's fine as long as we know where you are." He held up a hand. "Take care, Captain."

Leynne mirrored the gesture and replied, "You as well."

The captain returned to the helmsman and spoke to him. Leynne watched as the ship started forward and lowered altitude to return to its blockade position around Bold Island. Careful to make it look like he was still observing the vessel, he leaned on the bulwark and said to Link, "How was that?"

"Are you _sure_ you don't wanna be second-in-command?" Link replied with a grin.

Leynne maintained a straight face as he replied, "I'd like to command as much as I'd like to place a live Bari in my trousehs." He looked over the island and commented, "It looks as if they have ships positioned to stop vessels from a direct approach. But theh ah very few vessels directly oveh the island."

"I imagine the population wouldn't like airship crews cleaning their heads over the island," Link commented.

"Yes, of couhse." Leynne craned his neck until the other ship had opened enough distance to lose sight of the _Island Symphony_'s weather deck. Then he stepped back and looked directly at Link. "So you will be taking the launch afteh all."

Link sat up and nodded. "Good thing you guys got it finished before we got here," he said. "I'd hate to have to go around, especially since we _definitely_ know Cunimincus' men are here."

"They seemed to have greatly affected the island this time," Leynne said, nodding in agreement. "It's a wondeh it's still floating."

"And we need to do something _while_ it's still floating," Link said as he stood up.

"You _do_ realize that, if we ahn't allowed to approach the island, theh won't be any quick escape."

"I'm not worried. If people wearing green are a Rupee each out here, no one's gonna care if another one shows up." He paused to take in a deep breath. "I'm gonna check on the _Conductor_'s supplies. Could you have Cale and Lilly join me?"

"Of couhse." Leynne turned to go, and then he stopped in the middle of his first step and turned back to Link. "And Layna?"

"Hmm? What about her?"

"I thought she was youh protection on these excuhsions. Do you want me to retrieve heh as well?"

"You don't need to," Link replied. He pointed to the nearer of the two staircases leading up to the poop deck and explained, "She's hiding behind those stairs; it was probably the best place to spy on me from, if not up on the poop deck. Watch." Both of them turned to the staircase, and Link said to it, "Layna. You can come on out now." But they noticed a distinct lack of movement. Leynne even leaned aside to peer around the stairs. "Layna?" Link asked.

"I don't think she's theh," Leynne commented.

Link spoke as he turned, "Maybe she st—YIKES!"

…

After checking that the _Conductor_ had the appropriate lines and inspected the mast, he returned to his cabin to change into his new tunic and gather his equipment. When he returned with Irleen under his hat, Leynne was waiting in the boat deck with Cale and Lilly. Link had to call Layna (and subsequently yell in surprise) to make sure she got on the boat with them. He checked the wheel and found that Leynne and Dubbl had connected the running rigging of a short, lateen-rigged sail which almost spanned the length of the boat to the wheel. The arrangement limited the angle that the sail could turn, but Leynne explained that, since the boat would probably use the engine more, he and Dubbl had decided to fit it with a basic steering mechanism and put together a more appropriate mast and sail arrangement when Sello was _not_ hoarding the materials.

"Okay," Link said to the crew gathered on the deck. "Anyone not going to Bold Island had better get off here."

"Good luck, you fouh," Leynne said as he started down the ladder. "Remembeh, if you get into trouble, we'll have eyes on the island."

"I'm… still not suah I undahstand why I'm coming along," Cale told Link.

"Not that you're complainin', right?" Lilly teased him.

"I-I-I-I-I—"

"I prefer both of you to work together," Link explained. "Both of you are good with finding things, and, if you're together, you can keep an eye on each other."

"Along with a few other things," Irleen said, peeking out from under Link's cap.

Lilly shot her a smug look. "Well, as long as we're tryin'na keep each other safe," she said, causing Cale's face to flush, "we should keep any part of our anatomy on each other, right?"

Link glared at her, and then he turned his look up at his brow. "What, are you two taking notes from Dholit now?" he asked.

"Who are _you_ kidding?" Irleen asked. "You can't tell she's being smutty even if she took all her clothes off."

"Ah you _suh_ you don't want someone _oldeh_ around?" Leynne, with his head still above the transom, asked.

"We'll be fine," Link said, giving him a dismissive wave. Leynne shrugged to himself and descended the ladder. "Cale, I want you to go to the bow and keep an eye on it. Make sure we don't get it caught under the deck. Lilly, I need you to do the same along the transom here."

"Okay," Lilly replied while Cale started across the deck.

Link stepped into the pilot's position and started to slowly tug back on the ballast control. If all had gone right, the technoworks cubes should still respond to the lever's motion. Link pulled it back past the halfway point and held his breath. Then the boat rocked as it lifted from its supports, and Layna, standing just in front of the pilot's station, decided to round the wheel so she could stand closer to Link. Link looked up at the deckhead around the boat and carefully put more into the ballast control until they were nearly out.

"Captain, we're aboudda hit back here," Lilly spoke up.

Link glanced over his shoulder. "Just push us forward a little," he told her.

She turned to give him a confused look. "Push us?"

"Yeah, just put your hand out and push. The ship's so light that even _Irleen_ could push us."

"Wow," she said to him. "Now _there's_ an image."

Lilly gave the deck a little push, and the _Conductor_ shifted forward a bit. Then the _Conductor_ released a _thunk_ when the bow struck the deck in front of it. "Yikes!" Cale shouted, pulling one of his hands away from the hull despite not being in any sort of danger. The bow, being lighter, had already protruded from _Island Symphony_'s poop deck. Twali, standing at watch, gave the boat a quick wave before she went back to watching the horizon with the duoscope.

"Come on back, Cale," Link called. Then he said over his shoulder, "Lilly, I want you and Cale right in front of me here, behind the deckhouse. I don't know what this engine is going to do."

"Okay, Captain," Lilly replied. "Layna?" She waved an inviting hand to Layna, who stepped around Link to join them behind the deckhouse.

Link then remembered his hat and pulled it off. "What are you doing?" Irleen asked as Link tucked the hat into one of his belts.

"I don't want to run the engine with my hat on," Link told her. "I might lose it." He patted his chest. "Why don't you duck into my tunic for now? Just so we don't have to worry about losing you, too."

"Okay," Irleen replied. She dove into the neckline of his tunic, and he could feel her crawl onto his shoulder. "Ready."

Link sighed and put his hand on the engine control in the side of the small pit they had fitted for the boat's pilot. "Here we go," he told himself. He depressed the button on the top and eased the control forward. He found the control to be a little light compared to other throttle levers he had used before, and he questioned whether it was actually connected or not. He glanced around for a moment, but being above the _Island Symphony_ did not give him a clear idea if they were moving or not. About then was when he noticed an odd member on the control handle; it felt like a small, thick plate had been placed right where his knuckles were. He squeezed this protrusion, wondering if maybe he had forgotten a step to using this engine. It would make sense; Sello had not offered _any_ sort of instruction.

The deck planks under his boots gave a shudder unlike Link had ever felt out of a vessel. Then there was a rumble, like an explosion that, for some reason, was traveling in slow motion. Link was not the only one to hear it; all three of his crew were looking down at the deck in confusion. The sound continued to get louder.

"Link, what's going on?" Irleen called out.

"I, uh… I don't know," Link replied.

And then he felt wind on his face. And it became stronger. And stronger. Link closed off some of the ballast and looked over his shoulder to see the _Island Symphony_ shrinking.

"Uh… L-Link!?" Cale's call prompted Link to return his eyes forward. And he saw the problem. They were approaching Bold Island and the crowd of ships blockading it.

And the _Conductor_ was still accelerating.

Link soon found both of his hands locked in desperation on the wheel. Cale, Layna, and Lilly were hunched lower to the deck as the rush of oncoming air threatened to lift them off the boat. Link tried to angle his elbow so that he could knock back the throttle control to a safer level, but he could not move it without something pressing down on the control's lock button. So he hooked his right foot on the ballast control and tugged it forward a bit, hoping to put them at a safer altitude.

To their utter horror, this succeeded in dropping them into a collision course with a galleon wandering the air some distance away from the island.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Link's own voice was lost to the sound of three screaming girls (one of which had to have been Irleen due to the ear-splitting sound). He planted his feet as best as he could into the deck and turned to starboard. The boat responded quite well, and the _Conductor_ soared past the galleon's prow so close that Link thought he could hear the airmen on board shouting.

"Cale!" Link attempted to shout over the wind. He turned the boat back toward the island. "Cale!" It was no use. The wind was too strong, and Cale was pressed flat against the deck with Lilly and Layna. Worse, because Link was still standing, the wind was trying to push him backwards despite the wall in front of the wheel. His boots slid against the deck. He had to adjust his stance. His eyes were on the wheel in front of him; any attempt to look up caused his eyes to itch horribly, and his brow was the only thing keeping him from tearing up.

The speed became great enough that the bow rose, blocking the wind for Link. But this left Link unable to see and in a very likely position to slip and fall over the transom. He did not dare let go of the wheel like this. So he decided to give the wheel a sharp turn to starboard in the hope that it would kill some speed and buy him a moment to grab for the engine control.

This was, perhaps, a dumb idea. The bow shifted hard to starboard, and Link's feet slipped from under him when he attempted to save himself from bashing against the port wall of the pilot's station. He cried out, thinking he was going straight over the stern. Fortunately, this provided him with the motivation to keep a death grip on the wheel's spokes. His knees hit the deck, and then his feet were pinned to the port due to the boat being locked in a starboard turn. Awkward though it was, Link saw an opportunity and, looking down at the wall, started kicking his feet around in order to get at the throttle control.

"What's going on!?" Irleen screamed from inside Link's tunic.

Link could not respond; he was too busy trying to twist his foot and get his right calf on top of the control handle. He succeeded, and, by virtue of skinny legs, pressed down on the locking button. Then, after shifting his weight to his left leg, he brought up his right leg and stomped on the control.

The boat's speed almost immediately dropped, and the hull fell level again. The effect was pronounced enough that Link was flung into the wheel's pedestal face-first before he was allowed to fall to the deck.

"Link!?" Irleen shouted. "Link!" Link managed a groan as he kept himself perfectly still. "Link, are you all right!?"

"I really hope not…" Link answered.

"What the hell happened!?"

"Mmmm… Sello…"

"Link!" Cale shouted, his voice sounding more high-pitched than his usual tone. Link could hear and feel Cale run up to the pilot's station. "Ah you all right!?"

"Yeah, sure…" Link said. He turned his face to one side so that he could wipe one hand under his nose. He found his nose was bleeding, but he just placed his hand back on the deck. "I'm… I'm just going to lie here for a moment…"

"Captain," Lilly spoke up. "There's a ship movin' toward us."

"Oh, no," Cale uttered. Then he asked Link, "What should we do?"

"Tell them the truth," Link answered. "We were trying to use an engine made by a drunken lunatic." Then, after he thought for a moment, he added, "And it almost killed us."

"Could we ask foh a lift to the island?" Cale asked in a timid voice. "I… I don't think we ought to be riding this boat anymoah."

"I think I know what went wrong," Link said. "Hey, Lilly? Could you go check the deckhouse? I need something for this nosebleed."

"Aye aye," Lilly replied.

"Ahoy there!" someone hollered. "You fellas okay?"

Link slowly climbed back to his feet, using the wheel's pedestal to keep himself steady. When his head was finally above the walls around the pilot's station, he saw that a small schooner had heaved-to next to them. The person addressing them was a man standing on the main deck. Cale, standing nearby, stammered silently and glanced over at Link for help. Link sighed and called back, "We're okay." He immediately regretted it, as the shouting made his head pound.

"What the hell you boys got under that thing?" the man asked, sounding on the verge of laughing. "You were just _flying_ _away_!"

"Cale," Link said in a low voice, crossing his arms and leaning them on top of the wall. "Tell them it's an experimental engine; I-I can't stand to shout right now."

"Right," Cale said with a nod. Then he hollered to the ship, "It's a—It's an experimental engine."

"No kidding?" the man replied. "That's some engine. It's a wonder your boat's still _intact_! You look like you got a busted nose there, son. You need a medic or something?"

"Tell him I'll be fine," Link said.

"He will be fine," Cale repeated to the schooner.

"You boys want a tow or anything?" the man asked.

"That sounds like a good idea," Cale told Link.

"Well, how far are we from the island?" Link asked.

"We, uh… we—" Cale started looking around, suddenly aware that the island was nowhere in sight. So he called out, "Excuse me, but wheah is the island?"

"Son, you're right above it, on the northern edge," the man replied, pointing down with his thumb.

"The northern edge?" Link asked. He stumbled out of the pilot's station and over to the transom. He looked over the edge to find that there were buildings underneath the _Conductor_. After he had his bearings again, he glanced up and to port to see a lone vessel floating outside the blockading airships. "Oh… whoa…"

"Captain?" Lilly asked. Link turned to find her handing over a brown towel. "I'm sorry, it's all I could find."

"That's fine," Link said as he accepted the towel. "That'll do." He unfolded part of the towel and pressed it under his nose. "Is Layna all right? Are _you two_ all right?"

"We're okay," Lilly said with a nod. "But… I-I think the trip scared Layna; she won't come out of the deckhouse."

Link nodded, stepped back to the pilot's station, and told Cale, "Tell them we'll be moving on our own, but we'll signal if we need help."

…

Link spent a few minutes waiting for his nosebleed to stop. Then he cleaned up his blood as best as he could and got the _Conductor_ moving again. This second attempt saw much more success now that Link knew that the odd control built into the handle of the throttle was probably some sort of switch to start the engine, a type of control he had never encountered before. He could not get the engine to start without moving the throttle, but he found that, if he only placed a bit of power into the engine, the engine would start and softly coast the boat the way he wanted it to. The _Conductor_ still wanted to move at a pace faster than Link had ever handled before, so he still had to provide some quick input to the controls to keep them from crashing into the docks as he pulled the boat in.

After they moored the boat, Link told Lilly and Cale to go do what the needed to find the king and queen and return to the _Conductor_ once they had what they needed. Meanwhile, Link planned to take Irleen and Layna and look around the island for the entrance into the technoworks. Since it might take him longer to carry out repairs to the technoworks, he told Lilly and Cale to stay with the _Conductor_ and wait for him.

Link's first destination was a patch of bare earth on the south side of the island just behind the port area. He knew that it at one time had been a park, and he explained as much to Irleen. There was no grass on the ground, and the couple of trees in the middle of the park were bare of leaves or any sort of green. Irleen took a moment to fly around.

When she returned, Link asked, "So, what do you think?"

"I'm not sure what to say," she answered, hovering at eye-level with him. "It's nothing I've ever seen before."

"You mentioned that the technoworks provides soil as a part of their feeding," he said. "Could this all be because the technoworks aren't feeding anymore?"

"If the technoworks stopped feeding, they would either be dormant or dead. Either way, this island wouldn't _be_ here anymore. It seems more like the technoworks just won't let anything grow."

"Any idea what would cause that?"

Irleen sighed. "Not really. I mean, sure, _someone_'s been messing with the technoworks, but I can't decide what or how they're doing it. As far as we've seen, Cunimincus' men just like to break things. If there _are_ Geozards here, they must have someone smart with them."

Link nodded. "Okay, so… where do you think we should start looking?"

"For the technoworks? Probably in a similar area to where we found the Sagacity Technoworks."

"Weeell…" Link replied, looking uncomfortable. "You see, I don't think it's going to work out the same. The east side of the island is actually kinda flat. At best, maybe a few hills. The only rivers here run through the town. Their sources are somewhere in the center of the island, and a lot of the town is built around it."

"Okay, so we won't be finding the technoworks that way. Then we ask around. Geozards have to eat, too."

Link sighed and looked down at the ground as memories of the bone room back on Might Island surfaced. "Right…"

"Look, Link, I wouldn't worry about it too much. If I recall right, Geozards shouldn't be as carnivorous as the Lizalfos. And stupid, remember? The Hylians living here would be more likely to catch and fry one of _them_ instead of a Geozard eating a Hylian."

"I hope you're right," Link said as he looked around. "I think I know a place we can check: a tavern just this side of the port."

"What is it with you talking to people at _taverns_?"

"This way," Link told her as he started walking. "Airmen and dockers are some of the best people to talk to. They're good for getting some quick news, and sometimes they'll notice things other people wouldn't even _think_ about. And they like to talk over alcohol. If you try to catch them anywhere else, they'll either ignore you or threaten to snap your neck."

"Wooow," Irleen droned. "What wonderful people…"

Link could not remember the name of the Drop Anchor until he found it a few minutes later. Irleen decided to duck under Link's hat before Link went in and sat down at the bar. He had chosen a stool directly in front of the open doorway, figuring that Layna had a clear line of sight if trouble started. True to a tavern in the middle of the afternoon, only a couple of dockers and an airman were nursing drinks, none of them sitting anywhere near each other. Link noticed that someone had set up a cot along the wall to his right, but the occupant was hidden under some very thick blankets. Link thought it was strange that someone staying at a tavern was sleeping in the bar when the beds upstairs should have been much more comfortable. But he decided to let it go, seeing it as just a small inconsistency in the middle of a larger problem.

"What can I get for you, young man?" the bartender, a heavy-set woman wearing a simple shirt and trousers under an apron, asked him.

"Got anything without alcohol?" Link asked.

"Our stock in milk and juice is low this week," she responded. "The best I can get you is a watered-down beer."

"Well, you can keep the beer, and I'll have the water," Link said. "I'm mostly thirsty."

"I'm surprised you didn't ask what happened to the stock," she commented as she produced a glass and a pitcher.

Link shrugged. "Well, between the Sky Lines and the way the island looks, I can imagine that you just ran out."

She gave him a half-grin. "Clever boy," she said. "So what's your deal? Bounty hunter? Sword-for-hire?"

"Uh… something like that," Link replied after taking a drink. "I'm… kind of a wanderer right now."

"A little young for that sort of thing, aren't you?"

Link gave her a confused look. "Uh… how old _should_ I be?"

"You should at _least_ be fourteen."

Link paused to think about it. "Uuuh… but I _am_ fourteen."

"Are you?" She leaned on the bar to look down on Link. "A little short for fourteen, aren't you?" This prompted an annoyed look from Link, and she chuckled at him. "I'm kidding, boy. Where are you coming from?"

"A two-week trip from West Iron Island."

"West Iron, huh? What were you doing there?"

"Following something. Which reminds me. I don't suppose you've heard anything about a group of crates coming up this way."

The bartender shrugged. "There're so few ships docking lately that the dockers have to complain about _something_."

"It would have been a shipment of four crates. With so many warning labels on it that it's hard to tell what's really supposed to be in them."

She scrunched her lips as she thought. "No, it doesn't sound familiar. Why are you looking for them?"

"The, uh, dockmaster on Autumn Island noticed the shipment was missing without any orders, so we're trying to find out where all the crates went."

She gave him a skeptical look. "This is what a sword-for-hire does nowadays?"

Link shrugged. "It's a living."

"Kind of a lousy one," she pointed out as she turned to rearrange bottles on the shelves behind her. "What about the Sky Lines? Doesn't having them gone make it a difficult process?"

"I get by. Just because the Sky Lines are gone doesn't mean that ships don't travel from port to port."

"Maybe, but around here, it just doesn't happen."

"Yeah, I noticed the blockade. When did that go up?"

"Not long after the Sky Lines disappeared. Things were fine around here until the Skyriders started enforcing the princess's new shipping rules with cannons."

This news alarmed Link, and he blurted out, "They wouldn't blow another ship out of the sky!"

The bartender held up a hand to calm him. "Take it easy. Believe it or not, it _is_ possible to fire on a ship without sinking it. They did just that to a pair of Zephyr Sails ships. They didn't kill anyone, but since then, both the Zephyr Sails and the Fair Travelers companies have been keeping the port protected."

Link realized something and commented, "That's why we haven't seen either of their vessels around."

"Bold Island is the base of both companies. So when the Skyriders started bullying them, they fought back. Kinda."

Link bumped his nose with the rim of his glass as he went to take another drink. The touch sent a fresh bite of pain through his nose, but he shook it off and took another drink. Then he asked, "'Kinda'?"

"Well, not having the same resources as the Skyriders, the best they could do is threaten to shoot back at the Skyriders with the intention of sinking them. The ships armed with guns are mingled with the rest of the vessels around the island, so the Skyriders have no way of knowing whether they're being surrounded by ships with guns or just a big bluff."

"What about the rest of shipping? The ship I was on had to send me in a _launch_."

"I guess there's no telling when the Skyriders might try sneaking by. The dockers keep an eye on anyone who arrives in a launch, and I'm sure there are people watching you even in here."

"Uh oh," Irleen uttered under Link's hat.

Link glanced over his shoulder at the other patrons to find that the dockers were staring at him, their drinks forgotten. He turned back and said, "Right, I see what you mean."

"Can't be too careful lately," the bartender told him. She turned back to him and started. "Hey, are you all right?"

"Uh… a little surprised," Link confessed. "Why?"

"Because your nose is bleeding."

"Huh?"

She pointed at him. "Your nose is bleeding."

"My nose?" Link touched a finger under his nose and found a fresh drop of blood. "Oh, man, not again. Where's your washroom at?"

She nodded to the left. "Just at the end of the bar. Make sure you throw the towel in the basket when you're done."

"Yes, ma'am," Link replied as he slid off the stool. He hurried to the left side of the bar while the bartender turned to holler something at the person in the cot. Link did not catch anything else as he rounded a couple of corners and found the washroom. It was little more than a room with a tap into a large water barrel on the far side and a table set up against one wall. Link checked that there was water in the basin sitting on top of the table before he splashed water around his mouth. Then he picked up a small towel next to the basin and pressed it against his nose.

"Not really learning anything new, Link," Irleen said to him in a low voice. Link gave a slightly bemused chuckle and checked his nose. It seemed to have stopped quicker this time, so Link washed his face again and dried off with the clean half of the towel. He tossed the towel into the tall basket in the back corner as he had been asked, then he stepped over to it to take another towel from a nearby table. However, in lifting the towel off the pile, he accidentally pulled another towel off the stack and dropped it on the floor. Groaning, he bent over to pick it up.

_Clcka_. Link felt his heart pound on his ribcage upon realizing that someone behind him had just pulled back on the hammer of a pistol. Even worse, he felt the barrel press up against his back just as he stood up straight again. "Don't move." Link blinked, part of his fear set aside by confusion at the sound of the voice. It sounded like a young man (probably around his own age) trying to make his voice sound deeper. "Drop the towels."

"Okay," Link replied, letting both towels fall to the floor. "Okay, just take it easy…"

"Shut up," the young man responded, his voice cracking from his angry tone. "Do you think no one realizes that the Skyriders used to wear those tunics? Are you _seriously_ that dumb?"

"I happen to _like_ this color," Link replied, a little offended.

"You slimy, disgusting, son of a shitbox," he seethed, forgetting to disguise his voice. "How _dare_ you wear that tunic."

Something in Link's mind clicked. He could not believe it, but he actually found that he recognized that voice. It had been part of the excitement of his life as an airman for seven years. Keeping his hands up so that his captor did not feel the need to shot him, he turned around.

Line's face, covered in dirt and grime from who knew what, mirrored the look of astonishment on Link's own face.

"L-_Link_!?"


	98. Getting Acquainted Again

Chapter 98: Getting Acquainted Again

…

"Ever since we returned to the kingdom," Airman Flower said as he sat on the crate across from Link, "we've been trying to look for a way to expose the creature that's been posing as the princess. It hasn't been easy; once she ditched us at Autumn Island, she had a head-start on whatever plan that scaly commander cooked up."

Link nodded and glanced around the room again. He, Line, Flower, and Irleen were in an abandoned house not far from the tavern Link had met Line in. The windows had been boarded up; their only source of light was a thin beam from a skylight in the next room. Most of the house that Link had seen was full of crates of any size capable of fitting through the front door, and the back room they were meeting in appeared to be where they stashed some of the more important things. Among these were spare ship parts, pieces of muskets and pistols, and ammunition for both handheld weapons and ship guns. Not far from Link was an open box full of fuses. Dust covered most surfaces in the room, making Link dread having to dust himself off once he left; he would probably be lucky to not leave himself a larger mess brushing off his bottom.

"How'd she get away?" Link asked.

Line, sitting on the only chair in the room on Link's right, crossed his arms and let himself sit back so he could slouch. "After she got the names of all the large islands, she had those Stalarmor things shove us in a box and nailed us in," he said, his tone a little sulky. He gave his tangled, red hair a furious scratch. "It's not fun being boxed like that."

"What about the crates she was shipping Cunimincus' crew in?" Link asked. "If you were in a box, who put all the labels on?"

"All three of us did it," Flower said. He tugged at the tight collar of his blue docker jumpsuit. "Since they were the only crates we could find, we intended to make their lives hell."

"We told the fake princess that the largest islands were West Iron, Thicket, and Quiet Islands," Line continued. "We made the first set of shipping orders, and then she stole them and crated us."

"Dockers found us the next morning," Flower said. "She'd managed to overnight the monsters and disappeared herself. We didn't know where she'd gone until the Skyriders left Center Island; that's how far we'd managed to get, considering we didn't have the money to buy some decent passage."

"You were trying to get back to the Port?" Link asked.

Flower shrugged. "It was the best plan we had. We thought."

"When we ran out of the money to get a ride back to the Port," Line said, "we tried writing a few letters. Captain Alfonzo, a couple of ships Flower and Leonard knew about, we even tried… sending a couple to the home office. It was about two weeks before someone even replied, and that was completely useless."

Flower sighed. "By the time the home office replied, it was from one of the secretaries. She explained that all Skyrider vessels had just been drafted into service to the Crown. Well, right then and there, we knew we were in trouble. Not only did we have no way of getting off Center Island, we might've even told the fake princess where we were. Leonard stayed behind and got himself a job. He gave us the last of what he had, and both of us high-tailed it off Center Island aboard an independent vessel."

"Where is Leonard now?" Link asked.

"Still on Center Island. But…" Flower sighed. "He's had it. The last letter we got from him, he told us not to contact him anymore. He found himself a woman on the island, and he planned to settle down. Just as well, I suppose; that wasn't long before we got the port here closed off."

"Wait, _you_ guys put up the blockade?" Link asked.

Flower chuckled. "I wouldn't go _that_ far," he said. "But a whispered voice here, a little rumor there… The people here were already distressed from the disappearance of the Sky Lines. The fake princess's trying to change shipping and port policies pissed them off, so we managed to convince enough people that the Skyriders needed to be given the boot. It bought us some time to figure out how to storm the castle and toss the fake over a cliff."

Link could sense there was more, so he asked, "But?"

"Well, that's when the island started dying. People started taking smaller vessels out of here, and supplies started running low. With the Sky Lines gone, we weren't getting much in the way of trade ships, and no one really wants to conduct business if the port's closed. Add the fact that everyone is so paranoid that the Skyriders are gonna force their way in, and we've sorta just _doomed_ ourselves. The food's managed to hold out, but we're running out of fuel for ships and machines."

Link waved a finger around to indicate the crates around them. "What about all this stuff?"

"This?" Flower asked, patting a hand on the crate he was sitting on. "This is a storehouse those ships out there use to keep supplies. They didn't want to use the powder magazine at the port in case someone accidentally blew it to pieces."

Link glanced over at Line, who suddenly sat up and snapped, "One time! Just one time, and that was _years_ ago!"

"Why?" Flower asked, looking confused. "What happened?"

"He blew up a powder magazine on Castle Island," Link said.

"That wasn't _my_ fault!" Line argued.

"We know," Link replied. "But you _still_ blew it up."

"What about _you_, sir?" Flower asked.

Line shifted uncomfortably and added, "Yeah. Last we saw, you'd gotten shot down."

Link nodded. "Yeah, I lost the ballast."

"You-you _lost the ballast_!?" Line snapped. "Link, the ship _caught fire_! And it was flying_ apart_!"

Link grimaced. "Wow, I didn't realize it was _that_ bad…"

"You were right there!"

"Easy, Line, easy," Flower said. Then he turned to Link and asked, "So how'd you survive?"

"Well, we ran back to my cabin and got into my hammock. I thought it might help."

"'We'?" Line asked. "Who was with you?"

"Oh, right," Link mumbled. "You wouldn't know." Link removed his hat and said in a normal voice, "Irleen."

Irleen rose from Link's head, casting a bit more light into the room. Flower and Line gave a small start, and Flower stared wide-eyed at her. "You have a fairy with you?" Flower asked.

"No, I'm not a fairy," Irleen sighed.

"Irleen was with me when the _Island Sonata_ was shot down," Link said. "She had an accident with her magic, and she turned into a fairy."

"I don't get it," Line said. "Who is she?"

"Wait, you _forgot_ who I am!?" Irleen snapped.

"Wh—How should _I_ know!?" Line shouted back.

"Guys, take it easy," Link told them. "Line, this is that Sorian that was with me in the library. Remember? The one who…" He put on an annoyed look. "The one who hit me with the hammer."

"That was you?" Line asked, pointing at Irleen.

"Yep," Irleen replied.

"Oh." Then, without warning, Line broke into hysterical laughter. "I-I can't believe it!" he hollered in between fits. "Wha… what kind of weirdo makes a spell that changes them into a-a _fairy_!? Was being—Was being a bird too _hard_ for you!?"

Irleen snapped, "I'm gonna kick your ass!"

"With _what_!?" Line replied, doubling over and holding his stomach. "With your _dust_!?" He held up his hands and opened and closed his fingers while saying "Pyew pyew". Then he made a choking sound and grabbed his neck. "Ack! I died."

Link, Irleen, and Flower stared at him with annoyance in their narrowed eyes. After a moment while Line leaned back in his chair in an attempt to play dead, Link asked, "You done yet?"

Line chuckled for a moment while he still played dead. "Yeah. I'm done."

Link sighed. "Look, there's a little more to the story than that," he told Flower. "But, for now, we have work to do. Cunimincus' men are under this island right now, and we need to find out where they went."

"Wait, they're _under_ the island?" Line asked, raising his head.

"How?" Flower asked, also appearing a little surprised.

"It's called the technoworks," Irleen explained. "Inside each island is a living machine which controls the nearby Sky Lines, provides the surface with resources, and keeps the island floating. Cunimincus' men have been taking over the technoworks of the other islands and stopping the Sky Lines."

"They had Sagacity and Might Islands," Link said, "but we got them back. If we can find the entrance here, we should be able to restore the rest."

"Waaaait a minute, wait a minute," Line said, holding a hand up to stop him. He glanced over at Flower. "Are you believing any of this?"

Flower smirked at Link before telling Line, "With all _we_ seen?"

Line blinked at him. Then he stood up. "Okay, sounds legitimate. What do you need?"

"That was pretty quick to accept…" Irleen commented.

"Have there been any sort of disappearances or thefts around the island?" Link asked.

"Are you kidding?" Line asked, raising an eyebrow.

"In case you haven't noticed, sir," Flower said, "things here haven't been very friendly. Theft is all over the place. Disappearances, though… well, can't say _I_'ve heard anything."

"Not that this place was ever that friendly even when it _wasn't_ dying," Line remarked, dropping back into the chair. "Can you imagine what would happen to us if they ever found out that _we're_ Skyriders?"

Irleen sighed. "Well, _that_'s useless. Maybe we should just throw a Rupee over one shoulder and start where it lands."

"I don't have a Rupee on me," Link replied with a half-grin. Then he sighed. "I don't get it. Back on Might Island, the signs were _everywhere_. I thought you said that these Geozards are supposed to be stupid."

"They _are_ stupid," Irleen argued. "_I_ don't know; maybe they brought someone _smart_ with them!"

"Geozards," Line repeated. "Big, ugly-looking things, right? Smell like fish?"

"Yeah," Irleen answered.

"Well, why not check the rivers around here?" Line asked. "If they're fish, wouldn't they need a source of water?"

"Just because they're fish doesn't mean they're going to go for the first source of water they see," Irleen argued.

Flower cupped a hand around his chin. "Maybe not, but if they're fish, then using a source of water _would_ be to their advantage," he said. "Think about it. No one would look for anything traveling down a river or living in a reservoir around here. At night, you couldn't see _anything_ like that moving around."

"Are there any rivers that have a waterfall near them?" Irleen asked.

"I _told_ you there weren't," Link said.

"Well, what about a cave?" Flower asked.

"Huh?" Link asked at the same time Irleen inquired, "What cave?"

"There's a cave northwest of here," Flower explained. "The river goes through an area with a bunch of homes and then right over the edge."

"Yeah yeah," Line chimed. "I remember that cave; we were looking at stashing stuff there."

"The streets are built all around it," Flower continued. "The town put up a steel grate with a locked door over the entrance so kids don't wander in."

Link glanced up at Irleen. "What do you think?"

"I'm thinking it might fit," she answered. "You said this whole island is nearly flat; that'd be plenty of landing room for Sorians. But there aren't any other caves?"

Flower shrugged. "May be a couple more, but I'd bank on this one."

"Why?"

"Because someone bashed the lock open a while ago."

Link exchanged looks with Irleen and Line. "Really?" he asked.

"Yeah," Line said with a nod.

"The town officials had the lock permanently sealed," Flower explained. "Fixed the bolt and then pumped molten iron straight through the keyhole, from what I heard."

"How far in does the cave go?" Link asked.

Flower shrugged. "Don't know; we never got in. We figured, if we were gonna use it to stash things, we'd have to pry the door off with a crowbar; a couple guys behind it could probably bust the bolt."

"I like it," Irleen said. "Let's go."

"One moment," Flower said as he stood up. "The boys outside are waiting to see if the kid in green's gonna be trouble. Let me go talk to them."

"Okay," Link replied, watching Flower step out of the room.

Line stood up. "So," he told Link.

Link pushed himself off the crate he sat on, dropping onto his feet. "So," he told Line. Line to a step toward him. Then, without warning, Line raised a fist and punched Link's right arm. "Agh!" Link cried out, backing away while clasping his bicep. "What was _that_ for!?"

"You made me think you were _dead_, Link!" Line shouted at him. He took another step toward Link, causing Link to step away out of fear he was about to get punched again.

Then Line lunged at Link and wrapped his arms around his friend. "You're my best friend, you _idiot_," Line told him before pressing his face into Link's shoulder. "What—… What…"

Line had pinned Link's left arm, leaving Link to return Line's hug with one, awkward hand. "Okay, Line, okay," Link told him. "C'mon, Line, this is weird."

"I think it's sweet," Irleen commented.

Link found her hovering overhead and glared at her for a moment. "Do you mind?" he asked.

"What?" Irleen asked in a defensive tone. "I've always known you were a softie."

"Get out," both boys told her.

Irleen blew a raspberry. "Whatever you say, tough guys," she said as she left the room.

They continued to hug for a moment. Then Line said, "Yeah, you're right. This is weird."

"I might've done the same thing if you hadn't been pointing a gun at me," Link told Line after Line pulled away. "I was hoping I'd find you eventually, but I had no idea where you went."

"That's more than what _I_ could do," Line told him. He paused to sniff and brushed his nose with a hand. "You've been on the surface this whole time?"

Link gave an awkward shrug. "It-it takes a long time to build an airship," he said. "I had to find—I had to find the Architects all over the surface."

"You found Architects? Wouldn't they be _dead_ by now?"

Link almost burst out laughing, but managed to keep it in check. "One of them was, actually. But the rest were _descendents_. I even have…" He paused to think. "I have three of them with me."

Line grinned and shook his head. "And to think airmen on the _Grand Sails_ called you 'Luckless Link'…"

Link gave him a confused look. "_Who_ called me that?"

"Anyone who saw us getting into trouble."

Link shook his head. "That figures…" He sighed. "Look, Line. I know things have happened up here, and I'm running from almost everyone I meet. I need your help. You _and_ Flower. My crew doesn't know what's going on up here."

Line raised an eyebrow. "Really, Link? That's the best excuse you can come up with to get us back with you?"

"Well… I-I just thought—"

"Link," Line interrupted. He held out a hand. "I'm still your airman."

"Same here, sir." Link and Line glanced to the doorway to find Flower standing there with Irleen hovering nearby. "I'm still on loan to you; I can't leave without Captain Alfonzo's word."

Link glanced between Line and Flower for a moment. Then he grasped Line's waiting hand. "Okay. Let's get to work then."

…

Link, Irleen, Line, and Flower exchanged stories as they walked across town. Link found out that there had been quite an uproar when the fake princess had called the Skyriders to become her personal navy, especially since other companies had believed that the Skyriders had been keeping business opportunities for themselves. Then business all over the kingdom had become hostile with the introduction of the fake princess's new taxes on shipping. But that had been the last they had heard before the blockade had gone up. Link followed up with his travels across the surface while Irleen added in commentary when it came to talking about the creatures he encountered. Line accused him of making things up until Link pulled back the shoulder of his tunic and bodysuit to show him the scar left over from the fight on Might Island. Line refused to believe him, so Irleen dared him to ask "Airman Dholit" once they returned to the _Island Symphony_. Link wondered to himself if that was a good idea.

It was late in the afternoon when they arrived at the cave. The cave was not what Link had been expecting, but he quickly realized that a hole in the side of a cliff was impossible on an island known for its hills. Instead, the cave was in a mound about a story and a half high. One side of the mound had been sheered and leveled so that it looked more like the side of a building. Gravel had been set on either side of the river flowing down the street and wound in between the nearby houses. The cave rose to the top of the mound, which was probably why nothing had been built on top; even as something as small as a shed would probably cause the ground above to fall in. Just as Flower had said, a crisscross of steel slats covered the entrance just enough that no one could squeeze a hand through. The door on one side was a solid piece of metal with a lock built into it. The keyhole had been filled in.

Which was probably why Flower was carrying a crowbar with him. Flower waved Link and Line out of the way before fitting the crowbar between the door and the frame. He pulled, causing the door to bend a bit. Then he forced the crowbar in more and stepped in front of the door so he could push. For a moment, Link and Line thought it would not work.

_Kank!_ The door suddenly gave, causing Flower to stumble forward and nearly fall into the water. He found the door swinging free and pulled it open. "How about that?" he commented before holding out an inviting hand to Link. "Lieutenant?"

"Nice work, Flower," Link said with a nod.

"Dibs on the crowbar," Line said, reaching out to take the tool from Flower.

"No," Link told them. "I need you guys stay up here."

"Yeah, that's not happening, Link," Line said as he reached further to grab the crowbar. Flower shifted so that he could not grab it. "Come on, I called dibs!"

"No," Link repeated.

"Lieutenant, with all—" Flower started.

"No, listen," Link interrupted him in a stern voice. He paused so he could put his thoughts together. "While we've been restoring the Sky Lines, we've also been tracking down the King and Queen of Hyrule. We know they were coming this way so the queen could get some medicine."

"Medicine?" Line asked, pausing mid-step as he went to grab the crowbar from Flower. He appeared to be thinking about the word. Then he said, "So the queen _does_ have a sickness."

Irleen emerged from Link's hat and asked, "You knew?"

"Yeah," Line replied, sounding a little offended. "I read, too, you know."

Link raised an eyebrow. "Really? _You_ read a book?"

"Stop looking at me like that," Line told him. "_Yes_. I read a book. It was a biography of the current king and queen. It didn't say anything obvious, but it mentioned that she was ill quite a bit."

"This you remember," Flower said, "but you have to be _told_ when the Princess of Hyrule is standing right in front of you?"

"The book didn't have _pictures_, Flower," Line replied.

"Guys, guys," Link quickly spoke up. "Listen. Two of my crew are wandering around the island right now. They're trying to find out if they came by here or not. They could use some help."

"You're gonna send us after kids while you deal with scale-face's crew?" Flower asked, his voice sounding heated.

"Whoa, whoa, _whoa_!" Irleen called out, flying circles above Flower's head. "Just cool down."

Flower gave her a strange look. "Look, I'm just a little annoyed that my commanding officer is about to start trouble without me," he told her.

"And I _understand_ that," Link told him. "But there are two strangers wandering around an island with people who like to pull guns."

"I don't live here," Line commented to himself.

"My point is I'm worried _they_ might get hurt," Link said.

"Yeah," Irleen agreed. "One of them… well, no one likes his accent."

Link glanced up at her. "I-I thought that was _Leynne's_ accent no one liked."

"Cale has the same accent," Irleen told him.

"First time _I_ heard people not liking someone because of their accent," Line commented.

"J-just—" Link started before interrupting himself. "See if you can find them and give them a hand, okay? I don't know where they are, but it shouldn't be hard to find them. They're probably going to be in a library or someplace with records. Maybe even looking around at the port. If you can't find them, maybe one of you can wait with our launch. The _Conductor_. You'll find it because it'll be the only thing rigged with a lateen sail."

"A lateen sail?" Flower asked.

Link held up a hand to stop Flower's next question. "I know, it's weird," he said. "Trust me; the engine makes up for it."

"Lieutenant," Flower said, "I _really_ don't like you going down there alone."

"Yeah, Link," Line said. "We just found you again."

"Guys, I'm not going alone," Link said.

"You're not?" Line asked.

"Watch," Link told him. Then he said to Irleen, "Watch my back. Let me know when she gets here."

"Okay."

"When _who_ gets here?" Flower asked.

Link looked around at the nearby houses. Then he called out, "Layna? Come on out." He waited a moment. Then he looked over his shoulder.

He spun around a split-second later when he realized that no one stood behind him. He glanced around, wondering if she would be popping up from around one of the nearby corners.

"Hmm," Irleen spoke up. "She didn't appear."

"She's gotta be—" Link started.

"YIKES!"

"WHOA!"

Link spun back around to find that both Line and Flower had jumped away from each other. It was likely because Layna had been standing behind them. She had her usual, reaction-less face on as she stared at Link, seemingly oblivious to the fact that she had just frightened a pair of people with her appearance. But, as Link thought about it, he realized that she had probably appeared behind _them_ because she did not know who they were.

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Layna…" he groaned.

"A'ya, 'Imayn Kyabtin," she answered.

He indicated the cave. "Let's go." Layna nodded and stepped over to the doorway.

Both Line and Flower moved to stop Link, and Flower put a hand around Link's wrist. "Uuuh…" Flower droned.

"What?" Link asked. "What is it?"

"Link…" Line started. Then he fell silent as he appeared to be looking for words. He seemed ready to make a comment about Layna, but he only indicated her with a hand while his mouth flopped open and shut.

"I, uh… I think what my colleague is trying to say is…" Flower said. But he trailed off as he, too, lost the words he was trying to convey. Layna had turned back to see why Link was delaying, and her emotionless face fell to a bout of curiosity.

Line latched both hands on Link's left arm. "Oh, boy, if only I knew how to whistle…" he told Link.

"If she knew why, she's probably take your tongue off," Irleen commented, a subtle giggle in her voice.

"And… you-you found her on the _surface_?" Flower asked.

"What's wrong with you two?" Link asked.

"Link, are you the only one that hasn't hit puberty?" Irleen asked.

"What?" Link asked. "Look, I get it that she's pretty—"

"Pretty!?" Line snapped. "She's _gorgeous_!"

"It's the same thing!" Link shouted at him, partially in irritation and partially because Line's grip on his forearm had tightened. "Would you let me _go_? Look, guys. Yes, she's gorgeous and she's a _great_ kisser, but I d—"

"What!?"

"You _kissed_ her!"

"Link!"

"Na—why are _you_ shouting at me!?" Link yelled at Irleen.

Line's hands left Link's arm. Link became more alarmed when Line suddenly grabbed the front of his tunic. "You mean you k—"

Line suddenly disappeared in a flash of black, and Link and Irleen immediately screamed, "LAYNA! NO!"

Layna looked over her shoulder while she pressed Line's face into the ground with one hand. Link could see the glint of steel in her other hand as she held it raised as if she was prepared to punch Line in the face. Flower, in a show of utter shock, had released Link's other arm. Link held up both of his hands. "Layna, get off of him," he told her in a gentle voice. "Just-just get off him."

"Nn ah no mmin lub," Line spoke through his flattened face.

"Line, don't move," Irleen said. "The one thing we know about Layna is that she'd kill for Link. Literally."

"She _what_?" Flower asked.

"She's an _assassin_, you guys," Link told them. "And the worst part is she doesn't speak Hylian." He saw Layna slowly lowering the blade and flipped his hand over to gesture for her to put it away. "Line, just stay still."

"She can't see you if you don't move," Irleen said.

"Not funny, Irleen," Link growled through his teeth.

"And… and _she's_ a member of your crew?" Flower asked, pointing over Link's shoulder.

Link smiled as she stood up and relaxed. "A group of volunteers," he explained. "Most of them helped put the ship together. She's one of six Gelto who came up here with me. And…"

"And… well…" Irleen continued. "Of the six, she's both the cutest and the most dangerous."

"She's…w-what?" Link asked, glancing at her twice before her words set in.

"Link, stop listening to every other word," she told him.

Link shook his head. "Layna, go wait over there," he ordered, pointing at the cave. Layna, back to her emotionless state, gave a sharp nod and stepped away from Line. Link then crossed his arms. "Line, I know you like grabbing me like that, but you probably shouldn't do it anymore."

"If it gets her to come near me, it'll be _worth_ it," Line said. He slowly returned to his feet, his eyes on Layna the whole time.

"Look, both of you, just go find my crew and give them a hand, okay?" Link said. "Cale and Lilly. One has a Southern accent, and the other one sounds like doesn't like pronouncing 'R's. Mention my name if you need to."

"What if neither one of them talks when we ask?" Flower asked as his eyes tracked Layna.

"Then you've probably found them," Irleen said.

"Get going, okay?" Link said, jerking his hand in the direction of the port. "I should be done this evening; I'll meet you back at the launch."

"C'mon, Line," Flower said as he stepped around Link. "If we can't find them, we'll take the launch and find some more on the surface."

"Wait, wait," Line said when Flower tried to lead him away. He turned back to Link and asked, "Are you _sure_ you don't need me to come with you?"

"Go," Link and Irleen snapped simultaneously.

"Okay, okay!" Line said as Flower tugged on his shirt. "Geez!"

Link watched them walk away for a moment. Then he turned and walked over to the cave entrance. "Things are only gonna get worse once we get back to the _Symphony_," he said to Irleen.

"I don't get it," Irleen told him. "You've had girls surrounding you since this whole story started. How come I've never seen _you_ act like that?"

"Because I've had a lot of things on my mind," Link told her. He pointed past Layna. "Let's get going, Layna." Layna nodded and started walking into the cave on a strip of bare ground between the cave wall and the river. "Besides, girls make me awkward. I can't help it; I've been working with grown men most of my life."

Irleen sighed. "I can't tell whether you're mature or just dumb."

"Just drop it, will you?"

The cave sloped downward into the island. Irleen eventually had to lead due to having lost all light to the distance. Link expected a glow to eventually appear somewhere in front of them, but after a few minutes of walking, he began to wonder if this cave was really viable as an entrance to the technoworks.

"STOP!"

Irleen's scream caused both Link and Layna to freeze in place mostly from surprise. Link stepped around Layna (placing one foot in the water beside him in the process) to see what was going on. "Something wrong, Irleen?"

"I think we're here," Irleen said, motioning to a small alcove her light just barely exposed.

Link glanced down to find the rails of a ladder protruding from a hole in the floor. He placed a hand on the cave wall and leaned over the hole, but he did not see any sign of the familiar glow of technoworks below. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"It's _gotta_ be," she replied.

Link sighed and shrugged. "Okay, but it looks dark down there."

"The technoworks down there are probably starting necrosis," she said as Link made to go down the ladder.

"Kyabtin," Layna spoke up.

Link looked up at her, and Irleen moved to illuminate the worried look on her face. He smiled and said, "It'll be all right."

"'Inu nadmimathosak," she answered.

"It's okay," Link said in a louder voice, holding a thumb up.

"I don't think she's gotten the hang of loud Hylian, either, Link," Irleen commented.

"Funny," he told her. "She'll get the idea."

He started down the ladder, and Layna followed a moment later. Irleen hovered along with Link as they continued to descend into what felt to Link like an infinite darkness. The only indication Link had that there was even a cave still around him was Irleen's light shimmering on the nearby walls. Even that seemed to wane the further down he went until only small specks were reflecting off the stone.

Link realized that there was something wrong with that a moment later and stopped. "Hold up, Layna," he called up despite the fact that he could not see her too well.

"What's wrong?" Irleen asked.

"Look at the walls," Link said. "It looks like they're moving."

Both he and Irleen looked around to find that it appeared as if there was movement in the surrounding rock face. Now that Link was paying attention, he saw that the blackness around them was shared by purple clouds swirling about. He had to blink for a moment to be sure, but he could make out the familiar edges of technoworks walls and the debossed designs on the tiles, although the lack of light made it hard to tell what shape they were. The reflections that he thought was Irleen's glow reflecting off rough surfaces were actually moving in the same way that the particles in the other technoworks had always moved, although the small number of them made this hard to tell.

"What _is_ this?" Link asked. "Is this necrosis?"

"This _can't_ be necrosis," Irleen replied as Link continued downward. "I mean… I can't _see_ the life in the technoworks, but… I can still _feel_ it. I-I can't explain it."

"So the technoworks _are_ still alive?"

"If they aren't, they're doing a good job faking."

As they continued downward, the purple in the walls became more apparent, and the particles increased their number. The ambient light increased until Link could see that the rungs of the ladder were supposed to be white. It was a little disorienting to watch the walls as he descended, but the floor proved just as hard to watch. He finally set foot on the floor, thankful that he was finished climbing.

"Whoa!" Then movement caused him to jump away from the ladder and put a hand on the hilt of the Lokomo Sword. But instead of an enemy, he found a line of blue light suddenly climbing the walls around him, giving him a vague picture of the surroundings.

Layna dropped past the last few rungs, her body landing almost flat against the ground as she tried to find the source of Link's surprise. This gave Link the opportunity to see what had triggered the light. The line started as a ring which emerged from the part of the floor Layna had first set foot on. It spread across the floor and then up the walls in the same manner as what Link had seen.

He quickly pointed up at the wall and called out, "What's that?"

Irleen watched the ring disappear into the ceiling. "I-I don't know," she said. "Where'd that come from?"

Link glanced at Layna. "It came from us," he told Irleen. "It happened just as we stepped on the floor."

"That—… That's _impossible_, Link," Irleen replied. "The technoworks don't interact with anything inside them."

Link looked around and realized that the particles had slowed. Then he watched them suddenly shift and start flowing in the opposite directions from their original motion. "How sure are you about that?" he asked.

Irleen took a moment to respond. When she spoke, she sounded as spooked as Link felt.

"Not so much anymore, Link."


	99. The Bold Technoworks

Chapter 99: The Bold Technoworks

…

"So, uh… this is new," Link commented. "You know… with the rest of what's-what's new. About this… place."

"Where were these in the _other_ technoworks!?" Irleen declared.

Layna glanced back and forth between them before looking straight ahead. "Nwaki robat max?" she asked.

After their initial shock, Link and Irleen had looked around for an exit. What they had found was a door that only seemed visible once they were right next to it. At least, they supposed it was a door, but it had no knob or handle to grab. Link had already experimented with using the Sorian bracelet to produce a handle, but he had found that not only had the door refused, not even the regular technowork blocks in the walls or floor had responded to the bracelet. The ensuing two minutes had been spent staring at the door while they tried to think of a way to open it. Layna, by virtue of her lack of understanding of the Hylian language, had only recently identified the architectural inconsistency as a possible door.

Link sighed. "So now what?" he asked Irleen.

"Well…" she started. Then she flew in a circle above his head. "There's _gotta_ be a way to open it. I mean, who makes a door that can't be opened?"

"Someone who doesn't want the door to open?" Link suggested.

"You're not helping, Link."

"Nwik robat lwaygoylwanak thiylwoctya max?" Layna asked.

"Neither are _you_!" Irleen snapped at Layna.

"Irleen," Link said with a soft, chiding tone.

"No, this is ridiculous!" she shouted. "First the technoworks can see us, and now someone puts a _door_ in the way!? Someone is _screwing_ with us, and it's pissing _me_ off!"

"Okay, just… just calm down," Link told her. "Look, the technoworks respond to Sorian things, right?"

"Yeah, but you already used the bracelet."

Link dug into his pocket and produced the blues harp. "What about this?"

Irleen gave an exhausted sigh. "I don't know, maybe. You'd think the bracelet would cause a reaction, but…"

"Well, the blues harp does more, doesn't it?"

Irleen gave another sigh. "Okay, give it a try." Link nodded and released a long breath. Then he put the blues harp to his mouth and pulled on the note that had always caused the technoworks to listen. The note sounded, but nothing else happened. Link held the note for as long as he could before he had to suddenly exhale. There was still no change to the technoworks, although Link, after watching the wall for a moment, nearly convinced himself that the particles had shifted direction again. "Well," Irleen commented, "_that_ didn't work."

Link looked down at the blues harp in his hand and tried to angle it so that light would catch its surface better. "Hang on, Irleen," he told her. "I think I played the wrong note again."

"You couldn't play the note that you've been using to control the technoworks for the past month?" Irleen asked him, sounding irritated.

"I can only remember which one it is by looking at the top," Link told her. "I can't see too well."

"I can see the top just fine, Link," she said.

"Yeah, but I was holding it upside-down."

Irleen was silent for a moment. "What?"

"I've never been good at distinguishing single notes; I always need another note to tell which is which," Link explained. "The guy who taught me to play, he said that he'd help me with it the next time we met."

"You've been playing that thing, and all this time you're _tone-deaf_?"

"Wh—not _entirely_," Link defended. "But this blues harp helps. Watch." Link placed the blues harp to his lips again and pulled, producing a different note.

He only had to play for a short moment because the door reacted almost immediately. The particles flowing across the door changed directions, gathering at the middle of the door instead of continuing with the particles moving across the wall. However, what they formed looked like an outline of a picture, not Sorian letters like Link and Irleen had been expecting. Link thought it looked like a picture of a flag waving as if in the wind. But he could not tell what the arrangement of dots or lines or squiggles was meant to be. The left side was a mess of scribbles forming no shape familiar to him, and the area immediately around the picture was littered with what he thought were stray marks.

"Okay," Link said, slowly lowering the blues harp from his lips. "What is it?"

"That's musical notation, Link," Irleen replied. "_Please_ tell me you know how to read it."

Link glanced down at the blues harp. "I don't think I have to," he said, showing her the glowing emeralds on the top.

"Oh. Well, play it then."

The sequence Link had to play was, by far, the simplest piece he had played. It was a series of four notes on an equally-spaced interval. He played it correctly within almost a second.

The door responded with a bright flash of the Sorian musical notation. The notation then disappeared. Almost soundless, the door lifted into the top of its frame. Link, Irleen, and Layna followed it with their eyes and saw that, after the door had disappeared, there was no sort of seam or crack to indicate that the door had existed in the first place. What little bit of a seam they could see just after the door had finished rising merged into a solid surface.

"Irleen?" Link asked.

"Yeah?" was the reply.

"The door disappeared."

"Yeah. Yeah, I noticed that, too. I think… someone must have instructed the technoworks to _make_ the door."

Link glanced down the long corridor ahead of them. "Who but a Sorian knows how to control the technoworks?"

"I don't know, Link."

"Well," Link said, pausing to draw the Lokomo Sword. The motion caught Layna's eye, and she had a blade in one hand in the next instant. Link started down the corridor as he finished his thought. "There's one way to find out."

They walked down the corridor, Layna taking the lead just after entering. The narrow space made looking at the walls a little disorienting, even as they just looked ahead to the other end. Twice, Link had to shake his head and glance around to make sure that the corridor was not actually spinning around him. Layna, to better keep track of her own orientation, brushed her left hand against the nearby wall. Even Irleen had to settle on Link's shoulder for a moment due to nearly turning herself upside-down while flying. All three had a small moment of relief when they emerged into the next room.

Surprise followed. This room was wide and about three stories high. In the middle of the room, leaving only a small amount of clear space to walk unobstructed, was a large mat of almost bare earth. Protruding from this earth were dead trees and shrubs, most of them looking even more twisted in the moving dullness of the surrounding technoworks.

Link had to remember to breathe out. "What's _this_?" he asked.

"This… well," Irleen replied, "this _would_ have been the garden. Every island at least has this structure. All surface plants have one, maybe two representatives of their variety down here. This is done just in case one species of plant disappears from the surface. Say if a shrub was ever removed from the island, this garden allows it to be reproduced, and the resulting seeds can be sent above."

"Okay…" Link said with an idle nod. "So… what does _this_ do for the surface?"

"Well, whatever caused the plants to die obviously occurred down here, too. My best guess is it has something to do with how the technoworks are now. I don't know, maybe all the plants dying was _caused_ by the change."

"'Imayn Kyabtin," Layna spoke up. "'Inu midhifoymak…" Link glanced at her and found that her head had tilted as she appeared to contemplate something. "'Inu midhifoymak… xuccukw 'ataynli?"

"Does she sound more confused than usual?" Irleen asked.

"She's trying to say something," Link said, placing a hand in his pocket. "I'll give her your ge—…" Link trailed off when Layna, not paying attention to either of them, turned and simply walked away. He watched her round the edge of the garden and nearly fall out of sight through the trees. Link shrugged and said, "Or we might just follow her."

"Yeah, _this_'ll be fun," Irleen commented in a flat voice as they made to catch up to Layna. They spotted her stopped at the far side of the room and looking down at something neither one of them could see right away. Link became aware of the stench of fish nearby, which only got stronger and worse as he approached Layna. By the time he was just about to step around Layna, he was sure something was dead. Then Irleen said, "Oh, I'm gonna be _sick_!"

It was a body almost devoid of color. Despite Link's first thought, it was not a Sorian. Instead, it looked like someone had left a large fish out to dry and then just sat it up against the wall. It had been clothed in a large tunic and trousers, and it also wore some sturdy-looking boots. Its head was drooping to the left, and it had a vacant expression on its face. In addition, its left leg was twisted in a painful looking direction from about the middle of its shin, and one forearm looked to have been crushed by something while the other was folded behind its back in a way that no arm should bend: backwards at the elbow.

Link turned away. "Wh-what is this thing?" he asked, sheathing the sword. "Is _this_ a Geozard?"

"A _dead_ one," Irleen replied, sounding to be on the verge of vomiting. Layna leaned over and felt around the corpse's neck. "Oh, _seriously_, Layna!?"

Layna stood back up and held out a hand to Link. "'Imayn Kyabtin," she said. "'Inu miyayxwatak zangiyth Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn thib."

"What does she want?" Irleen asked.

"I think I just heard your name in there somewhere," Link said, digging his hand into his pocket again. He produced Irleen's translator gem and handed it over.

"Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn," Layna said, "nwik zhoggix dha' kabd galwnya'ak soykwaltya."

"Soykwaltya?" Irleen asked. "'Oyfzhax dha' dhol naday?"

"'Inu nadlwaymdhaykwizak 'anw 'oyfzhax," Layna replied, shaking her head. She looked down at the body. "'Itab nwaki gidhidhak. Nwik zhoggix dha' zaxib madhifya'ak."

"Gidhidhak taf… mudhfak," Irleen said. She paused for a moment. "Jab Cadhiyl laxmya'ak nwaki max?"

"'Inu lwaymbisiyxak," Layna said.

"Goymothan 'anw thibbak Liynk zanak."

"A'ya, Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn."

"Taf nwoyrotan dhozimot 'cayminnadhiyf'."

"A'ya, 'Afi'il Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn," Layna told her before handing the gem back to Link.

"Okay, now you're just making things up!" Irleen snapped in Hylian. "Are you _trying_ to annoy me!?"

"Irleen?" Link asked.

"What?" Irleen replied, turning to him.

"What did she say?"

"Oh," Irleen grunted when she realized that she was back to speaking to Link only. "She said that the Geozard's neck was broken, so I guess that's how it died. She also said that whatever did this was big and brutal. I asked her if a Stalarmor might've done this, but she doesn't know."

"Why would a Stalarmor do this?" Link asked. "I thought both were part of Cunimincus' crew."

"That's all I can think of," Irleen said. "It doesn't really make sense to me, either."

Link nodded. "How long do you think it's been dead?"

"I can't tell. But it must have been a long time, as dried out as it looks."

Link glanced around and spotted a door through the trees. "There's another door over there," he said, pointing. "Let's move on."

"Sounds good," Irleen said while Layna started walking in the direction Link pointed. "This smell's beginning to make me nauseous."

They rounded the garden again and found a door on the opposite side from where they had entered. Now that they knew how the doors worked, Link triggered the door and then opened it in a short amount of time. He was concerned, though, because the sequence he had to play was double the length of the first door. The next room was about the same size as the garden, although the floor of this one was solid technoworks.

And littered with Geozard bodies in a variety of mangled poses. The smell had tipped them to the presence of the bodies, but the actual sight was more brutal than Link had imagined. Most of the bodies looked like their limbs had been broken. One closer to the door had its chest caved in. But even worse, another one appeared to have been flattened completely. Link looked away for a moment, trying to control the disgusting taste building in his throat. None of them spoke for a while, and even Layna appeared stunned by the scene.

"Irleen," Link croaked.

"Yeah, I see it," Irleen replied with an empty tone.

"What… haahhh… what could've caused this?"

"If it was a Stalarmor," Irleen said, "then it's got a _really_ bad disposition."

Link took a moment to lean back into the garden and breathe in the less-putrid air. "Okay," he said more to himself than Irleen. "Okay, let's try to get through this."

"Door to the left, door to the right," Irleen said. "Which way do we go?"

"Left," Link said after seeing that the door on the right wall was further away.

They crossed the room, which Link was beginning to relate to a battlefield. It reminded him of that evening the Bulblins had attacked Whittleton. It helped him cope with the room a bit, but he found that, since he had not seen the same excitement as what had happened back then, he could not as easily dismiss the bodies. Layna seemed a little distant, not even setting eye on the corpses. Irleen was just quiet. When they reached the door, Link already held the blues harp in his hands and had to take a moment before he used it. He triggered the door. Then he discovered that the notes to open this door were double the length of the previous door, which was probably meant to be indicated by the incredibly messy sight of Sorian musical notation on the door. He let the sequence appear twice before he proceeded. However, with the stench of the corpses distracting him, he missed a note. He continued to play through, wondering if these doors were as finicky as the technoworks' control columns.

The musical notation turned red after he had finished. Then it disappeared. Irleen turned to Link. "What happened?"

"I missed a note," Link replied. "No problem, I'll ju—"

"Kyabtin!" Layna hollered despite being right next to Link. Link glanced over at her. Then he spun around to follow her gaze.

The particles all around the room had turned red just like the musical notation had. They were flowing toward three points halfway up the wall opposite of them. When the particles had finished collecting, they appeared to shake in place. Link placed an uncertain hand on the hilt of the Lokomo Sword, feeling his heartbeat pick up. About then was when he realized that he could feel a subtle shake in the floor.

_Crnkk!_ The foot was only visible after one of the Geozard bodies was crushed underneath. This seemed to break the illusion that the red points were still on the opposite wall. Instead, Link, Irleen, and Layna realized that three statues, each almost as tall as the room, were slowly approaching. Fear gave Link one last thought before his mind went completely blank.

_These are the things that killed the Geozards._

The statues looked nothing like a Sorian, or a regular Human for that matter. Their torsos were solid pieces of sharp, chiseled muscle. Each joint was a sphere connecting one block-shaped limb to another or to the torso. They had no heads. Instead, the red "eye" was centered inside a cross-shaped recess that stretched across their torsos. Their whole bodies appeared to be made out of the technoworks they had just walked of, but there was no corresponding gap in the wall behind them.

"Oh, shit…" Irleen whispered.

Link snapped back to awareness just in time to see the statues passing the opening to the corridor they had just traveled down. They had lost their only means of escape, unless they wanted to dare being flattened by an enormous foot. He pulled the sword and said, "Irleen, get to the doorway. If we can't beat them, we'll at least know where to run."

"I'll get to it in a min-minu—_What_!?" Irleen replied.

"Layna, let's go!"

Before Irleen could tell what was happening, both of them charged the statues. She only had a moment to scream, "What the hell's _wrong_ with you two!?"

Link was not entirely without logic in the matter. As individuals, both he and Layna were much faster than these statues. And now that the statues were closer, it was easy to see where the technoworks around them ended and the statues began.

Link started by leaping onto the left foot of the statue in the middle and laying a downward strike into the ball serving as the statue's shin. Contrary to what he had been hoping, though, the shin remained intact, and the strike stung his hand due to the fact that there was no glancing to one side afterwards. In response, the statue lifted its foot, and Link had to flail his arms outward to avoid being thrown off. He was thrown anyway after the statue kicked its foot forward. The motion was not very fast, but Link still flew a significant distance before landing on one of the Geozard corpses. He flipped head-over-heels and hit the floor on his stomach, the sword already long thrown out of his hand. After spending a moment feeling the full extent of the ensuing pain, he looked up. Layna, being far more cautious than him, had latched onto the left statue's thigh. The statue had to twist and reach one hand out to grab her, but she had already shifted to a position between its thighs, where it would have a hard time crushing her due to its shape.

Link then realized that the statue on the right was still walking toward him while the center statue turned to help the left statue grab Layna. He immediately returned to his feet and looked around for the Lokomo Sword. The dim light of the room made spotting it impossible, so Link took a couple steps backwards, hoping to see the sword in a change of light. Still, he could not find it. So Link started thinking of another idea. His boomerang would be equally as useless, being made of wood. He could not see the bow being effective, either, since he only had the two arrows and he would be shooting at something as hard as rock.

So he decided on a confusion tactic first and pulled his flare gun. The dark made it hard to tell what he was loading, so he hoped that he was grabbing a flare shell and not one of Biluf's new smoke shells. He loaded it and aimed it upward as the statue towered over him, its red eye lower in its abdomen to stare him down. Link gave it a defiant glare and pulled the trigger.

_FZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzz!_ Being in a closed room made the flare's hiss quite loud. A ball of green light bounced against the statue's rock-solid body, doing absolutely nothing to harm it as it hit the wall next to it. However, the statue had been surprised by the flare and, two seconds after the flare struck it, flinched backwards. It was a very awkward thing for a three-story statue to do, as the sudden movement of mass caused its feet to rise from the floor. It tried to save itself by pressing its left hand into the wall beside it, but it still fell backwards. _BOOOM!_ Link was sure that the fall shook the entire island. He was glad that the flare had worked better than he expected; one more step would have put him into stomping range. The statue in the center turned in response to its fellow falling, and Link glanced around in the new source of light to find the sword again. Still nothing, so he glanced down at his belt.

In the next minute, Link was charging for the statue's left foot with Sello's small hammer in his hand. He remembered how, during the fight with Sello's insane invention Drumstik, the hammer had been the only item in his possession (after taking it from Sello) that had been capable of breaking Drumstik's glass armor. Since then, he had yet to find anything that had the same penetrating power. So he decided to put it to the test by running up to the fallen statue and seeing how much a block of technoworks could stop it.

The answer, he discovered, was very little. Link swung the hammer right as he came into range. The hammer gave a ring as its struck the living stone, but the hammer's pointed head put a hole in the bottom of the statue's foot up to where the head met the handle. The area immediately surrounding the hole suddenly turned bright red, and Link realized what he had done. By penetrating the outer surface, he had triggered the warning sign of necrosis.

The statue lifted its foot, causing Link to release the hammer before he was lifted off the floor. It moved its eye into the area of the groove in between its legs. Link could not be sure, but it felt as if the statue was glaring at him. Link watched the eye disappear back up the groove, and the statue raised a hand to the center statue. The center statue put its hands around the fallen statue's arm, and the fallen statue ground along the floor as it pulled itself into a sitting position. This caused an area of the floor to illuminate with the warning signs of necrosis. By then, the flare had died out, but the red flashing outlined the statues well enough for Link to see. Link watched the fallen statue lift itself to turn one leg around. When he saw that it was the same leg with his hammer jammed into its foot, Link decided to take a chance. He broke into a run, and his boots sped him up. He dashed in between both giants and turned to get behind the fallen statue. The statue had just dropped its knee back to the floor. Link could not reach the hammer due to it now being higher up, so he clambered onto the inside of the statue's knee and moved along its calf. He had to hurry; if the creature stood up, not only would the hammer be crushed under its foot, but he would be sent flying face-first into the floor. It was not easy without any handholds, but Link reached the statue's ankle just as the creature's calf became level. He slid over the edge of the blocky foot and kicked the hammer out of place. Then he dropped back down just as the statue began to rise. He snatched up the hammer and backed off a moment.

The statue had risen back to its full height with help from its fellow. But it did not allow its injured foot to touch the floor, almost as if doing so would cause physical pain. Link wondered if it was possible, given that the technoworks themselves were alive. He watched as the statue leaned on the wall directly over the door.

And he developed a plan.

He jogged up to the statue's other foot, aware that the eyes of both statues had moved lower (the eye of his target following the same cross-shaped groove that wrapped around its back) to watch him. He raised a hand and used a backswing to put the hammer's head into the back of the statue's foot. The statue appeared to jerk in response to the attack, but it could not retaliate too well due to the attacked foot being the only one it wanted to stand on at the moment. Link glanced over in time to see the statue twisting in order to strike him with its opposite foot. He ducked around the side of the foot and placed another blow into the side. Then he quickly moved to the front of the foot and climbed on top of it, secure in the knowledge that he had a little time before the statue tried to kick him as the center one first had. He swung the hammer into the ball serving as the statue's ankle. The mass of statue above him staggered as if about to fall. Link also noticed that, unlike the foot, the ball had formed a long crack across its surface where he had struck. Having worked for so long with wood and seeing how the strain of a stay on an old anchoring surface could cause fractures when some form of tension was added to it, he realized that most of the statue's weight was focused on such a singular area that it was relatively fragile. So Link decided to take advantage of this and placed another hole in the ball. Another crack formed, and Link could hear the rock-like technoworks grinding. He jumped off the foot and moved back as quickly as he could.

The cracks on the ball expanded and increased until the ball snapped in half. The top half slid off the bottom half, and the statue fell backwards again. _BOOOM!_ The whole room shook again. The whole ball turned red, and its flashing looked more severe than the damage to the floor underneath the fallen statue. Link decided to take advantage of its position and dashed in between its legs. He stopped short of running into the area of torso that served as the statue's groin. The eye had moved into the area of slot between its legs. It seemed like an opportunity, so Link raised the hammer and aimed for the eye. He struck it dead-center, and the eye simply shattered into particles once more as the necrosis warning replaced it. These particles spread out across the statue's body, and the statue assumed the same flowing pattern of the room around it.

_CRSH!_ Link was lucky to be short, or else the fist of the center statue might have struck his head after bashing the downed statue's thighs trying to reach him. It caused Link to duck lower, and he dashed away from the fallen statue in case the other statue tried striking again. When he was in the clear, he turned to find that the center statue was taking longer strides to catch up to him. He was not sure how to approach this statue since he had yet to wound it. He was certain that it had watched how he had taken down the other, so attacking the feet might be trickier. Crashing sounded from the statue Layna was still attacking, although Link could not take his eyes away from his new attacker to see what was happening.

So Link decided to chance being flattened and dashed closer to the statue. With his boots speeding him up, he turned left and came to a stop just behind the statue's right. The statue had to finish its step before it could move its eye into the groove under its right arm to find him. It closed its stance and leaned over to swat Link with its hand. Link immediately dashed to a spot right behind it, opening the distance between him and it so he was just out of reach. The statue turned to follow Link, so Link ran to get behind the statue again. The statue paused, its eye, although lagging behind compared to the speed Link was now using, following him with each burst of movement. It shifted and corrected its stance so that it could turn in the opposite direction. Link ran to get behind it again, so the statue resolved to take a large step backwards in order to close distance with Link. So Link moved to its right side while it was in mid-step, and the statue had to raise its arm in order to spot him. It turned on its heels so that its torso was squared up with Link's position. Link then moved to its left, which nearly resulted in him slamming into the wall due to the lack of space between it and the statue's leading foot.

The statue now had a problem. Its stance was too wide for it to move its foot and kick Link, and it was too close to the wall to bring its other foot forward to hit Link. Link took advantage of this by climbing onto its foot. He raised the hammer and gave the statue's heel three solid strikes, all penetrating and causing fractures to form across the ball. Then he retreated, and the ball broke apart under the strain of holding up the statue in a very awkward position. Its broken ankle caused its foot to roll, and the statue's legs were so far extended that the bottom-most part of its torso impacted the floor. The hit knocked the torso off balance, and it fell onto its back away from Link. _BAM!_

Link quickly dashed in between its legs as the statue, anticipating Link's next move, tried to shut them. Link made it through just as its knees slammed together. He took aim and put the hammer into the eye. Just as the first statue, the eye shattered into particles that returned to their usual flow. He turned back to find the path blocked by the statue's knees, so he tucked the hammer into his belt and climbed up the knees.

He found that the third statue sported a number of places where necrosis was starting, particularly along the arms, shoulders, and upper back. The fact that the wall behind it was also glowing red told Link that the statue must have been bashing up against it. The statue's arms moved about its back, and Link could see Layna dangling from one shoulder with her legs wrapped about halfway around the ball. How she was able to hold on like that amazed Link, especially since any other person might have slipped and fallen on their head with as much moving as the statue was doing. But, as much damage as the statue was doing to itself, Link saw that its eye was wandering around its slot in an attempt to find her. It finally seemed to spot her from under its arm, and it tried to crush her in its armpit. Layna pressed her hand into the groove before she allowed herself to fall from its shoulder. She used her hands to grab the top of the statue's thigh, correcting her orientation before she landed on the floor. The sight left Link impressed by her preservation of grace in spite of the pressing matter of being attacked by a three-story statue.

Link then saw what she had been doing as she almost danced away from the statue while it flailed about, trying to find her. He noticed that, as the eye looked around, every now and then it would blink out of existence for a split second. And it would always blink out in the same spots on the front of its torso. Layna, ever resourceful, had been blinding it with some substance that was not visible at this distance. She must have smeared enough of it to blind its right side underneath the arm since it did not seem to notice her watching it from its right. She glanced over at Link and finally seemed to take notice of the other two statues. At this distance and in the red flashing of injured technoworks, it was hard to tell if she even had a reaction to it.

Then she jerked her head in the direction of the remaining statue, a gesture which Link took to mean she was letting him in on the last fight. Link nodded and slid off the second downed statue's knee. He pulled the hammer from his belt and dashed across the room at high speed. With the statue trying to find Layna crawling around somewhere on its torso, it had no idea that Link had stopped next to its left foot. Link climbed onto the foot and put three holes in the ankle joint. The statue raised its foot in response, and Link slid off without warning. He landed on his back and watched as the eye located him instead.

Layna suddenly leapt onto its other foot, jumped up to grab the top of its shin, and swung her body upside down to wrap her legs around the statue's thigh. Again, Link could not understand how she did that, but she rose to a sitting position and grabbed the top of the statue's thigh. She removed something from a pocket and smeared it on top of the eye, blacking it out. Link rolled out of the way and recovered just in time to avoid having the statue's injured foot crush him. The statue brought its right fist down to smash her against its thigh, but Layna leaned backwards and allowed herself to slip enough that, when the fist made contact, the top of the thigh and the groin lit up bright red from injury with Layna just out of range. The statue nearly doubled over in response, but Layna remained out of reach. She made eye contact with Link and held out a hand. Link could not interpret the gesture in any other way, so, without thinking about it, he dared to step closer to the statue. Then he lofted the hammer up to her. She caught it by the head and placed the handle in her mouth. Then she sat up again and caught hold of the fist still covering the statue's injured groin. She pulled herself onto the forearm and swung a leg up for a better position to reach the shoulder again. The statue straightened up and found her standing on its forearm with a hand to its shoulder for support. Layna opened her mouth to drop the hammer into her hand. And, with what little space there was between her and the groove in the chest, she struck the pointed end of the head into the statue's eye.

Although Layna's strike did not have the same penetrating power as Link's, the small hole was enough for the eye to shatter back into particles. The statue froze in its current position, still able to stand despite the damage to its left ankle.

For a moment, everything was silent. Both Link and Layna looked around to see if any more statues would be attacking. Instead, Link found that the room had returned to the same as before, with the white particles moving over the walls, floor, and ceiling as if nothing had happened.

"Whoo!" Link hollered, a large grin on his face. "Glad we survived _that_!" He heard something land on the floor next to him and turned to discover Layna there. "How about it, huh?" he asked her.

"'Imayn Kyabtin," she replied as she held out the hammer to him, her face revealing no sort of emotion in response to him.

"Oh, right," he said, accepting the hammer. He tucked it into his belt. "Thanks. Nice work out there, too." She tilted her head in response, her illusion of impassiveness lost to confusion. Unsure of how else to convey the idea, Link held up a thumb and said, "Good work, Layna."

Layna still appeared confused. Then, to Link's amazement, she managed to give a small smile. "A'ya, 'Imayn Kyabtin," she said with a nod.

"Wow, Link!" Irleen cried out as she approached. "It's nice to know there are now _two_ of you to take out things larger than yourselves."

Link chuckled as he surveyed the other two statues. "No kidding," he said. "What _were_ these things?"

"Technomos," Irleen answered.

"Tech-Technomos?" Link asked. "What are those?"

"Uh… I don't know," Irleen told him. "I just made it up."

Link turned back to her with a worried expression on his face. "You what?"


	100. Dark Link, Technoworks Construct

Chapter 100: Dark Link, Technoworks Construct

…

"I just made it up," Irleen repeated.

"You mean…" Link started. He stopped for a moment to think. "You mean… you've never seen this before?"

"Giant statues coming out of the technoworks to kill whoever misses a note on a magical door?" Irleen replied. "Nope, that's a new one."

"But that was _definitely_ the technoworks that did that?"

"The technoworks is supposed to _follow_ commands. It wouldn't have attacked unless someone told it to, though the whole thing with the door was probably the trigger."

"'Imayn Kyabtin." Link turned at the sound of Layna addressing him. She was standing behind him, presenting the Lokomo Sword to him with both hands.

"Oh," Link replied. He took the sword by the handle and carefully lifted it, worried that he might cut the hand she used to hold the blade. "Thanks, Layna."

"I can't be completely sure what's going on," Irleen continued while Link examined the sword in the dull light. "Clearly, the technoworks has been taken over by someone, but the question is 'who'."

Link sheathed the sword. "It's possible to do that?" Link asked. "Take over the whole technoworks?"

"Well, we've already seen that the technoworks won't respond to the bracelet," Irleen said. "I don't know what the deal with the _doors_ is, though. Maybe a trap."

"'Maybe'," Link repeated. He glanced around at the Geozard corpses and the remains of the Technomos littering the room. "I'd call this more than 'maybe'."

"Okay, they're _unquestionably_ traps," Irleen amended. "But I've never read about anyone using the technoworks like this. I don't think anyone even _knew_ this was possible."

"Sooo… I don't get it, what are you suggesting?"

Irleen sighed. "I don't know. But it's clear that we need to get to the control room and stop whoever's doing this."

"Can the technoworks be taken back through those…" He gestured. "… those column things?"

"The interface, Link. And I think it's possible. I _think_. When we were on Might Island, I had you use a command to reset the technoworks. If we can still use the interface, I'm sure we can do it again. But we can't afford to make any mistakes again. When you're playing the harmonica, you _have_ to be precise."

Link nodded. "Or we'll… get attacked again."

"No, Link. Look at the door you just tried to open."

Link looked around to remember where everything was. Then he glanced to his right, where the aforementioned door was. At first, nothing seemed any different. Then he took a couple steps toward the door and squinted. The flow of particles across the technoworks, which had been a constant up to this point, was completely gone from the door they had tried to enter. "The… the little floaty things are gone," Link said.

"My best guess is, for now, that door won't respond to the harmonica again," Irleen said. "It may come back once we leave, it may never come back at all. This is all new to me."

"So, if I don't get it right, there's a good chance I could lock us out of the control room," Link reasoned.

"Ooooh, yeah."

"If I haven't done that already."

Irleen took in a sharp breath. "Okay, let's try to keep this positive, shall we?"

Link pulled the blues harp from his pocket. Then he pointed to the door on the other side of the room. "Well, let's get back to work then."

"And remember," Irleen added as they started across the room. "For every wrong door you play, we get attacked by Technomos."

"Great…"

Link triggered the door and, after memorizing the pattern four times, played. This time, he managed to play through flawlessly, the thought of handling the Technomos again hanging on the back of his mind. The door lifted away, revealing a small closet-sized space with a ladder. Link started down the ladder, and Layna followed a second later. Upon reaching the bottom, Link turned around and discovered that the room's walls were filled with holes. He had found the dormitory. His first thought was that he had succeeded in getting locked out of the control room, as he had come to expect the dormitories to be a dead end.

Then Irleen spoke up from the left side of the ladder, "Over here, Link."

Link found her hovering in front of a door and breathed a sigh of relief. "For a moment," he said as he approached, "I thought we'd hit a dead end."

"So did I," Irleen admitted. "Good thing whoever put together _this_ technoworks thought it was a good idea to put a dormitory in the middle of the path to the control room."

"You sure it's not a closet?" Link asked with a grin as he pulled out the blues harp.

"Seriously, Link?"

Link shrugged. "Just thought I'd ask."

"Remember, Link," she said. "If you play a note wrong, just stop. Maybe if you don't complete the piece and try over again, the technoworks won't attack us."

Link nodded and pulled on the single note to trigger the door. Again, he took his time memorizing the pattern, which was now coming close to the length of the songs he had had to play for the technoworks back on Might Island. They were still quite simple, and the notes remained evenly spaced. He finished the piece and beamed because he had gotten it right the first time through.

"Don't get cocky," Irleen told him.

"Too late," Link joked as they moved into the next room.

This room looked about as wide as the room above, but the ceiling was lower. It looked clean with two more doors leading elsewhere.

"Okay," Link said. "Do we wanna go right or straight?"

Irleen sighed. "I don't know," she said in an annoyed tone. "Just… pick one."

"Right?" Link asked, pointing.

"I don't _care_."

Link approached the door on the right with the blues harp still in his hands. The moment he was close enough, he triggered the door. Then he took a couple of minutes to memorize the door's notes. He was a little concerned by this one because the length had doubled again. But he waited until he had the sequence memorized, not wanting to chance being attacked by the technoworks again. When he was ready, he played. He used his limited sight of the blues harp's top surface to keep track of the notes, and he managed to keep up with the sequence.

But, when he finished, the Sorian musical notation, which looked far too complicated to even be intelligible anymore, turned red and disappeared.

Irleen turned to Link and whined, "Liiiiiink! Why didn't you stop?"

"Oh, uh…" Link uttered as he watched the particles around them turn red. "I was actually doing pretty good. I just… missed the last note."

"Oh, great…"

They followed the particles to their resting place on the opposite side of the room. Link was immediately worried, because there were six eyes instead of three. Although the statues looked to be about regular human height, this also meant they were a whole head taller than Link. Link put away the blues harp and pulled the Lokomo Sword, and Layna pulled a couple of blades from her pockets. Link had to squint to get a good look at the statues, and he could see why there were not any dead Geozards in this room.

They looked nothing like the giant statues. These were sleeker, more angular and less blocky. They had definite heads, although they were shaped more like a long-beaked bird with groves set along the top, bottom, and sides. Their joints still used spherical pieces, but rounder body parts made them fit together better. Link could hear their marching feet up until they stopped about halfway across the room.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," Irleen said.

Layna and Link moved apart from each other. "They're just small statues," Link said. "How bad could it be?"

The statues jerked their arms in unison.

_Shhink!_ And, from where their forearm connected to their wrist joints, they produced steel, triangular blades that sat parallel to their forearms.

"If you _ever_ say that again," Irleen told him, "I want you to remember this day and just shut up."

The statues charged, running hard against the technoworks floor. Link was amazed by their speed and held the sword ready. The first one took a headlong dive at Link, blades held forward to skewer him. Link dodged to one side, and then he swung the sword up into a defensive strike just as a second Technomos attempted to stab him. The first jab was deflected, but the Technomos had twisted with the clumsy block and thrust its opposite arm forward at Link's stomach. Link barely caught this in time to jump backwards, his arms held up to keep the blade from catching his elbow.

The second Technomos immediately stepped aside, and a third stepped forward with a hand raised as if to punch Link in the face. Link had only barely recovered and swiped his sword to his left to deflect the incoming strike. Due to the third Technomos attacking with its left, its torso spun with the blocking move, exposing its back to Link. Link took a second to turn his shoulders, and then he landed a horizontal swing into the Technomos' head just as its eye shifted to relocate him. The blow caused the Technomos to stumble and nearly collide with the second Technomos while Link winced in pain from having struck solid rock with his sword again. He skipped aside along the wall to his right and turned so that he had all three Technomos in front of him.

The second Technomos rounded the third one (whose head had a pulsing, red line across the left side) and attempted to drive its left blade into Link's skull. Link, keeping his sword raised, side-stepped out of the way and subsequently ducked when the Technomos tried to salvage the attack by swinging the blade in the same direction. Link twisted his wrist and landed an upward strike into its armpit. The Technomos flinched and shifted to avoid having Link hit its shoulder joint again. Link responded by twisting his wrist again and smashing his sword blade into the top of the Technomos' head. The Technomos decided to retreat, and Link was surprised by the first Technomos diving for him again. He danced out of the way, but his right forearm still got caught by the blade. He took in a sharp breath and backed into the wall behind him. He did not have time to look at the wound. Instead, he found the third Technomos bearing down on him with another punch-like attack. Link dropped to his knees, allowing the Technomos to miss his head completely and deflect off the wall. It then tried to use its opposite blade to stab into Link's head again, but Link had landed on his hands when he dropped, and he pushed forward just as the blade went for his head. The Technomos brought its blade up to find Link's hat on the end. Link got one foot under him and swung his sword into the back of the Technomos' left leg while it was distracted. The strike caused the Technomos' leg to fold, and it flailed just before it fell to the floor next to Link. Link jumped to his feet and backed away again.

The first Technomos charged at him from his left and tried to slice him apart with two consecutive strikes. Link had backed out of range of both, then he lunged forward and brought the sword down on top of the Technomos' head. The Technomos retreated just as the second Technomos, the one already sporting a red line across the top of its head, approached for another swing at Link. Link met the threat by winding up, and the Technomos thrust a blade forward to stab into Link's right shoulder. Link had to step aside at the same time he swung, and the blade struck the Technomos' neck right where the sphere connected to the head. With Link's powerful swing augmented by the bracelet he wore, the blade caused the technoworks to break and sent the Technomos' head flying while the body simply collapsed where it stood. The first Technomos had recovered in time to take the second Technomos' place, and Link nearly had his upper back torn open by its leading strike. Link had only avoided the strike because he had leaned forward from the momentum left behind from the decapitation. Link stopped himself from falling on his face, and he almost did not notice the rush of air across his back. He spun around with the sword aimed wildly. The horizontal strike glanced off the Technomos' back and clipped its head, chipping off a piece of technoworks and adding to the red glow on its head.

The third Technomos, back on its feet again, took advantage of Link's stagger and jabbed with one hand. Link, unable to bring his sword back to defend himself, used his right hand to catch and deflect the arm. He pushed the blade down and away, but the edge put a gash in Link's right thigh. Link cried out and, now holding the Technomos' forearm, jerked it to one side. The Technomos, being living rock, did not budge much, but it allowed Link to turn faster and bash the Technomos' head with the sword's guard. The Technomos reeled, and Link wound the sword back to attempt to take its head off as well.

_Tink_. The sword jerked in Link's hand, and Link turned his head to find that the first Technomos was still standing behind him, although it had not been concerned with attacking Link while it was still reeling from Link's previous hit. The sword had touched the Technomos' shoulder, and, once it had Link in sight again, it immediately turned to deliver a thrust. Link ducked out of the way, and the blow sailed past Link's head and bashed the third Technomos' head. The third Technomos fell to the floor, and Link, after stepping back out of the way, flung a quick backhand swing into the first Technomos' neck. The blow instead hit the Technomos' head from below, causing its head to snap upwards. It staggered backwards with its guard dropped, so Link wound up and hit its head again with a full-powered swing. The force snapped the head off its neck, and the first Technomos fell on the spot while its head skipped off the floor.

Link then spun back to the third Technomos, which now sported pulsing, red light on almost the entirety of the right side of its face. This made it only _look_ menacing; it was slowly rising to its feet, wobbling in a manner befitting a creature that had just been punched in the head. This offered Link the opportunity to drop his sword and draw Sello's hammer from his belt. The _clang_ from the dropped sword caught the Technomos' attention, and it looked up at Link. This presented Link with its eye, and he immediately dropped the hammer down into its eye and shattered it. The Technomos froze in place as particles flowed across its body once again.

Link looked up when he became aware of something stumbling toward him. To his shock, it was a Technomos body. He saw that it was the second Technomos, the first one he had decapitated. This he could tell because the Technomos was carrying its own head in one arm. He let out an exhausted breath and said to himself, "You gotta be _kidding_." He backed up a few steps and reached his right hand around to take his sword.

His hand found hard rock in roughly the shape of a foot, and he turned to see what it was. The other decapitated Technomos had managed to recover faster and was now standing between Link and his sword. Link immediately rolled out of the way (spilling his bow and remaining arrows in the process) as the Technomos jabbed downward, intending to impale Link's face. Link recovered and immediately spotted the head near the door he had yet to try. He ran for it at full speed. But, instead of doing something smart like stopping and bashing it with Sello's hammer, he used his speed to kick the head in the direction the Technomos had emerged from. Link then spun and found that the high-speed kick had disoriented the body enough to make it collapse to the floor again. Then Link saw the Technomos that was now carrying its head jump over both its fallen companions and run at Link. Link switched the hammer to his right hand and produced his boomerang in a flash. He threw it as hard and straight as he could. The Technomos did not have enough time to respond to the new weapon, and the boomerang knocked the Technomos' head loose just as it tried to tighten its hold. The Technomos, unable to juggle its head while also experiencing what must have been a greatly disorientating, spinning sensation, dropped its head and collapsed to the floor. Link was on the Technomos in a flash, hammer back in his left hand, and smashed the Technomos' eye just as it looked up to focus on him.

Link heard soft footsteps approaching and looked up to find Layna slowing to a walk. Irleen also flew down on him from her hiding space near the ceiling. He let out a relieved sigh and said to Irleen, "Well. We survived that one, too." He glanced around Layna to find that the three Technomos that had attacked her were lying on the floor, flashing red across most of their bodies. "How'd Layna take out those three?"

"I think she blinded them until they were just useless," Irleen said. "Then she made them hit each other until none of them could move without causing necrosis. But it looks like _you_ missed one."

Link glanced to the far end of the room to see the Technomos body still stumbling around, unable to locate its head. "Yeah," Link said, "I probably shouldn't have kicked his head over there. But at least it's not bothering us."

"Kyabtin," Layna spoke up in a mild amount of alarm. She pointed at Link's right arm and said, "Lwajma'."

Link remembered that he had been cut on the arm and glanced down. Although he could feel the sting of an open wound, he could not distinguish between his blood and his black bodysuit because of the light. He glanced down at his right thigh and was just barely able to make out the dark stain on his trousers. Link shook his head. "I'm okay, Layna." To emphasize the point, he gave her a thumbs-up. Layna gave him a worried look. "Really. They're just scratches; they don't bother me. C'mon, we must nearly be there."

"You gonna get your sword first?" Irleen asked.

Link looked down at his left hand, realizing that he was only holding Sello's hammer. "Oh, yeah," he said with a small laugh. "I think I dropped a couple things, too."

Both Link and Layna took a couple minutes to recover their weapons, Layna having thrown and dropped a number of blades in her fight. Link was amazed to find his cap was still in one piece when he had been sure it had been skewered. His bow, boomerang, and sword were also intact, but Link found the bow to be useless because, when the Technomos carrying its head had jumped over its companions, it had snapped his last two arrows. After some time, all three of them heard stone strike stone and turned to find that, unable to locate its head, the remaining Technomos had simply fallen and reverted to its dormant state.

They gathered back in front of the only remaining door to try, and Link triggered it. Not wanting to fight the Technomos again, he made sure he knew the arrangement before actually playing. He felt exhausted by the recent fight, but he kept himself together long enough to play the song through all the way and opened the door on the first try.

The door lifted open, and both Link and Irleen let out a sigh of relief. In front of them were the two columns that always adorned the control room. Although they were black and purple as the rest of the technoworks, the particles that fell across their surfaces were blue instead of white.

"How about that?" Link said. "I didn't lock us out after all."

"Congratulations, Link," Irleen said with a flat voice.

"We're just minutes away," Link told her as he stepped through the doorway.

_WHAM!_ Link jumped at the sound of something heavy slamming nearby and spun around. To his horror, the door had returned. He ran to it and tried hitting his fist against it. "Layna!" he shouted. "Irleen!?" He heard no response, so he placed his ear to the door. He still could not tell if they were calling for him, so he shouted, "Layna! Irleen! Can you hear me!?" When he continued to hear silence, he backed away from the door and prepared to play the trigger note from his blues harp. But two things stopped him. First, the particles were missing from the door.

Second, something behind him was grinding together, sounding like rock rubbing rock. The noise was loud and, in a quiet room, spooky beyond anything Link had ever heard before. All of his natural warnings triggered at once: the hairs on the back of his neck stood up, his hands and feet became cold and clammy, his heart pounded hard in his chest, and his breathing ceased. His instincts told him that he should turn around to see what it was at the same time his body froze up to prevent him from doing so. The grinding continued, and Link found that he could at least turn his head. It was a slow process, but once he was started, he became committed to following through with the movement. He turned halfway so that he had a clear sight of what was behind him. The room's particles had disappeared.

And, instead, he found two, red eyes staring back at him. The only thing scarier than a Technomos that could not be seen because it blended with the wall behind it, Link discovered _very_ quickly, was a Technomos that stood out because it was completely black against a purple backdrop. But this, to him, felt a lot worse than looking at any regular Technomos.

Because this Technomos looked just like him. Link had to look about himself to make sure. The size and shape, the weapons he carried, his clothing… the only thing that disturbed Link was the fact that it was not audibly breathing and just stood there like a statue. Link was not even sure if it could be called a "Technomos".

Link slid the blues harp into his pocket and reached a hand up to grab the Lokomo Sword. The Technomos, seemingly in response, reached up and grabbed the handle of its own sword. The fact that it moved made Link start, and he wrenched the sword from its sheath as fast as he could and held it up in preparation for battle. The Technomos followed suit, almost an exact duplication of Link's movements.

Link shook his head. "You… you _can't_ be me."

"_**Eauu… Eauu kkhaennt bhii miiih!**_" The Technomos' voice came out as a horrific screech with its pronunciation so heavily garbled that Link at first could not tell it had mimicked his words.

Link felt bile in the back of his throat, so afraid that he might actually throw up. He swallowed it back and said, "This is all wrong."

"_**Thhihzz ih zahll rahungg!**_" the Technomos screeched at him. The voice so upset Link that he did not want to say another word, lest he actually did throw up from the fear.

"_**Bhuhth ayiii aaem eauu, Lhiiingk!**_"

Link was still trying to get through his initial shock when it said those words, rendering Link almost paralyzed with fear. Link had just half of a second to realize that, with its words, this dark abomination had charged forward to get in the first strike.

When he came to, Link jumped to one side, avoiding a downward strike which would have cleaved him in two. The Technomos was fast, nothing like the smaller ones he and Layna had just got through fighting. Link could actually feel malice from this creature, feel its killing intent just by being in the same room with it. Link recovered and immediately brought his sword up to block a thrust that the Technomos had switched into after it had missed. Link deflected the blade to one side, somewhat amazed that he could tell the blade was there at all given his opponent's shadowy appearance. Link attempted to follow through by stepping forward and aiming a quick strike for the face. He felt contact, and the Technomos backed away.

But the wound, a horizontal slash across its left cheek just underneath its eye, only seemed to add to its menacing appearance as it throbbed bright red. Link took a step back. The Technomos tilted its head as if it was confused by Link's reaction. Then it charged for another strike and went to take Link's head off with a horizontal slash. Link held his sword vertical and batted the enemy blade away. Link then turned his wrist with the intention of trying to get the Technomos with a backswing. However, the Technomos recovered faster and went for a similar strike aimed for Link's stomach. Link had to change the trajectory of his strike to deflect the blade again, knocking it into a high enough arc that the swords were above their heads. The Technomos spun in place while Link brought his sword down to a defensive stance. The Technomos had intended to strike him with the spin, but Link deduced that it would be coming and held his sword up to intercept the strike, halting the Technomos' blade. Link realized that it was not like he was fighting the living technoworks at all, but another living being with the attributes of a real human. He did not know what this meant, but he decided that something that looked and sounded so evil needed to be ended.

The Technomos pulled its sword back and attempted a diagonal upswing. Link allowed this to pass by leaning backwards, the blade coming dangerously close to opening his chest. With his arms held wide, Link attempted to return the swing with the intent to rip open the Technomos' shoulder. The Technomos, however, realized its mistake and cut its strike short of flying over its head so it could switch direction and deflect Link's sword. Link jumped away so he could avoid a retaliatory swing that would likely have struck his face. But the Technomos pushed toward him with a jab. Link twisted his sword in a circle and succeeded in driving the enemy blade off before it punched into his chest. They both let the swords slide off each other, and Link held his sword level in a horizontal strike toward the Technomos' face. Not one to be marred again, the Technomos intercepted and halted the strike. Then, in a surprise move, it turned the blade toward Link and reached forward.

"Gah!" Link cried out as the tip of the Technomos' sword sliced through Link's tunic and bodysuit. He was more surprised by the move than hurt, as the tip, by the time it reached his flesh, did not have the power to open his shoulder. Still, Link backed away yet again.

And the Technomos was on him, going for a backhanded horizontal strike aimed for Link's neck. Link backed up another step to let the blade pass by. The Technomos stopped itself from following through with the swing and lunged forward. But it had already gone past Link and wound up thrusting into the empty air on the right side of Link's face. Link, realizing far too late the danger next to his head, snapped his sword across his front and batted the enemy's sword away from his head. This gave him an opening, and Link turned his blade around for a quick horizontal backhand that sliced into the Technomos' forearm.

"_**Ghah!**_" The pain did not sound sincere. If anything, Link felt that the creature was mocking his earlier reaction. Still, it dropped its sword for a moment and stepped back. Link decided to press his advantage and jabbed for the Technomos' chest.

And the Technomos just disappeared in a flash. For a moment, Link stood surprised. Then he looked up.

The Technomos was standing, toe to heel, on top of Link's level blade. It stared down at him.

Then the Technomos disappeared in a splash of color after kicking Link in the head. Link fell backward onto the floor, feeling pain throbbing in his left cheek. He shook out the thought of pain and looked up in time to see the Technomos aiming a heavy vertical strike for his head. He rolled left and, now feeling anger at the cheap shot, decided to return the favor by catching the Technomos' wrist with a backwards kick. The Technomos faltered, allowing Link to scoot aside and rush back to his feet. The Technomos pursued and tried another vertical strike. Link countered by ducking to one side and getting off a horizontal strike to the Technomos' chest just as the Technomos' strike fell. It opened a red gash that caused the Technomos to writhe in silent pain as it backed out of Link's range. Link stepped forward and tried to hit it with a backhanded strike. Blade hit blade when the Technomos intercepted the strike. That was when Link noticed that the Technomos was holding its right arm over the gash in its chest, as if it was protecting itself. He pushed into the Technomos, and the Technomos had to back up with Link to keep from having its own blade smashed in its face. They broke away, and Link decided to thrust at the Technomos again. The Technomos did its same disappearing act.

And Link turned his blade just as the Technomos landed on top of it. He could not feel the Technomos on it, but he wrenched the blade backwards and up at the Technomos. The Technomos fell to the floor, its whole body flattening. It sounded like any other person hitting the floor, including the dull thump of skull smacking solid technoworks. Its arms were lying stretched out to its sides. Link quickly strode forward and changed his hold on the Lokomo Sword.

The Technomos struck, adding another slice to Link's right thigh. "Dah!" Link cried out, immediately backing away. This was not a shallow wound, either. The whole of Link's thigh burned from a deep gash caused by the Technomos' edge. The pain was such that Link had to keep the leg as still as possible to avoid having it become any worse.

The Technomos returned to its feet and charged Link. One hand on his thigh, Link held up his sword horizontal to intercept a downward strike. The Technomos pulled the sword back and struck it against Link's sword again, and then again. The handle stung Link's hand from the amount of force it was trying to hold off. His grip faltered, and the Technomos struck again. Link held the blow back, but the Technomos started to put its whole weight against Link's sword. And, contrary to the weightlessness of the Technomos when it stood on Link's blade, now it felt as if Link was holding back a boulder three times his size. The Technomos leaned closer, and Link dropped to one knee. The movement caused him to shout in pain, and he put his opposite hand on the flat of his blade to help hold off the Technomos. The Technomos leaned in even closer, and Link's arms started screaming in pain. The Technomos was near to his face. If he had just positioned the sword right, he could deflect the blade and strike for the Technomos' face at the same time. But Link was putting his all into keeping the Technomos from collapsing his guard and placing the black blade into his skull. He needed some way to move. His right hand felt slick from covering the wound on his thigh.

And, at once, he had an idea. Link forced all the strength he could into his left arm so that he could free his right hand. He pressed the fingers of that free hand onto the fresh blood pouring from his wound. He had to hurry; his guard was collapsing.

Without hesitation, he thrust his free hand past the two blades right into the Technomos' face as it hovered just over Link's sword. Link smeared his blood into the Technomos' face, and the Technomos suddenly retreated in surprise. The pressure lifted, and Link got back to his feet. It took a bit of effort with the amount of pain he was now feeling in his leg, but he was up once more while the Technomos, confused and blinded, pulled away from him and attempted to force the blood from its face with its empty hand. Link started into a walk. Then he picked up his pace. The Technomos heard his feet on the floor, but it still had not cleared the blood from its face.

"DAAAAAHH!" Link hollered in rage as he raised the sword above his head. The Technomos raised its sword to a horizontal block intended to take down overhead strikes. This caused Link to switch to a low hold, and, just as he came within range, he swung upward and added another, larger gash to the Technomos' chest.

"_**KHAAAH!**_" The Technomos' cry was almost feral and showed much more emotion than anything else that had come from its mouth. Link's strike also knocked its sword, and it decided to bring the sword down on top of Link. Link shifted to his left and followed through with an upward backswing that turned the gash on its chest into a large X shape. "_**BHAH!**_" The Technomos went for a horizontal swing at about chest level. Link back-stepped out of the way. Then he stepped forward again and laid a horizontal swing across its face, causing it to twist in the same direction as Link's blade moved. It stumbled and turned away from Link, dropping its sword on the floor. Link stood still for a moment, huffing from the amount of effort he now had to put into his swings. The Technomos also seemed to be exhausted, its heaving back turned toward him.

"Know… Know what the difference is… between you and me?" Link asked it.

The Technomos turned around, although its lack of focus told Link that it could not see him. "_**Noh… Nnoh hwaht dha dhihfhrehnzz izz… biittwiiinn eauu aenn miiih?**_" it asked back.

Link strode forward and landed a downward strike that opened a large cut in its shoulder. Its cry was silent as it fell to its knees. Then Link wound up and decapitated it with a vicious backhand, sending the head rolling onto the ground some distance away. The body flopped to the floor.

Then, just as with the other Technomos, the particles of the surrounding technoworks overran its body, causing it to cease all movement.

Link dropped to his knees in front of the body and looked up in time to see the door fly open. Irleen and Layna entered and located him. He dropped the Lokomo Sword and looked down at the body.

"I've got lives to save."


	101. Cantabiles of Command and Restoration

Chapter 101: Cantabiles of Command and Restoration

…

Layna was upon Link in an instant, and Link found his back pressed against the remains of his technoworks doppelganger while his legs stretched across the floor before him. His whole body felt heavy from fatigue. He was barely aware that he was still bleeding from his leg. Actually, he realized that he was relatively calm about it. He had dropped the Lokomo Sword somewhere nearby, but it seemed to just blend in with the darkness around him. He had yet to realize that Layna was still in front of him.

Until he felt her tugging at his clothes. He focused his eyes on her. In the dim light of the surrounding room, he saw that she was still in her usual, emotionless state. Her hands prodded around him until she started removing the belts around his waist. He thought that she was doing it to get at his wounds, whatever they were anymore. He knew about the gash in his leg, but he could not remember if he might have taken a strike to the chest or the shoulder as well. Or maybe even a blow to the head; he recalled that he had taken a hit to his face recently.

"Oh crap oh crap oh crap oh _crap_!" Irleen chanted as she hovered over the two of them. "Is-is that _Link's_ blood on the floor!? What are we gonna do, what are we gonna _do_!?" Layna, either out of a lack of understanding or interest, ignored her as she reached her hands under Link's tunic. Link felt a tug and semi-consciously reached his left arm around the Technomos remains behind him to keep from being pulled onto the floor.

And Layna yanked his trousers down around his ankles, exposing the bottom of his black bodysuit. Although he was still clothed, Irleen immediately shrieked, "Good _Spirits_, woman! _what the hell are you doing_!?"

Her voice was loud enough to make Link's ears ring for a moment. "Take it easy, Irleen," he told her in a tired voice.

"Nonononononono! _No_! Link, this is _all_ wrong! You're bleeding, and the first thing she thinks is she gonna r-r-rr-rr-r—"

_Kkkkkkhhk!_

"Aah! She's tearing your pants off now!" Link looked down to see that Layna had used one of her blades to slice the leg of his bodysuit further open. Irleen dropped down into Layna's face, causing Layna to pull away from Link for a moment. "You leave Link alone, you-you _sex fiend_! You wh—" Irleen found herself immediately silenced when, with two sharp moves, Layna relieved Link of his cap and caught Irleen inside of it. Layna then took Link's right hand and closed his fingers around the cap to hold Irleen inside.

Link used both of his hands to open the cap just a little so he could tell her, "I don't think she wants you to bother her."

"How are you being _calm_ about this!?" Irleen snapped at him, jumping free of the hat before Link could close it.

"Irleen," Link said in an even voice. "Look."

Both he and Irleen looked down to see that Layna was holding one of her small pouches over the large gash in Link's bare thigh. They could barely make out some type of gelatin substance settling into the wound. Layna then used the pouch itself to spread the substance to cover not only the wound but the area of skin immediately around it. Then she threw the pouch away, discarding it with an urgent motion. After examining the leg she had removed from Link's bodysuit, she used a small blade to cut away the bloody portion. The rest, she then sliced apart to make strips of cloth. She layered them over the wound, and Link realized that she was making a bandage. She used her knife to then slice the other leg of his bodysuit, cutting it up to about the middle of his other thigh so that the bodysuit was symmetrical again. After taking time to make another bandage strip, she pushed on Link's foot so he would be forced to bend his knee up. Link felt the bandage going around his thigh from the pressure she applied to it; somehow, the pain itself had dulled to a manageable throb. When she was done, Link had a black bandage covering his pale thigh.

"Wow," Irleen said. "I… suddenly feel like an idiot. How does it feel, Link?"

"It doesn't hurt so much," Link said. Then he twisted his face when he set his leg back on the ground. "Although… it's-it's kinda… gooey."

"Link…" Irleen groaned in a disgusted tone.

Link gave a small chuckle. "Sorry." Layna offered him another of her pouches, and Link took it and said, "Thanks." He found that, similar to the pouch of green substance she had given him before, this one was extremely tart. But its flavor was different, and Link consumed it without coughing anything up this time. He returned the pouch to Layna and rested against the blocks behind him. "Whew. Close one."

Irleen glanced at the Technomos remains behind him as if just realizing they were there. "What was it?" she asked.

Link managed a small shrug. "Dunno. It… It didn't really _act_ like a Technomos. And… well, it kinda _looked_ like me."

"'Kinda'?" Irleen asked.

"Yeah," Link said with a nod. Then he pointed with his left hand to one side. "I think its head's over there somewhere."

"This I _gotta_ see."

Irleen drifted away. Layna retrieved the Lokomo Sword and, despite the dark, expertly replaced the sword in its sheath. She then decided to take a seat next to him. He watched as she stared at the wound. When she caught him looking, she immediately turned her eyes forward. "I'm glad you're here, Layna," Link told her with a smile. Layna looked at him with her usual tilt of curiosity. "Just… wanted you to know that." Link was sure she had given him a smile in return, but she turned her head away in the next instant.

Irleen returned right away and told Link, "You weren't kidding, Link. It _was_ you. Your face, your hair… Except for being made out of the technoworks, it looks _exactly_ like you."

"Yes, but…" Link paused to sigh. "_How_? How did the technoworks _know_ what I look like? And why only _me_?"

"It might've had something to do with those ring things back when we first came in. The technoworks might have seen you as a threat and, up to this point, decided to send a duplicate you to kill you before you reached the interface. Or maybe even whoever happens to be _controlling_ the technoworks, really."

"Well, I'm noticing something wrong with that theory," Link said. He pointed up to the control columns. "There's no one here but us."

Irleen was silent for a moment. "That's right… Okay, I'm out of theories, then."

Link pushed on the bandage. "Well, let's get…" he started to say while moving to stand. Then he trailed off and had to sit on top of the Technomos. "Ooooh… um… my-my leg's numb."

"What?"

"My leg's all numb," Link repeated. "You know. How, if you've been sitting for a long time, and then you just lose all feeling in your leg? And you feel kinda funny getting up to walk?"

"Oh, _that_ kind of numb," Irleen replied. "I thought you were saying that we were going to have to cut your leg off."

"Wh—_no_!" Link snapped.

"Can you stand?"

Link pushed himself up and wobbled a moment. Layna immediately stood and grabbed his right arm. She positioned his arm so that he had it wrapped around her waist. Then she grabbed the back of his regular belt and lifted, taking some of the weight off his right leg. "Thanks, Layna," he told her. He leaned over and pulled his trousers back up. Layna retrieved his belts while still holding him up by hooking them on her foot. Link pointed at the columns. "Let's go."

The walk across the room felt as if it took forever. Naturally, Link had experienced walking on a numb leg before, but he had never experienced walking on a numb leg that would not return to normal. He spent more time looking down at his leg than looking up, forcing Layna to redirect him twice. He was also exhausted beyond anything he had felt before. Whatever it was that Layna had given him, it did not seem to be affecting him like the first time.

Layna positioned Link so he was standing in the usual space between the columns. However, he asked Irleen, "Do I have to stand to control them, or can I sit on the floor?"

"Well, it's easier for you to stand so you can push the controls, but… I'm sure Layna won't mind doing it for you," Irleen said. Link nodded and fished into one pocket for Irleen's translator gem. He held it for Layna to take. Layna's immediate response was confusion, but she took it. "Layna, 'inu yayxwotak wabnik zatciyb 'inoy," Irleen told Layna. "Mathsya'ak max?"

Layna nodded. "'Inu mimaythasak, 'Afi'il Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn."

Irleen gave an annoyed sigh. "Salya salya… Faysolwan Liynk may' coylwayjixiykak." Link was just removing the blues harp from his pocket when Layna stepped out of his grip. However, she still held onto his belt and helped him sit back on the floor. It was awkward due to his numb leg, but he managed to sit with his legs outstretched. He wished he had something to rest against, but he managed and sat with his back straight. He pulled on the usual note, and the particles on the columns gathered together as before. However, Link had to pause to release his breath four times before the list fully formed. He looked up and saw that some of the items on either side of the column were bright purple instead of blue.

"Ha'," Irleen uttered as she approached the list on the left column. "Nway dhafinwak…"

"Dhafinwak, 'Afi'il Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn?" Layna asked. "Nway cikwithak max?"

"Ay'a, tigi," Irleen replied. "Wakilwubak nwik lwubbul 'azobci max?"

"Ay'a."

"'Ak Giymadicab nadlwaylayximak nwik maddix."

"Giy-… 'Giymadicab'?"

"Nwik sayfitt than."

Layna nodded. "Nayfsik lwaygalwiynak liyxomtya max?"

"Nadda ay'a. 'Ak Giymadicab goylwanitak 'iytontya xiban 'abothfi naday. 'Idh Liynk laxomak hiyxwolot abbidh dha' 'an Giymadicab." Irleen fluttered to the right column and looked through the list before returning to the top. "'Oynwocan nwik lwabbil wabin cari 'ithab."

"Ay'a, 'Afi'il Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn," Layna responded before pressing a finger to the word Irleen hovered by.

The brighter lettering flashed white before all the lettering disappeared. Link took in a deep breath and looked down at the blues harp in his hands. Right away, he found himself a little intimidated. The notes he was looking at varied in their length by a greater margin than any song he had played before. At some points, they were drawn out. But in between some of these longer notes were small clusters of notes. In his tired state, Link had a hard time memorizing the notes right away. He had gotten a little better about it due to his experience with the technoworks thus far, but the notes these technoworks required him to play made him wish there was someone else who could do this instead. He took his time remembering these notes, perhaps a couple of hours while Layna and Irleen seemed to whisper things to each other despite Link not understanding Geltoan. He wanted to be able to play the song perfectly for as long as it took; if the technoworks were still set up to create Technomos the moment he flubbed a note, he was not in shape to take them on. He did not know whether Layna could handle it or not either, as she showed very little sign of fatigue.

Finally, he took in a breath and began to play. He kept his eyes open to see the emeralds on top to make sure he was following correctly. His playing was a little clumsy, especially since he had trouble dividing attention between watching the notes and actually playing them. He could only hope he was timing the notes at least in a way the technoworks would accept them. He tried to set his fear aside, wanting to forget about the Technomos replica of him that had just about taken his leg.

After what felt like almost an hour of what surely sounded like sloppy work, Link felt his vision narrow until the only things he was focused on were his nose, his fingers, and the blues harp. The rest of the world just melted away around him. At that moment, the only thing he could think of was playing that blues harp as perfect as possible. It became an obsession, and he felt the rest of his worries just fade away. He could almost hear a voice somewhere in the blues harp's notes, singing along as if joining in on his almost empty solo to turn it into a duet. His eyes closed, no longer needing the emeralds on the blues harp when the voice guided him with its gentle tone. The voice had him entranced, and the blues harp was the only tool to use just to match its beauty.

"'Imayn Kyabtin?" Link felt someone place a hand on his shoulder and softly allowed the note he was playing to trail off. He looked up to find Layna standing in front of him, looking quite concerned. Then he looked around to find that light had come to the technoworks, a dull green glow that was much more inviting than the black and purple swirls that had been difficult to navigate.

"'Inu nadbulnya'ak waba nayx nwoyrot, Liynk," Irleen said. He looked around until he found her hovering beside the left column. Remembering that he had to call up the list again, he exhaled and pulled on the necessary note. After it returned, he gave himself some time to breathe while Irleen looked for the right command.

Link looked back down at the blues harp. Then, because neither Layna nor Irleen could understand him, he muttered to himself, "I'll have to do it again."

"You will not have to do it alone." He was right. Rather than the singing voice be some random hallucination, he realized that Princess Zelda had been singing in tune to the blues harp. He was not sure what astounded him more; the fact that she had the musical inclination to follow along was every bit as impressive as her being able to memorize the notes at the same time as him.

In his tired state, he found himself enjoying the memory of watching her sing on the bow of the _Island Sonata_. "You… you have a beautiful voice," he said to her.

"Thank you," she answered. "And I _know_ you intended to say it this time."

"Than, Layna," Irleen said. She swung side to side next to a bullet on the list she was perusing. "'Oynwocan nway."

Layna pressed her forefinger to one of the bullets, and the room around them darkened a bit. The floor underneath Link lit up with a blue circle, just as he remembered the other technoworks had responded. He set to work memorizing the notes, which were just as complicated and set in an arrangement that did not have anything to do with the first piece.

He started when he felt something settle against his lower back. He glanced over his shoulder to find that Layna had sat with her back to his. He could only get a vague look at her out the corner of his eye, but he took the gesture as an invitation. Carefully, he leaned against her, realizing that her presence helped him relax a bit. For someone who did not speak his language, she seemed to have a knack for knowing what he needed at times.

This gave Link leave to memorize the notes a little faster and with much less weighing on his mind. When he put the blues harp to his mouth, he gave himself a small count before playing so that he would have the notes timed to the emeralds' patterns. Zelda joined in a minute later, her voice as soothing and even as before. It helped Link get into the mindset again, and he found that he could play the blues harp without having to focus on it so much. The song they played sounded a little mournful, a little despondent. Then it picked up at about the middle into what sounded like a cheery tone like Link was used to hearing from a harmonica. He started rocking sideways to the music, causing Layna to adapt to the rhythm in order to keep Link sitting up straight. During the second play, Link felt he began to understand some deeper meaning behind the music. This mournful song started off as such because the technoworks were lamenting some of the changes that it had taken. Then it picked up during the latter half in a show of appreciation that it would soon be returning to normal, the remains of the Technomos gone along with the signs of necrosis caused by Link and Layna.

Then again, he considered, after he finished playing through the song and the technoworks started shaking around him, that maybe it was a figment of his imagination caused by extreme fatigue and serious blood loss.

He used the last few moments of language barrier to whisper to Zelda, "Thank you."

"I am glad I could help," Zelda answered as Link felt Layna stand.

He accepted Irleen's translator gem and looked around. The technoworks had returned to its normal swirl of warm colors, and the particles had disappeared to form the Sky Lines outside. The columns were back to normal. Link twisted to one side to look for the Technomos lying on the floor. Instead, the Technomos was completely gone, eliciting a sigh of relief from him.

He looked up at Irleen and asked, "So. Are we done?"

"Not quite, Link," Irleen replied as she seemed to examine the wall in front of him. "We still don't know who was controlling the technoworks; they could very well start this all over again if we just leave them."

"Well," Link said as he dragged his belts closer, "we know that it _is_ possible for the technoworks to notice when someone's inside. Couldn't we use that?"

"I wouldn't even know where to _find_ that function," Irleen told him. Then she gave a brief pause, during which Link had managed to secure his regular belt. "Although…"

"What is it?" he asked as he worked on his gun belt.

"We may get a quick answer yet," Irleen replied.

Link held off speaking to finish securing his gun belt. Then Layna helped him to his feet. "Really? How?"

Irleen turned to look to the left. "There's a group of floor tiles over here that are still showing signs of activity."

Link cringed. "They're… not gonna attack us, are they?"

"No, I doubt if it's anything like that. Come on, let's take a look."

Link and Layna followed Irleen to the left side of the columns, Layna supporting Link by wrapping an arm behind his back. It was a little easier for Link to move now that he had gotten a little rest; he was even regaining feeling in his right leg and could walk on it properly. Still, it felt shaky, and he was glad that Layna was still nearby.

Irleen stopped near the corner and hovered in place over a set of four tiles. These tiles were bright blue, and the light they generated obscured their surfaces. Link examined it a moment before asking, "What is it? A message, like back on Sagacity Island?"

"No, the structure is all wrong," Irleen told him.

Link stared down at the tiles. Then he looked up with the intention of telling her that there was not much structure behind light. He stopped himself when he remembered that Irleen could see much more in the technoworks than him. So he asked, "Sooo… what do we do with it?"

"It has a receptive structure," Irleen said. "It means that someone needs to stand in it."

Link pointedly looked around the room, causing Layna to do the same with a confused look on her face. "Irleen, we just walked through a large deathtrap," Link told her. Layna, meanwhile, continued to look around.

"I-I don't think it's a trap, Link," Irleen said. "I mean… I-I've never _seen_ this structure before, but I don't _think_ it's a trap."

Link sighed. "Look, after an evening of nearly getting _killed_ by this place, I'd rather check out the other rooms and call it a day."

"Link, if-if it was something dangerous, don't you think it'd be easier for it to go off right as you stood _next_ to it?"

Link sighed again, resigning himself to go with Irleen's idea out of fatigue rather than logic. "Okay, fine," he said. "What do we need to do?"

"I'll get in your hat, and you'll step in," Irleen told him. "Th—… Uh, did… Did Layna lose something?"

"Hmm?" Link looked to Layna, finding that she had twisted so that she could look behind them while still holding Link up. "I don't know. Maybe she hears something." He used his free hand to invite Irleen. "C'mon, let's get moving."

"Right."

Irleen disappeared into Link's hat, and Link said, "Layna." When Layna turned her attention to him, he pointed at the tiles. "Let's go."

Layna gave the floor a frown. Then she assisted Link onto the tiles.

Link had only set one foot onto a tile when he was suddenly ripped out of Layna's hold. He immediately threw an arm forward to catch himself and managed to save his head from striking the floor.

His hat had fallen off, and Irleen emerged from it with a slight stagger in her flight. "Whoa," she said. "Now I know what it's like to get hit with a _brick_."

"Ugh," Link groaned. "Fun, huh?" He pushed himself off the floor and looked over his shoulder. His eyes went wide when he discovered Layna, having managed to save herself from falling, had switched back to her emotionless state and stood ready with a blade in her hand. Immediately, Link's head swung forward.

Ahead of him was a dais in between two large pools of water. Someone had set up a campfire on the platform along with a fishing rod that had been left standing. Link could not guess at where the firewood had come from, but the fishing rod was glistening like the technoworks around them. A figure covered in rags was hunched near the campfire, although once Link had noticed it, it immediately rose. In its full height, the figure revealed that it was wearing a grey robe with a hood. For a moment, Link thought that there would be another fight.

Then the figure removed the hood, revealing a middle-aged, ebony face under thick, gold plumage. His own expression mirroring Link's surprise, he said seemingly to himself but still audible to the newcomers, "Hīlīħán…"

"What's going on?" Irleen asked.

"Look," Link whispered to her. "We found him. It's one of Captain Koroul's crew."

Irleen turned and rose as Link picked himself up off the floor. "Oh… I-I can't believe it," she said. "And a Grey, too. No _wonder_ he made the technoworks do that."

"A Grey?" Link asked her.

"Any amateur could control the technoworks," Irleen explained. "But a _Grey_… This guy could make almost _anything_ out of the technoworks."

Link pointed as the Sorian man slowly approached them. "That explains the fishing rod," he said. Then he remembered Layna and gently placed a hand on her wrist to try to convey to her that this was not an enemy. Layna seemed to flinch at the touch, but she was willing to relax her stance for a moment.

"He survived off the technoworks," Irleen said, an air of awe in her voice. "Look behind him. It's part of a garden." Link leaned to one side to see a couple of healthy trees lined up behind the Sorian. Irleen shook in place, causing a ringing sound. "This has to be the _best_ bit of all."

The Sorian stopped just a dozen paces away from Link. "Hīlīħán ħōnkápo… àt kálpāh?" he asked, sounding very confused.

"Uh oh," Link uttered. "Irleen… he's not speaking Hylian."

"Of _course_ he isn't, Link," Irleen replied. "My translator gem only ever translates for _me_."

"Tilìt cō ahà?" the Grey asked, looking at Irleen with a bewildered expression.

"Okay… Does he understand _you_?" Link asked.

Irleen sighed. "Probably not. Uuh… Maybe… Yeah. Go ahead and put the gem on the ground."

"On the ground?" Link asked as he put one hand in his pocket.

"Yeah. I'll let you know when I need you to pick it up." Link removed the gem from his pocket, bent over, and carefully dropped it on the floor near his feet. Irleen turned back to the Sorian and said, "Kakòrōl ahà?"

The Grey looked surprised for a moment. Then he asked, "Rītánìn tán kacō?"

"Ħul. Kátàh cāh ìt kátápì, ħàl Rītò táwa tanì. Ħìrlīna táwa."

"_Rapùcwáh Ħōntìnico_ natī Kòrōla Hōwal kīnù Lūtòka Tōkwi táwa," the Grey told her, bowing his head. Then he used a hand to indicate Link and Layna. "Atlīn wāt?"

Irleen bounded in an arc above their heads and came to a hover above Link. "Hōn _Ōtàn Ħōnnatápnòhico_ natī Līnca Hōwal," she explained. Or, at least Link assumed she was explaining; the only word he had understood from that statement was his own name. Then Irleen moved to Layna and said, "Àt nīk _Ōtàn Ħōnnatápnòhico_ natī Līnca Hōwal kīnù Láħìna Tōkwi."

"Līnca Hōwal… Láħìna Tōkwi…" the Grey murmured, nodding to himself. Then he asked Irleen, "Kòl kakòhūt?"

"_Rapùcwáh Ħōntìnico_ tuwìk tìpàn klatàh," Irleen said as Link slowly sat down on the floor. "Ħanùl klácòtat."

The Grey gave her a confused look. "Kárōl ō. Cìpákwáhtū ħáknàtò ħarùk tōt."

"Līnca Kàhīla Tōkwi ħōnàciwátōn ħál."

What Irleen had said seemed to bring up the Grey's hopes. With a touch of eagerness in his voice, he asked Irleen, "Kàhīla kupħùtò?"

Irleen was silent for a moment, and Link thought he could feel a bit of hesitation in that silence. After heaving a sigh, Irleen replied, "Ħō. Kláħònùlat ahà atác… ħatáħōhut àt ħacītat."

"Ħàħ…" the Grey uttered, bowing his head. He revealed one hand and, holding up two fingers, drew it across his forehead. Then he said, "Kátàh Kōtoħa Tōkwi kloħùtòt. Ħa…"

Irleen bobbed up and down in the air. "Ħul," she said in a grim voice.

The Grey bowed and stroked his forehead again. Then he looked down at Link. "Kūlhōwal nūkaħátin."

"Cìpákwáhtū," Irleen replied.

The Grey gave her an embarrassed look. He drew something from his robe and knelt in front of Link. Link took up the translator gem and asked Irleen, "What's he doing?"

"Let him see your wound," she told him.

Link did not want to pull down his trousers again, so he just tugged on the hole in the leg to show him the wound. The wrapping was still tight around his numb thigh, but some of the clear gelatin had leaked into the open. He sensed movement beside him and quickly raised a hand to stop Layna.

The Grey placed the object he had withdrawn to his mouth. When he blew, Link heard a hollow wind escape his mouth. He had only seen an ocarina twice before, so it took him a moment to recognize the instrument. The Grey played a recurring series of notes. Link felt a little uncomfortable about the situation. First, the Grey was doing something strange right in front of him, and he did not understand why. Second, it felt as if he was regaining feeling back in his leg.

Then he felt pressure on the wound. The gelatin Layna had applied was now visibly squeezing out from under the bandage. The sight must have worried Layna as well because she quickly drew a blade and relieved the bandage with a quick stroke. The bandage snapped away, revealing that much of the gelatin had been stained red by Link's blood. But as the Grey played, the gelatin squeezed itself out of Link's wound. Link pulled the bandage out of his trousers and used it to wipe away the gelatin. He barely caught the last sliver of wound closing up into a clean-looking scar and boggled at it for a moment.

"Whoa…" he breathed. He looked up at the Grey after the Grey had finished playing and said, "Thanks."

"How does it feel?" Irleen asked.

Link pulled his knee close and flexed his leg for a moment. "It's still a little numb. But it doesn't hurt anymore. How'd he do that?"

"I'm not sure," Irleen said. "Sorian healers are only Greys who decided to change their careers, so I think that has something to do with it."

Link nodded. "Okay then. Uh… tell him that we should get going. We still have some things to do, but we'll get you both back to your home as soon as possible."

After Link placed the gem back on the floor, Irleen turned to the Grey. "Klákī pa," she said to him. "Ħapà nòt lòn kláħál, ħàl kōnwi hì tlāklonōtan."

The Grey shook his head. "_Rapùcwáh Ħōntìnico_ ħōnrotà kánùl tā."

"Klánùl ta tanì," Irleen replied.

The Grey thought for a moment. Then he nodded. Irleen turned to Link, and Link took it as a sign to pick up the gem. "He says he'll go along," she said. "And… I figure, if we're gonna go after your princess, we can help out his crew, too."

Link gave her a hesitant look. "I… don't know if it'll be _us_ going after them," he admitted. "It would be better if we could get together some armed ships to storm Cunimincus' vessel."

"C'mon, no one's _that_ stupid," Irleen told him. "But we _will_ be there, right?"

Link took in a breath and nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, we'll be there." He made to stand, and Layna helped him up by one arm. "Let's go then. We're done here. Do we have a way out? I don't see any doors."

"There's another set of tiles behind you to take us back," Irleen said.

Link turned around to see that there was a little more to the room behind them, including a group of four tiles on the floor which glowed just like the set back in the control room. "Oh, okay." He made to step on it, but Layna placed an arm across his chest. He caught the blank look on her face and sighed. "Yeah, yeah, go first," he said, inviting her with his hands. She nodded and stepped on the tiles. Layna disappeared in a silent flash, only a mist of shimmering particles remaining where she had stepped. "Wow! that looks so weird."

The Grey stepped around Link and, without a word, stepped onto the tiles. Irleen sighed and said, "Poor guy. So far, he, Line, Flower, and, uh… what was his name?"

"Leonard?" Link asked. "Yeah, I know. But… I don't know. Maybe seeing Line and Flower here'll make him feel a little better."

"I hope s—" Irleen was cut off when, as she fluttered over to the tiles, she suddenly disappeared into them. Link could not help snorting. She was gonna be mad when he stepped over to the other side.

"Ah-_choooh_!"

Link blinked in utter bewilderment. That had not been him sneezing; he had not needed to sneeze for a while. As soon as alarm set in, he spun around with his hand on the hilt of the Lokomo Sword. "Who's there!?" he snapped.

"Whoa, whoa!" a male voice called back. "Take it easy."

Link found the source of the voice standing on the platform at the middle of the room. At first, he was not sure what he was seeing. The human figure shifted and jerked in a very unnatural manner while his body appeared to be constructed of fine, horizontal lines that were constantly shifting either up or down. What he could make out was a young man perhaps five years older than him. His hair was a dark blond mess under a green cap, and his ears stood out further from the sides of his head. He wore a green tunic with sleeves and trousers of a beige material. Link carefully wandered closer, curious about the number of items he was wearing on his belts. One definitely looked to be some kind of pistol slung lower on his waist on his left side. A silver shield no larger than a fist appeared to be clipped on the higher belt, and he also had a holster carrying a small, circular pocket and a long, thin club. A large bag hung on the back of this belt as well. Strapped to his back via another belt similar to the one holding Link's Lokomo Sword was a sword of similar size.

"Who… who are you?" Link asked.

"Well… who are _you_?" the young man asked.

Having his question repeated back to him annoyed Link. So he responded, "Captain Link of the _Island Symphony_."

The young man's head jerked backwards in a show of surprise, although his face showed that he was mulling the name around in his head. "Huh," was all the response he gave.

"Who are _you_?" Link repeated a little more forcefully.

"I'm Constable L—" The young man stopped himself. Link expected him to finish, but he replied instead, "I'm Constable Fieldview of the Watch."

"The what?" Link asked, perplexed by the term.

"The Watch?" Constable (a title Link had heard used by the Castle Island Police on occasion) Fieldview replied. "You know. The City Watch of Hyrulia?" Link slowly shook his head. "You don't know what that is? The police?"

Link shrugged. "The only police I know about are the Castle Island Police, and… well, you don't really _dress_ like one."

"Hm. Weird."

"How'd you get here?"

Constable Fieldview tilted his head as if he had not heard the question. Then he said, "Uh… well, I'd tell you, but… I honestly don't know where I am. For once."

"You're underneath Bold Island," Link said.

"Bold Island? Is this still Hyrule territory?" Link nodded. "Huh. I've never heard of it before." Then he turned to look over his shoulder and said in an irritated tone, "Yeah, yeah, I _know_. I'm trying to figure it all out. But I'll tell you _this_. This isn't even _close_ to what we were looking for. I don't think they came this way. I mean, _Bold_ Island? Does that sound familiar at all?"

Link leaned to one side to see who he was talking to. When he found no one there, he felt a little worried that he might be stuck in a room with a madman. He glanced back at the tiles and considered running for it if this Constable Fieldview turned out to be bad news.

"Hey, that looks neat," Constable Fieldview suddenly said.

Link turned back around to find Constable Fieldview admiring something on him. "What?" Link asked.

"Is that a Rope on your belt there?" Constable Fieldview asked, pointing.

Link glanced down at his right side. "Oh, you mean my whip?"

"It's a _whip_?" Constable Fieldview asked, looking interested. "I didn't know you could make a whip out of a Rope. How'd you do it?"

"Uh… actually, I didn't really _make_ it," Link admitted. "It was given to me."

"So, will it snap like a regular whip?"

"No," Link replied, shaking his head. He used a couple of fingers to show Constable Fieldview the handle. "If you throw it at something and time it right, you can grip the whip at the base of the tale, and the mouth will shut tight."

Constable Fieldview snapped his fingers. "You know what? I can _use_ something like that. Will it hold a lot of weight?"

"Uh…" Link replied, taken aback by Constable Fieldview's sudden attention to his whip. "We-well, it's, uh… it's had to move a metal crane carrying three Hylians and a Goron…"

"Are you using it now?"

Link's mouth opened and shut as he tried to think of a reason to keep the whip. When he could not, he replied, "N-no?"

Constable Fieldview started digging into one of his pockets. "Mind if I take it? C'moooon. I'll trade ya." Link considered it for a moment. Then he stepped closer while detaching the leather loop that held the whip to his belt. He had to pause right in front of Constable Fieldview to remove the loop as well and re-secured the whip with it. "Hold your hand out." Link did so with his empty hand, and Constable Fieldview dropped a large feather into his hand. It was blue and looked to have been through a rough period; half of its barbs were scraggly, and the shaft in the middle had been bent at a slight angle.

Link gave Constable Fieldview a skeptical look. "A feather?"

Constable Fieldview grinned at him. "I thought the _exact_ same thing. Trust me, Captain Link, you're gonna _love_ it." He glanced over his shoulder. "Ye—I'm _coming_, okay?" Then he turned back to Link. "How 'bout it?"

Link felt that he was being cheated, but since the feather was already in his hand, he decided to hand over the whip.

In a flash, he found himself standing in a dark, dank, creepy-looking place. The sudden sight of some strange room caused him to flinch back and release the whip into Constable Fieldview's hand. In the same instant, he was back in the technoworks. He took a stunned step backward. Constable Fieldview seemed to understand immediately because he said, "Yeah, I know what you mean. Personally, I wouldn't mind spending a bit more time wherever you're at, but I got a kingdom to save."

Link managed to let out a strained laugh. "Heh. Yeah. Me, too."

Constable Fieldview held up a thumb to him. "Have fun with that." Then he turned completely around and took a pair of steps away from Link. "Okay, let's try somewhere else. I don't think they went to the magical land of fluffy orange and yellow walls. But I've _gotta_ remember this. If we catch any of these guys, I wanna throw them in a cell that looks _just_ like this."

Then, without so much as a flicker of remains, Constable Fieldview blinked out of existence. Link stared at the empty space for a moment, wondering who he had just talked to.

He also wondered if he was gonna be that annoying when he got older.


	102. Old and New Crews (Somebody Save Me)

Chapter 102: Old and New Crews (Somebody Save Me)

…

After Link's encounter with the young man calling himself "Constable Fieldview", he stepped on the special tiles to emerge into the garden room of the technoworks. Irleen raised question as to what took him so long, but Link decided that he wanted to hold off telling her about the person he had encountered. Instead, he said that he would explain it later. This earned him some of her annoyance, but she decided to drop the subject in favor of leaving the technoworks to their restored operation.

Link found himself grateful that the exit was much closer. He still had a hard time walking due to his leg still being partially numb, but he could at least move about on his own. Within a matter of minutes, he, Irleen, Layna (who subsequently disappeared), and the Grey, whom Irleen had introduced as Airman Lutock of the _Horizon's Eye_, emerged from the cavern into the black evening waiting for them. Link closed the broken door as best as he could and took Irleen and Lutock out to the docks through the half-lit streets of Bold Island. The walk was relatively quiet, mostly because Link was extremely tired. Lutock could not converse with either of them while Link held Irleen's gem, so he had decided to quietly follow them.

They returned to the _Conductor_ to find no sign of Cale, Lilly, Line, or Flower. Link was relieved to see the faint glow of the Sky Lines in the surrounding air and waved the group aboard. Layna boarded the boat and settled herself around the side of the pilot's station, keeping herself hidden just out of sight of the boarding plank. Lutock busied himself with examining the _Conductor_. Link sat down on the deck behind the pilot's station, angling himself so he could see anyone coming aboard. Irleen lingered near him.

At one point, her boredom with the silence got the better of her, and she finally asked, "So. How are you doing, Link?"

Link, with his arms wrapped around himself, gave a shrug. "Kinda cold."

"Right, she… cut the legs off your undersuit, didn't she?"

Link adjusted his position so he could fold his legs together. He found he could still feel the cold evening air through the hole in his trousers. "Yep."

Irleen gave a moment of pause. Then she asked, "Where do you think we need to go from here?"

Again, Link shrugged. "It's a little hard to say. But my best guess is we'll still be heading south from here. We'll wait and see what Lilly and Cale have for us."

"It's hard to imagine them getting very far after all we've heard about the queen's condition," Irleen said.

Link nodded. "No doubt. So I'm hoping that they may have stopped at Bell Island or maybe even Rake Island. Somewhere between here and Castle Island at least."

"Are those the only islands between here and there?"

At this, Link gave a sigh. "No. Probably the biggest on the way there is Skyrider Port. We'll be sailing right past it, you know."

"Like passing a beehive," Irleen said with a contemptuous tone.

"We'll see," Link said. Then he looked up at the sound of footsteps on the boarding plank.

Layna was the first to rise, which earned her the following remark from Line, "Hi, sexy."

Link had risen second to see Line and Flower stepping off the boarding plank with Cale and Lilly in tow. "I was hoping to find you guys already here," he told Line as he stepped into the pilot's station to get closer to him. "Where'd you go?"

"We went poking around the blockade ships," Flower said. "Good news, by the way."

"We'll take it," Irleen told him.

"We may know wheah the king and queen have gone," Cale said. "One of the vessel commandahs we spoke with remembahed encountering a vessel flying a royal banneh."

"Were they allowed to dock here?" Link asked.

"Nope," Line said as he sidled up next to Layna. He gave her a lingering stare and said nothing more.

"Uh, the ship was denied on threat of sinking," Flower continued, reaching over to slug Line's shoulder. Line jumped and gave Flower an annoyed glare. "They turned and sailed away."

"Predictably enough, they continued…" Cale had to pause to think of directions. "South. They continued south from heah."

"I thought the guy said 'north'," Flower asked.

"It's a different issue with navigation," Link told them. "But it's _certain_ that they were going toward Castle Island, right?"

"That was the impression I came away with," Cale said with a nod.

"Okay then," Link said. "We'll make for Bell Island in the morning."

"Actually, Lieutenant," Flower spoke up, "I think our better bet would be Skyrider Port."

Link shook his head. "We were just talking about that. I think we should avoid the Port as best as we can."

"Then you don't know, do you?"

Link traded a look with Cale. "Know what?"

"Since our ships are being supplied out of the castle, the Port's been abandoned. Last I understood, the office closed down; I even got a letter from one of the secretaries saying so. I really believe we should see if they're at the Port; it would be the best place to stop."

"Ah you suah?" Cale asked.

"Yeah," Flower told him. "Call it a gut instinct."

Link's mind wandered back to what Captain Luke had told him about the loyalty that the Skyrider captains were supposed to have pledged to the Crown before receiving their post. He did not know if the office staff would show the same loyalty, but he could see Flower's reasoning. So he nodded. "Okay. We'll give the Port a try. Flower, signal our departure and haul in our mooring lines. Everyone else…" He paused to grimace as it occurred to him how they would be returning to the _Island Symphony_. "Uh… fit below as best as you can. And try not to scream."

This was the only thing to snap Line out of staring at Layna. "Wait, what?" he asked.

…

Someone screamed, and Link honestly did not think he was going that fast. Then again, now knowing what to expect from the engine Sello had put in the _Conductor_ may have made him used to the idea of going so fast. He was able to brace himself up for the low-speed departure. Then, once the _Conductor_ was out of the blockade, Link dared to open the throttle enough to send them soaring back to the light that was the _Island Symphony_. About halfway to the ship, he stopped the engine and fired a green flare into the air. The _Island Symphony_ responded with a green flare, and Link finished the boat ride back to the ship. Stopping the _Conductor_ over the _Island Symphony_'s poop deck was very tricky due to the launch wanting to drift even after Link shut the engine off. But as he descended, he called to Twali and Dubbl to grab the mooring ropes they had dropped and tug the boat into position. It was a clumsy process; both the crew on the ship and the launch cried out in panic whenever both vessels struck each other. With a bit more work, the _Conductor_ settled into its supports inside the boat deck, and Link completely closed off the ballast. Dubbl, a few minutes later, brought the ladder into position against the _Conductor_'s transom.

"Link," Line said as he rested against the outside of the pilot's station, "I don't know _where_ you got this ship…but it's really weird. And… this boat's gonna _kill_ someone."

"Considering things lately," Link said wearily, although without Line's breathlessness, "that's not the worse news I've heard."

"Boat's secure, sir," Flower reported, approaching the station from the bow.

Link nodded. "I hope you guys didn't need any gear from the island."

"Nothing was really ours," Flower said. "We'd sold most everything we had just to make it here."

"Nothing _I_ wanted," Line said. He patted one of his trouser pockets. "Nice-looking pocketknife's about all I need."

"No clothes or anything?" Link asked.

Line gave a wry chuckle. "Lost it all when the _Sonata_ went down."

"All _my_ gear was still on the _Grand Sails_," Flower said.

"Okay," Link said. "Well, we've got plenty of spare bunks. They're forward under the main deck. Grab some sleep; chances are we'll be at the Port in the morning."

"Aye, sir," Flower said.

"Got it," Line agreed.

Link watched as they moved to the transom. Then he turned to look forward as Irleen and Lutock stepped out from the cabin. "How's he doing, Irleen?"

"Well, his health would be better if this thing's engine wasn't built by a lunatic," Irleen replied while Lutock looked around at the deck. "But he's all right. He's probably the healthiest guy on Bold Island."

Link nodded. "Can you guide him downstairs to the officers' quarters? It's just two decks below the main deck. I figure he could use some rest, like the rest of us."

"We can take him, sir," Flower spoke up, his head still above the transom. Without waiting for an answer, he waved a hand to invite Lutock over. Lutock gave Link a concerned look before stepping around to follow Flower down the ladder.

Link shrugged. "I guess that takes care of that."

"Beats having to wander around the ship," she responded. "I think I'm ready for bed. Are you planning on staying up anymore?"

Link shook his head. "No, I've gotta get some sleep, too." He glanced back at the cabin to see Lilly and Cale emerging. He turned to them and said, "Go on to bed, but try not to sleep too late in the morning. I still need you on duty."

"Oka—aaaaaaah—ay," Cale replied, unable to suppress his yawn. "Excuse me."

"See ya in the mornin'," Lilly said as they walked past.

Link watched Cale take the ladder down first. Then he realized someone was missing and glanced back at the cabin. He stepped out of the pilot's station and walked over to the doorway. It was hard to tell with only a little light filtering in from somewhere over his shoulder, but he saw Layna's lifeless form huddled in a corner of the small cabin. He turned his head to listen a little better, and he realized that she had fallen asleep where she was sitting. He grinned to himself and decided to leave her alone, thinking that it might be dangerous to try waking her.

Link descended from the launch a moment later and encountered Dubbl waiting for him at the bottom. "You go to bed, Kyabtin?" she asked him.

Link nodded. "Yeah," he told her. "We've got the Sky Lines back, but…" He paused to groan and stretch out his arms. "… We'll get moving in the morning. Let Leynne know that I want to see him the moment he relieves you."

Dubbl nodded. "Yes, Kyabtin."

…

~~Day 88 (Command, Day 88)

~~We came to Bold Island, we kicked ass on Bold Island, we'll leave Bold Island in the morning. I'm way too tired to do ano~~

…

Link started awake when someone knocked on the door to his cabin. Instead of writing an entry in his journal and then going to bed, he woke up to find that he had fallen asleep on top of the journal while still sitting at his desk. He gave the book an annoyed glare when he realized that he had drooled on the page he was supposed to have been writing on. He used a sleeve to wipe it off, forgetting about the door until the person on the other side knocked harder. "Come in," Link called.

Leynne stepped inside, looking more alive than Link felt and wearing a black, long-sleeve, button-down shirt and tan trousers. "Sohry to distuhb you, but Dubbl said you wanted to see me," he said.

Link tried to shake his head back into operation and stood up. "Yeah," he said. "Just a couple things I needed. First, we have two new crewmembers."

Leynne raised an eyebrow. "You hihed new crewmembehs on Bold Island?"

"No, actually," Link said. "They're members of the _Island Sonata_'s crew. Do you remember me mentioning my friend Line?"

"The name sounds familiah."

"I found him and Airman Flower on the island. They've been hiding out here since they brought part of Cunimincus' crew here. Uh… shoot." Link shook his head again as he tried to remember the assignments he had worked out for them sometime the previous evening. "Um… I wanna go ahead and free you from the helm, so I'd like to have Line on the helm on the day shift."

"And… my duty as second-in-command?"

Link sighed. "I'd prefer you to remain second for now." He held up a hand as Leynne opened his mouth. "I know I said that I'd relieve you as soon as I found someone qualified for the position, but Line and Flower need a bit of time to get use to how things work on this ship."

Leynne shrugged. "Actually, I only questioned it because I've recently found myself accommodating to the position. While I could go without having to deal with the eccentricities of this crew, I admit to having developed a fondness foh the post itself."

Link blinked at him, unsure if he really understood what Leynne was saying. "You… wanna _keep_ the position?"

Leynne allowed himself a half-grin. "To my own suhprise, yes."

"Uh…" Link raised his arms in a show of agreement. "O-okay, then. Um… but, yeah, I'd like Line on the helm on the day shift; he's a decent navigator, and it'll free _you_ up for other duties."

Leynne nodded. "And this Aihman Floweh?"

"I'd like to go ahead and put Flower on lookout instead of Cale. Between the two, Flower will be better at identifying vessels at a distance. I'd like to make Cale the ship's supply chief, something clerical."

"And a position that doesn't leave him in so much dangeh of falling off the poop deck," Leynne added, now allowing himself a complete smile.

Link chuckled. "Yeah, that, too. I'll get him trained in the next couple of days, so just leave that to me."

"And Lilly?"

"Huh? What about Lilly?"

"Well, you've left heh to simply follow Cale around. I would expect that she desehves an appropriate assignment as well."

Link drew back the corners of his mouth. "Yeah, that's right. I… really don't know what to do with her. Maybe just let her take on the clerical work, too. Once we're done, we should be returning her to Sagacity Island anyway."

Leynne nodded. "Okay. What was the otheh item you wanted to discuss?"

"Right," Link said. He stepped around his desk and invited Leynne over to the map table. "We have a lead on the king and queen. According to a crewmember of one of the blockade ships, a ship bearing the royal banner had come by Bold Island at some point. They got turned away, and we're certain that they continued south toward Castle Island."

Leynne nodded to himself. "That's consistent with the direction we've been following. So, on to… Bell Island, is it?"

"Actually, we're going to pass Bell Island for the moment and head straight for Skyrider Port."

Leynne raised an eyebrow. "Skyrideh Poht. As in the base of operations of youh fohmeh colleagues."

"I know it sounds crazy…"

"It wouldn't be my fihst choice of wohds, but yes, it does."

"Flower told me that the Skyriders have been operating out of Castle Island, and it makes sense. They're being supplied directly out of the castle; I've seen the docking towers they erected _within_ the castle walls. If that's the case, the island will be abandoned."

"And if it isn't the case?"

"Then the Sky Lines will give us a better chance of escaping again," Link told him. "And, from there, we can check out the nearby islands only hours away. But… Flower thinks that the Port is the second-best place to find them, and I tend to agree."

Leynne gave a sigh. "Okay, Link. We don't have much in the way of chahts, so I'll plot us a rough couhse. My initial guess would be…" He paused to examine the map on the table in front of them. "I want to say we'll be theh by noon, but I've found my usual navigation skills hindehed by the inaccuracy of these lahgeh maps and the presence of the Sky Lines."

Link nodded. "Give it your best shot. Is the rest of the day shift up?"

"I can't be cehtain. _I_ woke up eahly because something struck the deck above my cabin quite hahd. If I had to guess, I would imagine Sello having anotheh encounteh with the Gelto."

"Was he being a handful yesterday?"

"Not pahticulahly, but that neveh seems to mean much."

Link nodded. "Okay. I'll keep an eye on the deck while you plot our course."

Leynne turned as Link stepped over to retrieve his tunic from atop his footlocker. "Actually, Dubbl's still on the deck. She didn't want to leave until you weh done with me."

"That's okay, I'll let her go."

Link put on his tunic and strapped his gun belt to it. He stepped out to find that it was actually quite early in the morning. The sun had yet to rise, although the stars had already disappeared in the brightness of the eastern skies. Link was surprised to find that, in addition to Dubbl and Lwamm on the main deck, Twali was there. From the volume of her voice, something had upset her. Link took in a breath and strode across the deck to their position between the main masts. As he approached, he asked over Twali's voice, "Is everything all right?"

All three Gelto jumped in surprise and immediately saluted him. Link's responding salute was lacking any sort of enthusiasm, so they were confused as they slowly lowered their hands. There was a pause before Dubbl told him, "Twali found stlange' in he' bed."

"She found a-a _stranger_ in her bunk?" Link asked.

"Yes, Kyabtin."

Link paused. Then, panic jarred him to life, and he quickly asked, "She didn't _kill_ anyone, did she?"

Dubbl shook her head. "She not killed. She only zlew."

"She _what_? She _threw_ him? Who was it? Does she know?"

"Uh… someone… she zought it Kyabtin, but… wlong hai'."

"Long… hair? Oh, _wrong_ hair? Was his hair red?"

Dubbl nodded. "Yes."

Link sighed and told himself, "That didn't take too long…" Then he heard footsteps on the deck and looked past the girls to see Line walking towards them. "Oh, well. 'Speak of the idiot, and he shall come'."

"Link!" Line snapped, stepping around the Gelto as if not even noticing them. "I just got thrown out of my bed, and I wanna know _why_!"

"Wabnik!" both Lwamm and Twali snapped, each pointing a finger at him.

This caught Line by surprise, and he jumped sideways. But, once he had recovered, he just gaped at them. "Link… you have _more_?!"

Link indicated Twali. "Line, this is Twali. And she threw you out of _her_ bed."

"Giyroxwan!" Twali snapped at him.

"Huh," Line responded. "Makes me wanna do it again."

Link pinched the bridge of his nose. "Oh, boy…"

"What?" Line asked. "They're _hot_."

Dubbl's face changed from a neutral stare to one of annoyance. "Wacobalan alwub 'immu min, maddix 'anayrti 'adhijlwin," she told him, pointing a finger at him. Lwamm and Twali, seemingly in response, crossed their arms.

Link grabbed the back of Line's shirt. "Okay, Line, time to step back before they rip out your spine and beat you to death with it," he said, tugging Line backwards a few steps.

"Wh—Who says that's a _bad_ thing?" Line asked.

"Kyabtin, he came flom whe'e?" Dubbl asked.

Line's face went from love-struck to the only kind of shock reserved for the realization one was about to die horribly. "She speaks Hylian?"

"Line, go over there," Link said, pointing to the port main mast, "sit down, and shut up for a moment."

"Gladly," Line replied, walking away quickly.

Link waited until he was out of earshot before speaking to Dubbl. "This is Airman Line. He used to be a member of my crew, and he's going to take over manning the helm for Leynne. Look, I don't know why he's acting all…"

"Hungly?" Dubbl suggested.

Link took a moment to stumble through what she meant. When he had the idea, he could feel his face heat up. "Uh… yeah, let's… let's go with that. An-anyway, just… try to bear with it. Please? I-I know he's already said some stupid things, but… well, we could use his help."

Dubbl's annoyed glare broke. Instead, she gave him a worried look. "I not woddy fo' Twali and Lwamm," she told him. "I woddy fo' Dholit."

Link's eyes went wide. "Oh, crap," he said aloud. "I forgot about her."

"Link?"

"YIKES!" Link jumped to almost his full height when Leynne's voice addressed him from behind. Lwamm quickly grabbed his arms to keep him from crashing into her.

"Oh, sohry," Leynne said. "I didn't mean to distuhb youh convehsation, but I think I have ouh couhse ready. It'll be a little tricky."

"Fine, fine," Link said. He took a deep breath to calm himself.

"You really don't like people walking up behind you, do you?" Irleen asked with a giggle in her voice.

Link looked up to find her hovering over Link's head. "Have you ever met someone who _has_?" he asked.

"Oh, I didn't realize you weh up theh," Leynne said to her. "I didn't wake you, did I?"

"Yeah, but I'll get over it."

"Good morning, Lieutenant," Flower said as he stepped around Twali. "Is this the daily officer's meeting I'm crashing?"

"Good morn—hlwekkh!" Link's response to Flower's greeting was suddenly cut off by Lwamm, who had released his arms and was now squeezing his neck in her arms from behind. Panicked, he started squeezing his fingers between her arms and his throat.

Lwamm stood in awe, staring at Flower as she said, "'Inu sayaxwikak nwik sanway."

"'_Aydhom_," Dubbl corrected.

"Na', ilwozhud ta'ab, 'inu sayaxwikak zhal," Lwamm said.

"Lwamm!" Twali whined.

"What's going on?" Flower asked.

"I think you may have struck Lwamm's fancy," Leynne said, trying to hold back a grin.

Link gave a heavy cough and finally shouted, "Lwamm!" Lwamm quickly released Link out of surprise, and Link stumbled forward.

"'Inu liyxomotak dhol!?" Lwamm called out, looking horrified. She turned to Dubbl and Twali. Dubbl looked just as alarmed, but Twali appeared annoyed. "'Inu liyxomotak dhol!? 'Inu mudhjya'ak zabaytkw 'Imayn Kyabtin!"

"Ah you all right?" Leynne asked Link.

"I'm okay," Link replied with a nod.

"Ah! Layna!" Twali suddenly cried out.

"Whoa!" Flower hollered when he realized that a confused-looking Layna was standing right behind him. He snapped at her, "What is _wrong_ with you!?"

The situation around Link quickly devolved into everyone screaming at everyone else. Twali was shouting at Lwamm, Lwamm was shouting at Layna (although most of it looked like begging), Leynne was trying to explain things to Flower over the Gelto fighting, Flower was trying to ask questions, and Irleen was trying to address both Leynne and Dubbl at the same time. For reasons unknown to Link, Line ran back into the conversation and started trying to flirt with every Gelto at the same time. This resulted in Dubbl shouting things at him in Geltoan, which only seemed to encourage Line to say more to her. Link and Layna were the only ones not making any sound and, instead, just watching everything.

"Good mohning, My Dahlings!"

Everyone suddenly froze in place, Line and Flower out of curiosity and the rest of the crew out of utter dread. Dholit stood behind Layna, whose stance had stiffened due to Dholit's proximity (and maybe the feeling of Dholit's finger slowly brushing the length of her arm). Link never thought he would be grateful to see her, but with the crew causing each other trouble, her eccentricity was just the thing he needed to draw the crew together. On pain of being left to Dholit if he needed.

He cleared his throat (mostly because it still hurt), and he croaked out, "Okay," he addressed his crew. "Obviously, there've been a few developments." He started pointing a finger as he introduced people. "Line, Flower, these are Chiefs Leynne and Dubbl, our night shift deck crew Lwamm and Twali, and part of the day shift crew… Dholit. Guys, these are our new airmen. Airmen Flower and Line."

Flower glanced around at the Gelto. "Quite the crew you got here, Lieutenant," he remarked with a smirk.

"_I'll_ say," Line agreed as he stared at Dholit.

"Line…" Link said in a warning tone.

Dholit gave Line a smile and slowly approached him. Line's eyes went wide, as did everyone else familiar with Dholit's antics. She stopped close enough that Line quit breathing in fear that getting his breath on her might offend her. Dholit pointedly leered at Link.

Then she bent down, grabbed the sides of Line's head, and pressed her lips against his with amazing passion. Almost instantly, Link, Irleen, Leynne, Dubbl, and even Lwamm and Twali simultaneously snapped at her, "DHOLIT!"

Dholit released Line with as much noise as their lips could make. Line had a dumb-struck smile on his face, and he managed to stand still for a moment, staring into space. Then his eyes rolled back into his head, and he collapsed where he stood, causing a loud _thunk_ when his head struck the deck.

"Great, Dholit," Link said, pressing a hand over his eyes. "Great. Now he's useless."


	103. We're Home

Chapter 103: We're Home

…

After Link and Leynne straightened out Line's and Flower's new duties, they took a moment to have breakfast. Then Leynne gave Link the papers he had been using to keep track of the _Island Symphony_'s supplies. He had to take a bit of time to work his way through Leynne's curvy scrawl, but he finally managed to decipher the handwriting and spent about half an hour explaining the extent of the position of supply chief to Cale and Lilly. He mentioned that it included accompanying Leynne ashore when Leynne went for supplies (as the only man aboard who actually carried money) and that, if anyone needed anything from their supply other than rations, they had to report it to him so he could mark it off. He also pointed out that, because he was technically being promoted to a chief position, he would be getting one of the quarters beneath the berth deck so he had office space to store the ship's inventory (which, for now, would be listed on whatever spare paper they could scavenge from some of the storage crates). He told Lilly that he would allow her to be Cale's assistant since it was not expected of her to remain a permanent member of the crew. The revelation seemed to annoy her, despite Link walking away with her reassurances that she had not been offended at all. In hindsight, it was probably an indication that something was going to happen.

Instead, the trouble started on the weather deck. The _Island Symphony_ was traveling using a Sky Line once more, and Link was glad to feel its power again. The open sails looked alive as he watched the ship from the quarterdeck. Dholit, Biluf, Layna, and Line busied themselves with examining the rigging, a job Link had given them since it had been some time since the _Island Symphony_ traveled in a Sky Line. He had no doubt of Dubbl's abilities to maintain the rigging, but it did not hu—Wait a minute.

Line was on the _main_ deck. And he seemed to have struck up a conversation with _Dholit_!

Without thinking about it, Link jumped the railing and landed light on the main deck. Then he sprinted across the deck to the port fore-mast, where Dholit had been distracted from her duties. Between his special boots and the constant burst of wind off the stern, Link overestimated his speed and completely mowed Line out of Dholit's sight. Both boys crashed to the deck, earning attention from Biluf and Layna.

Both of them lay next to each other, Line groaning at having taken the entirety of Link's tackle. Link pushed himself off the deck and grabbed Line's sleeve. "Are you…" he started before he realized that the blow had knocked his breath out. He took a moment to catch it before asking, "Are you out of your mind, Line?"

"Agh," Line groaned louder as he sat up. Then he snapped, "What the _hell_, Link!? You doing part-time as a _battering_ _ram_!?"

"Oh, forget _that_!" Link said, shoving Line to no real effect. "Why aren't you on the helm!?"

"It's fine, Link," Line told him. He pointed over his shoulder at the forecastle. "That guy was just nosing around, so I asked him to take the wheel for a bit. No harm done, right?"

Link glanced up at the helm. Shock made him find his feet in the next instant. He grabbed the sides of his head and cried out, "Ack!"

Because, as revealed by his orange outfit, _Sello_ was on the helm. As in he was resting on top of the wheel with his lower half, visible to Link, draped over the back.

"What the hell is he _doing_!?" Line shouted from behind Link.

"He's _drunk_, Line!" Link shouted before dashing to the stairs on the port side. He stepped onto the forecastle and immediately shouted, "Sello! Get off the wheel!" He moved forward until he could see Sello's head and arms dangling from the front. "Sello!"

Sello raised his head. Then he waved to Link. "Oh, hiiiiiiii!" he shouted over the wind. His movement caused the wheel to shift, and Sello only had a moment to shout out, "Whoa…" before the spin of the wheel threw him against the deck.

The _Island Symphony_ turned to starboard, and Link fell backwards onto his rear. He was back on his feet in seconds and lunged forward to grab the wheel by the spokes to stop it. Then he used the handles to turn the wheel the other way as quickly as possible. Line joined him a few minutes later, and they both straightened the ship back in the direction of the Sky Line.

Link sighed and told Line, "Sello's our chief engineer. He's also the ship's drunk."

Line glanced down at Sello. "Well, what's he doing wandering around _drunk_?"

"It's the only way to keep him working." Link moved to the front of the wheel and prodded Sello's shoulder with a foot. "You okay, Sello?"

Sello chuckled. "Didn' hurt!" he declared.

Link shook his head. "You keep _saying_ that…"

"This floor taztez strange."

Line nearly burst out laughing. "What?" he asked.

"Sello, go back to the engine room," Link told him.

Sello stood up and saluted with his hand upright against his temple and his palm exposed. "Wif biscuits," he said to Link.

Line waited for Sello to step back down to the main deck before asking, "Where'd you find this guy?"

"Inside a volcano."

Line gave Link a strange look. "What's a volcano?"

Link sighed. "It's a mountain that… that tries to kill you."

Line's eyes wandered for a bit. "Okay, I think I can understand _him_ being in there. What were _you_ doing in there?"

"I was looking for him."

"You… went into a mountain that tries to kill people to look for a drunk. You couldn't just go to a bar?"

"Wha—_I_ didn't know he was gonna be a drunk!"

Line paused for a moment. "What _were_ you doing in a volcano?"

"Agh! What do _you_ care!? You don't even know what it _is_!" Link quickly raised a hand to stop Line from talking. "Ah! No more. Just… just keep us on course. Don't worry about where I found the drunk."

"I'll worry all I want!" Line shouted as Link walked away from him.

"Well _get over it_!" Link quickly stepped down to the main deck before Line could shout something else at him.

Dholit was waiting for him at the base of the stairs, wearing her usual smirk. "Is this how My Captain expresses jealousy?" she asked.

"N—I wouldn't have minded if he'd found someone other than _Sello_," Link said.

"Oh, My _Captain_," she told him, waving a hand, "don't make me wohk so _hahd_."

"Ah—Go away!" Link snapped. "Go make sure Flower didn't fall over the side!"

"Yes, oh My Captain." Dholit turned and started skipping sternward like a young girl at play.

Layna and Biluf stared after her for a moment. Then, from where they stood near the forward capstan, they looked at Link. "What!?" Link cried out defensively, arms held out to help proclaim his innocence. Layna started and immediately turned away. Biluf glanced at her and gave her a grin. Link turned away from them, pretending to be interested in something off to starboard.

What caught his attention was dark smoke escaping from the starboard stairs leading below. His first thought was that Biluf had caused another fire. This thought only lasted a moment when he realized that Biluf was on the deck _with_ him. Then he realized that Sello had gone down those stairs just moments before.

"Lay—YIKES!" Yet again, as he turned to call Layna, he found that she had already snuck up behind him. Biluf, unaware that her friend had disappeared, waved a hand through the air where she was sure Layna had just been standing. Link shook his head. "You have _got_ to stop doing that. Biluf!" Link waved, and Biluf started in their direction as he and Layna jogged to the stairs.

Link had to place a hand over his mouth as they passed the cargo hold into the galley deck. All three hunched low as they stepped off the stairs and huddled close to the bulkhead so they could navigate toward the stern. He thought that the source of the fire was the engine room, meaning that they would need to go down one more deck to bypass all the smoke.

"Who's there?"

Link was a little surprised to hear Lilly's voice. "Lilly?" he asked.

"Yeah?"

Link waved a hand in front of his face, trying to clear the dark smoke away. He coughed and asked, "What's going on?"

"Well, the ship jerked, and I dropped some stuff. Did you know there was a stove back here?"

"Yeah. But I thought Sello took it apart."

"Uh… he took the door off the front, but I still got it goin'. A piece of wood rolled out, but—"

_Dunk._ "Ow!" Link shouted. He reached down and found himself pushing an empty barrel out of his way. "Did the deck catch fire?"

"No." Link suddenly felt a breeze, and the smoke cleared for a moment. He found Lilly standing outside the alcove where the stove had been stowed, using a fire blanket to fan smoke out into the rest of the galley. "I saved the deck from catching fire, but, um… we'll need another barrel of water."

Link covered his eyes with a hand. "Is there anyone who _doesn't_ wanna burn down my ship?"

…

Fortunately, all that was left of the fire was smoke, which was aired out by opening the cargo hatches above by just a narrow margin. Link inspected the galley after it was clear and found that little damage had been done to the deck. At worst, it had a few more scorch marks and smelled of charred wood. Lilly explained to him that she had been upset by Link simply giving her a menial job as Cale's assistant and decided to try her hand at being the ship's cook. She had thought she could run the stove even without the front door until the ship had jerked and threw a flaming board out onto the deck. Link argued that there was nothing to cook on the ship, and, while she agreed, she dared him to fetch a list of ingredients when they stopped at the next port. Then, her anger more apparent, she stormed off while declaring she was going to go make out with Cale.

After the episode, things returned to a usual day of travel. The _Island Symphony_ reached a second junction of Sky Lines, and Leynne instructed Line to continue for another half-hour on their current Sky Line. Link questioned this, and Leynne explained that he was taking a back-route to the island. While the other Sky Line at the junction would have taken the _Island Symphony_ directly to the port area of the island, the ship would be less likely to be spotted if they approached from the east where the docks were _not_, thereby avoiding being spotted by anyone until they were close.

Half an hour later, the _Island Symphony_ dropped out of the Sky Line and sailed southwest until Skyrider Port was visible. With the duoscope, Link saw that only the island's junks were taking up the air around the island with no one waving any sort of flag to indicate the fake princess's navy. Just as Flower had said, the docks themselves were showing little activity. Only two ships were docked as far as Link could make out, and one of them was a fully-rigged galleon, the kind of ship Link expected the royal family to use. But Link could not confirm that was their vessel at this distance even _with_ the duoscope.

So Link decided to put the _Conductor_ to use again. His group of choice was Line, Irleen, Lutock (because the one person he could communicate with was leaving), and Layna. Link geared himself up in case they ran into trouble, carrying all but his bow since he did not have any more arrows. He piloted the boat again because Line was showing reservations about even riding it. And, Link had to admit, he still could not pilot it slow enough for even himself to be comfortable with it. Speed, however, was a little more necessary to cover the distance between the ship and the island in a reasonable amount of time. And, well… Link was beginning to enjoy the ludicrous power behind the Sello's lunatic engine.

He located a junk dock inside the western edge of the island and carefully maneuvered the _Conductor_ next to the raised platform. He cut the engine and moved over to the boat's bulwark just as a large, round man wearing a brown docker's uniform stepped onto the platform. "Ahoy there!" Link called to him.

"Ahoy," the docker called back with a wave of his hand.

"Hey, do you mind if we tie up here? Our ship is out there…" Link pointed out to where the _Island Symphony_ hung in the air. "… and the crew doesn't wanna get too close to the island."

"No, no," the docker told him with a carefree tone. "No, go right ahead. Just toss me your mooring lines, and I'll get you tied you off."

"Hey, Line," Link called to the cabin as he picked up the mooring line near him. "Could you get the mooring line on the bow for me?"

"Yeah, one sec," Line called back as he stepped out of the cabin. Link tossed the line, and then he turned to see Line stumble to the opposite side of the boat. He was about to call to Line, but then he heard Line retch over the side. So he shook his head and strode to the bow to send down the other mooring line. "I'm okay," Line shouted over his shoulder, although his voice sounded strained. "I'll get it here in a minute."

Link tossed the other line over the bulwark. Then he stepped back up to the cabin and said, "I already got it, Line."

"I _told_ you I'd get it," Line attempted to snap at him. However, he found it difficult to snap at Link when he could taste vomit at the back of his throat.

Lutock stepped out of the cabin, followed by Irleen. "Link," she said, "I _really_ think something should be done with the engine on this boat. Like, maybe… it should be murdered and set on fire and buried and blown up with bombs."

"And then placed in a metal box, burned again, and chucked overboard," Line chimed in, turning to show Link a pale face.

"Sorry, guys," Link said, trying not to smile. "I guess I went a little over the top with the speed."

"Well, the speed, and the constant steering," Line said. "Yesterday, it wasn't so bad."

"Yesterday, I wasn't fighting the wind around an island," Link pointed out. He fished into his pocket as he turned and told Irleen, "Irleen, could you tell Lutock to keep his hood on for now? We're going through town, and… well, none of these people have ever seen a Sorian before, so I… I don't know how they'll react."

"No problem, Link," she answered.

"Make sure he follows us; it's very easy to get lost here. And if he has any questions, have him hand the gem back."

"I get the gist, Link," she told him, sounding impatient.

"Just wanna make sure," Link said before handing the gem over to Lutock. Irleen began speaking to Lutock, but Link turned to look over the side instead of waiting to listen. The docker gave him a thumbs-up, so Link walked back to the pilot's station and closed off the ballast a little more. This brought the _Conductor_ down low enough that the docker was able to see over the bulwark. "Hey, Line? Do you mind seeing if Layna's still in the cabin?"

"Yeah, sure," Line said. He stepped back over to the doorway as Lutock moved to the edge of the boat and peered inside. "Uh… she's not there, Link."

Link nodded. "Yeah, I should've known. Okay, let's get moving." Link moved over to and stepped onto the bulwark. With his next step, he dropped down to the platform. He turned to the docker and said, "Sorry about this, sir. We'll try not to take too long."

The docker shook his head. "It's all right, son," he replied. "The guys that land here already made their rounds today; they won't be back until late this evening to dock the junks. You've got it for the whole afternoon if you need."

"Oh, thanks," Link replied as Line dropped off the boat next.

"No prob. You know, you're probably the sixth launch that's tied up here so far this month."

Link frowned. "Really? Who else has been here?"

The docker shrugged as Lutock dropped to the platform behind him. "A few cargo vessels headed north from Bell Island, one even from Bold Island. We even had a passenger ship use this dock as a terminal. The airmen from _her_ said they couldn't use the docks anymore since the Skyriders' main office closed down. I'm even willing to say some of the passengers leaving _were_ Skyriders."

"Oh, wow," Line said, prompting the docker to look over his shoulder to glance at him.

"Heard anything else about the docks?" Link asked. The docker only offered him a helpless shrug. "Okay, thanks anyway. Um… well, all the same, we'll try to be back as soon as we can."

"Take your time, boys," the docker said as Link, Line, and Lutock started down the platform's wide stairway. "Nothing much happening at Port today."

…

The docker was not joking. While the town remained its usual, bustling self with markets still open to the residents and junks carrying cargo overhead, the docks were almost entirely devoid of life. Just as Link had seen before, there were only two ships docked on the north side of the island: a brig with yellow hull markings (an Airliner vessel) which was off-loading supplies, and that fully-rigged galleon that Link had seen from the _Island Symphony_. Link was considering just walking up to the ship and asking the crew if it was the vessel they were looking for, but Line quickly pointed out that, with a sword across his back, Link looked more like a mercenary and was likely to be either turned away or arrested. Instead, Line persuaded Link to check out a tavern, thinking that a member of that ship's crew would be there to chat with.

Link relented quite easily, perhaps easier than he ever had when it came to listening to any of Line's suggestions. This was mostly because he was thinking the same thing as Line. Their destination was some distance from both the docks and where they had left the _Conductor_, but it would be well worth it if only to just see another friendly face or two.

The Sail Tavern. A two-story building like any other tavern to be found in the sky kingdom, but a building that Link and Line would never forget. A wave of nostalgia hit them as they stepped through the door. The smell of alcohol and pipe tobacco from the various patrons. A bar on the left which Line had been slid across on a few occasions. The bar stools on the end where they would enjoy their drinks without getting in the owner's way. The tables which they had tripped over and bumped into for years. All under a roof that they had once fallen through because Line had stomped a hole through it while they had been repairing it.

The sweet scent of ponga flower hit them just as they had stopped a few steps away from the entrance. Gale, one of the bartenders, had just walked past them with a tray full of ale in his arms. Gale was a thick-set, bald man wearing a pair of rugged, worn trousers and a clean, long-sleeve shirt under a white apron permanently stained more colors than either of the boys could name. "Be with you boys in a moment," he told them as he walked away in a rush to get the drinks to an occupied table across the room. But then his rush slowed, and he glanced back at the boys. He acknowledged that they were there, but he found himself coming to a full stop and turning back around with a surprised look on his face. "Line? _Link!?_"

"Hi, Gale," Line greeted him while Link waved a hand, both grinning ear-to-ear.

_CRASH!_ The noise startled everyone, and all heads turned to the middle-aged woman standing in front of the bar. She had a wide, boxum body which she clothed in a pair of white trousers and a blue, silk shirt, both of which appeared horribly wrinkled. Her wavy, blond hair was a mess as if it had not been styled for months. Her round face was a perfect picture of shock as she stared at the boys from across the floor, a tray of broken glass lying at her feet. Her boots crunched the glass further as she stepped across the tray. "Oh… my…" were the only words she could get out.

"Hi, Lady Leeta," Line called across the bar.

Leeta came to a sudden stop. "My _boys_!" she cried out just before she jogged across the floor.

"Oh, boy…" Link said, taking a frightened step back. Then he turned around with the intention of running. "No no no no no n—_hruk_!" he chanted before being cut off after Leeta grabbed his left arm, spun him, and wrapped him in her arms as tight as she could, burying his face in her ample bosom.

"Oh, my _Link_!" she cried out, shaking Link left and right before lifting his feet off the floor. Line broke out into hysterics, pointing and laughing at Link and Leeta hard enough to make his side hurt in seconds. "My Link!" Leeta continued. "You came back!"

"Somebody help!" Link… tried to say. Unfortunately, with his face buried, all he could say with any audibility was, "Mummumy mmm!" Naturally, this call for help went unanswered. Even if Link had managed a clear cry, Lutock was taken aback by what had just happened, Layna (who had jumped into the doorway upon perceiving Link being under attack) froze on the outside of the doorway with a confused glance around the side, and Line was too busy laughing.

"My Link, I'm _never_ letting you go again! Never, never, _never_!" Leeta declared. Then, catching Line out of the corner of her eye, she reached an arm toward him.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa—ack!" Line hollered up until Leeta hooked an arm around his neck. She pulled him close, and he started struggling against her thick arms. "Leeta! Leeta, I-I can't _breathe_!"

"You can breathe just fine!" she told him.

"Leeta," Gale, having delivered the drinks, told her as he put a gentle hand on her shoulder. "I know you've been missing the boys…" He started chuckling. "But you should let them go before you suffocate them."

"I don't wanna!" Leeta replied in a childish tone.

"Leeta," Gale said. She looked over her shoulder at him. "Why don't you go sit and talk with the boys? I'll take care of the load."

"Aww…" Leeta uttered, tears forming in her eyes. She freed Line (who moved out of her reach) to wipe her eyes. "Give everyone a free round for me."

"Will do," Gale said with a grin, giving her a pat before returning to the bar.

Leeta finally released Link, who had to back off so he could breathe in the air again, and indicated the far end of the bar. "Come sit down, you two," she said as tears began to fall across her face. "You've got some explaining to do."

"Yeah, yeah," Line groaned as Link invited Lutock with a wave of his hand. "We know." Leeta, as Line stepped past her, turned and smacked the back of his head. "Ow!"

"Don't give _me_ that tone, Line!" she snapped.

The three of them (with Irleen still hidden inside Lutock's robes somewhere) took a seat at the bar. Leeta gave them each a cup of juice, which Lutock examined for a bit before drinking. In almost an hour, Link and Line had filled her in on only some of the details of their adventures. Link knew Leeta well enough that he did not want to mention the dangers he faced on the surface or anything to do with the Sky Lines. He had never been in that kind of danger before, and he knew Leeta to overreact to every little injury he had received in the past (including a bad tendency to hug him after Line had dislocated Link's shoulder). Line had also left things out of his story, mostly transporting Cunimincus' crew to the kingdom. So the basic story she got was that Link's ship had been shot down by… something while the ship Line was on was captured by… someone. Even then, Link still found her wrapping her arms around his head from across the bar.

Line had to pry her arms loose. When Link settled back down on the stool, he was holding the sides of his head in response to the headache she was causing. "That's beginning to hurt," he told Leeta.

"Well, you know how I get, Link," she scolded him. "I love you boys; I don't like it when things happen to you. And _you_! You were on the _surface_! You were on the surface this _whole_ time! After Alfonzo told me what happened…" She trailed off.

Line quickly asked, "You saw the captain? When?"

She looked down at the bar as she thought. "Oh, it must have been months ago," she said. "It wasn't long after you boys left, maybe a few days. He said that your ship had gone missing, and he was afraid something bad had happened. I've…" She indicated herself. "I've been worried _sick_ about you two. You could've written."

"Ah—_I_ tried!" Line argued.

"Line," Link told him. Then he asked Leeta, "Do you know where Captain Alfonzo went?"

"You mean… _he_'s missing now?" she asked.

Link shrugged. "We haven't been able to find him."

She glanced down at the bar. "Oh."

The boys shared an uncomfortable look. "Um… look, we don't have a lot of time," Link said. "Uh… we noticed that galleon in the port. Is anyone here from its crew?"

Gale, who had stepped up behind Leeta, nodded his head to a table across the floor. "Those boys in green are," he said. Link and Line glanced over at the table to see a group of three men conversing among themselves. They wore green tunics, but they were also wearing small pieces of plate armor on top. It was nothing like the full suit Link had seen Sir Gilliam wearing back on Castle Island, but Link could think of no other group of people who wore armor.

"How long have they been in port?" Line asked.

"Hard to say," Gale replied. "Month or so, maybe?"

Link tapped Line's shoulder. "Let's go," he said. Line set down his drink and followed Link across the floor. They stood near the table, waiting to be noticed. When no one looked up, Link cleared his throat. This caught their attention, so Link said, "Do you mind if we talk to you guys a moment?"

The closest of the three eyed Link. "What do you want, kid?" he asked.

"We're not anyone suspicious, if that's what you're thinking," Line spoke up.

All three men shared a look. Then they rose at once, revealing that each of them was armed with a sword when they put their gauntleted hands on the handles. Link and Line backed up, and Link asked in an annoyed tone, "_Seriously_, Line?"

"Boys!" Leeta cried. "Get away from them!"

"Take them into custody," one of the other men said.

Link and Line backed up further. "Wait, wait!" Link immediately cried as they drew their swords. "Don't do—"

_BAM!_ The man on the far side of the table suddenly had his head bashed into the table's surface. Link and Line only caught a flash of Layna's existence before she picked up and shoved him into his nearby fellow. The fellow caught him, which afforded Layna the time to slink out of sight. He had lost his footing from catching his partner, but his fall to the floor was abrupt, as if something grabbed him from below.

"What the—?" the remaining man said, turning to find that both of his companions had disappeared from sight.

_Kink!_ Layna had popped up between him and the table (an amazing feat considering the lack of space between them) and, using a knife with a wicked blade which curved back over her knuckles, simply twisted her wrist and snapped the blade of his shortsword off. He only had a moment to gawk at his sword before she stabbed him in the arm with a needle hidden in her opposite fist. Backing away, he dropped his sword and removed the needle from his arm. He stared at it for a moment as if trying to comprehend what had just happened. Then he looked up at her with his eyes shifting between straight and crossed. "What the f—… Wha-whaddaf… Whad… Douuuuu…" he droned, dropping the needle so he could rest his hands on a nearby table. "Cwazy… cwazy… cwoozy 'uma. Widda… whew!" He shook his head and attempted to look up at Layna. But his stance was shaky. "Wabba wubbub…"

Layna held up the knife and used the blade to reflect light into his eyes. He closed them in surprise, and she thrust her empty hand forward to stab him in the neck with two of her fingers. The man made a choking sound, but Layna held her fingers against the side of his neck until he dropped straight to the floor. Then she turned to Link and Line with a curious look on her face.

"H-holy _shit_!" Line declared.

Link groaned. "Crud… Now we gotta wait for one of them to wake up."

…

The first of them to wake up was the one who had had his head bashed against the table. He was groggy, and it took him a bit of time to focus on what was around him. He and his friends were sitting back at the table, each with a fresh mug in front of him. The scene was curious to him, and he reached a hand out to make sure the mug was there.

"Excuse me." Link, standing beside him, put out a hand to stop him. He looked up at Link with unfocused eyes. "Hi. Remember me?"

He looked down at his companions. "Wha happen?" he asked.

"Uh…" Link replied, scratching the back of his head. "Well, you guys… you drew your swords, and… my bodyguard knocked the three of you out."

He looked around again. Then he looked up at Link. "Why?"

Link held up his hands. "It was an honest mistake. I'm _reeeeeally_ sorry about that."

The man paused. "Who are you?"

"Captain Link of the _Island Symphony_. I just wanted to ask you a few questions. Uh… have a drink if you'd like."

He eyed the drink for a moment. "I don't think I wanna."

"It's nothing bad. I wasn't trying to start anything; I just wanted to ask you about your ship."

He put his hand around the mug, but he only lifted it a bit before letting it rest on the table. "What do you wanna know?"

"You're from that galleon in the port, right?"

"The what?"

Link held up his arms to demonstrate. "That really big ship?"

"Yeah."

"And… you're a Knight of Hyrule, aren't you?"

The man narrowed his eyes. "And what if I am?"

"Link, I…" Link managed to suppress his surprise at the sound of Princess Zelda suddenly speaking to him. But he became visibly alarmed when she asked, "Link? Why are there two unconscious knights sitting at the table before you?"

"What's wrong with _you_?" the man asked Link.

"L-look, we don't intend any harm," Link told him. "Sir…?"

The man, now a little more clear-headed, glared at him. "I'm not telling you my name."

"Name," Link tried to whisper as best as he could.

"Huh?" the man asked at the same time Zelda asked, "What?"

Link cleared his throat loudly and tried his best to interject the words "Name, Princess" while covering his mouth.

"N-name?" Zelda asked. "His?"

"Mm-hmm," Link replied, nodding.

"Oh, well… um, that's… that's Sir Gilbert. He attends my parents while they're out."

Link nodded again. "Listen, Sir Gilbert," he started.

The man looked shocked and made as if to rise. "How do you know my name?" he asked.

"It's-it's a long story," Link quickly replied, backing up a step with his hands raised. "But listen, okay? I know you attend the King and Queen of Hyrule while they're out of the castle. I need you to answer me: are they on this island?"

Sir Gilbert rose. "How could you—"

"No, no, don't—" Link tried to say at the same time.

"Hrk!" Gilbert suddenly uttered when Layna appeared from almost nowhere and hooked one arm around his neck. She placed a blade against his throat in the same movement, leaving Gilbert bending backwards as a slave to her shorter stature.

"Layna!" Link snapped. Layna peered around Gilbert's shoulder, her confused look a proclamation of ironic innocence. "Let him go!" He held up a hand and thrust it in her direction. "Let him go!"

Layna frowned at him as if trying to understand. Then, as quickly as she grabbed him, she released Gilbert. Gilbert rubbed his neck and turned to glance at her. "She's, uh… quite the fighter, isn't she?" he asked.

"Actually, she's an assassin," Link replied. "But she doesn't understand Hylian, so she just attacks anyone who threatens me."

When Gilbert looked back at Link, he had an eyebrow raised. "She's an assassin?"

"Look, that aside," Link said, "I need to know if the king and queen are on this island. I know the queen must be very sick; it'd be the only reason you've been on this island for so long."

"I don't understand," Gilbert said. "_How_ do you know all this?"

"Oh, Link!" Zelda exclaimed, causing him to jump in surprise. "Say 'Long live the princess'."

Link placed a hand over his mouth and mumbled, "What?"

"Trust me," she said while Gilbert gave him another confused look. "'Long live the princess'."

Link took in a deep breath and removed his hand. "Long live the princess."

Gilbert's mouth drooped open for a moment. Then he said with an understanding tone, "Ah, so _that_'s how it is. Okay, then. Yes, the king and queen are here. And you're right, the queen is horribly ill. But… what's happened to the _princess_?"

"Tell him that it is a matter for the king and queen to hear," Zelda said.

"It's a matter for the king and queen to hear," Link repeated.

"Of course," Gilbert said. "I wish you'd said so sooner; we wouldn't have tried to arrest you."

"Don't worry," Link replied. Then, in a tone meant to convey a subtle bit of irritation, he added, "I wish I'd said it sooner too."

"Sorry," Zelda told him, sounding embarrassed.

"I'll take you to them," Gilbert said as he moved away from the table.

"Hold on, wait," Link said. "You should have your drink first."

Gilbert glanced down at the mug. "What is it?"

Link glanced at… well, he glanced at where Layna _had_ been standing. "Something for the headache."

…

The second of Gilbert's companions recovered not long after the conversation, and Gilbert took him to the other side of the bar to leave an explanation for when the third man awoke. Then Gilbert led Link, Line, and Lutock out of the Sail Tavern and back up to the northern part of the island. There, they stepped into a clinic which was guarded by knights wearing full armor.

King Lauris wore a large piece of armor which covered his upper torso. Attached to the wide shoulder pieces was a red cape bearing the Crest of Hyrule in gilt thread across his back. Atop his head sat a four-point circlet made of gold and decorated with rubies. His head and jaw were covered in copper-colored hair slowly turning grey, particularly at his temples. He turned in his chair, showing off a coat of light blue under the armor as well as white slacks and a wide belt with a triangular buckle. On the bed before him was, Link assumed, Queen Arla. She looked quite pale, and her cheeks were sunken. Her blond hair was matted against her scalp by sweat, and she was covered with a few blankets. She appeared to be sleeping now.

Which was probably why King Lauris asked in a harsh tone, "What is this interruption?"

His voice cowed Link as Gilbert used a hand to push him forward. But Zelda told Link, "Go ahead and tell him, like I said."

Link cleared his throat. "L-long live the princess."

King Lauris was on his feet immediately, causing Link to take a step backward. His thick eyebrows knitted into a frown which he used to look at the new group of people that had just entered. For a moment, Link thought that he was about to get pounded by the King of Hyrule. But King Lauris then looked around. "Out," he ordered in a level voice. "All of you. Out."

Perhaps by design, there was no one else in the recovery room of the clinic. The nurses and single doctor passed confused looks between each other before following the knights out through the door. Gilbert followed, and Link wondered if he or any of his crew needed to go as well. But not a word was said as he, Line, and Lutock remained standing in the room.

Link's breathing promptly ceased when he realized that King Lauris of Hyrule stepped close enough that the king's belly was a hair's breadth from the end of his nose. He looked up.

And he was surprised to see that the king's expression had softened. "What has become of my daughter, boy?" he asked in a gentle tone.

For a moment, Link was so taken aback that he forgot how to speak. He said, "Y-your Majesty… ah—the princess, uh… Princess Zelda, she's…" Link paused to take in a deep breath so he could steady his nerves. "She's been taken hostage by demons, Your Majesty."

"When?" the king asked, his voice sounding slightly alarmed.

"Al-almost three months ago, Your Majesty."

The king sighed and returned to his seat. "And you've taken this long to inform me?" he asked.

"We've been searching for you ever since, Your Majesty," Link answered. "We knew you were on Might Island, but we had to start there to find you here."

The king frowned at him. "You appear too young to be a knight, yet you're wearing a green tunic of service to the royal family," he observed. "Who are you?"

Link, at a lost to explain his position better, saluted the king with his left hand. "Captain Link of the _Island Symphony_, Your Majesty."

"At ease," King Lauris replied. Link snapped his hand back down to his side, but remained rigid with his stance. "I do not recall that I had given you that tunic, Captain."

"Well, Your Majesty…" Link said. "This… isn't my original tunic. I've… lost it in my travels to find you. Ah—but my original tunic was given to me by Princess Zelda."

"Before this incident you are about to explain to me," the king reasoned. Link nodded. "Okay then, Captain. Have a seat. Your crew as well."

Link turned around and indicated a nearby bed to Line and Lutock. Lutock took the signal, but Line remained standing stiff as a board. "Line, are you okay?" Link asked.

"No," Line managed to squeak.

"You wanna sit down?"

"Yep." But, instead of moving to take a seat, Line collapsed on the floor, unconscious. Link sighed and sat down on the bed next to the queen's bed.

"Is he going to be all right?" the king asked, pointing at Line.

"He'll be fine, Your Majesty," Link replied. "He, uh… he does that."

The king sighed. "Captain, what has happened in my absence?"

"Well…" Link began. "When I was on Castle Island to be recognized, I got a letter from Princess Zelda about taking cargo to Forelight Island."

"Inside the Undying Storm?" the king asked. Link nodded. "Then… she asked you to take Rireen home."

"Yes, Your Majesty. Both the princess and Rireen were aboard my ship. Then, while we were there… no, I-I mean, while she was returning, she sailed on a Sorian vessel that intended to take her back to Castle Island. But, partway through the storm, they were attacked by _another_ ship crewed by demons."

"But _you_ were not on this Sorian vessel, correct?"

"Y-yes, Your Majesty."

"So how do you know all of this?"

Link took in a deep breath. "While I was doing some research… I found out about the demon airship imprisoned in the Undying Storm. I attempted to catch up with her, but the Sorian vessel had already been boarded, and my former ship was blown out of the sky."

The king looked genuinely shocked as he asked, "You were on the surface?"

Link nodded. "Yes, for over a month, Your Majesty."

The king nodded. "Continue."

"Well, at the end of that time, Your Majesty, I had gathered some experts who built another ship for me, and I returned to the sky. I went back to Castle Island to tell Governor Lore what had happened. Then I found out that the demons used the Sorian airship to bring some of their crew into the kingdom. One of them is posing as Princess Zelda and currently sits on the throne on Castle Island."

The king looked over at the queen for a moment. "In the days following our visit to Might Island, my wife's condition has become even more grave than usual. Since then, the Sky Lines have disappeared and reappeared. But I hesitate to take her back to Castle Island. I cannot leave her side, either."

"I think I know someone that can help with that, Your Majesty," Link spoke up. He turned around and leaned closer while he held out a hand to Lutock. Lutock stared at it a moment, but a word from Irleen prompted him to put her translator gem into Link's hand. "Irleen, can Lutock use his magic to help the queen? Like when he healed my leg back on Bold Island?"

Irleen emerged from under Lutock's hood. "It's worth a shot," she replied. Link placed the gem on the bed next to him, and Irleen asked Lutock, "Lūtòka, hòt Hīlīħán nīkálpāh katūwá ahà?"

Lutock looked at the queen and sighed. "Kárà ahà," he replied as he stood up. He moved around Link's bed and stepped past the king, who looked on in curiosity.

Lutock gave the room an uncertain glance before deciding to remove his hood. The king uttered in amazement, "A Sorian."

Then, Lutock removed his ocarina from his robe. He gave a moment of hesitation before he started playing. The notes he played sounded haunted, although Link thought it might have been because he had been used to listening to the blues harp. Lutock played through the same set of notes twice before he stopped. He turned to Link and said, "Nīkci kátūwá ahà. Ħàl kìp kátūwá ahà ō." He then looked down at the king. "Hàlāl, kàtùhápà kaħál tanì."

Link picked up Irleen's gem before asking, "What'd he say?"

Irleen sighed. "He can heal wounds and pain, but illness, disease… he just can't. He expresses his apologies, Your Majesty."

The king gave a grim nod. "I appreciate the effort, Captain, young miss. It is more than the doctors here can do for her." Then King Lauris' jaw dropped open. He turned his head to Link and asked, "But perhaps there is yet to be done."

"Your Majesty?" Link asked.

"The doctors here have explained to me that, had they the correct medicine, they could put this current ailment to rest, at least long enough to remove her to the castle. However, because shipping has become scarce to this island, the medicine is not available here. Its use is so rare that it has to be requested."

"Where can we find this medicine?" Link asked immediately.

"Whoa, whoa, Link," Irleen spoke up. "Don't you think you're volunteering a little too _easily_? The Skyriders are still after you, and we _definitely_ know Captain North isn't taking prisoners the next time we run into him."

"The Skyriders?" the king asked. "I thought they had disbanded. Is that not why the port was closed?"

"No, Your Majesty," Link replied. "The fake princess somehow found out about the loyalty pledge made by each Skyrider captain. She drafted them into her personal navy. They've been looking for me ever since we escaped Castle Island. The fake princess supplies them out of the castle itself."

The king sighed. "I fear that this revelation may place you in more danger than necessary. I only hope that you will still accept my request."

"We're ready to go, Your Majesty," Link answered as Line began to recover behind him. "We just need a destination."

"The doctors have informed me that this medicine is a natural plant that only grows on a few islands. But it is only refined on Autumn Island."

"Well how about that?" Irleen remarked. "Back to start."

"Wait, we're going to Autumn Island?" Line asked. "Link… that's just a few hours away from Castle Island. The Skyriders could be there."

"Well, maybe not," Link said, turning so he could see Line. "As far as anyone else knows, we're still hiding out around Bold Island or any of the nearby islands. Between putting the Sky Lines back and Captain Luke throwing off other ships searching for us, we just might get away with sailing right under their noses."

Line put on a wicked grin. "You know, I kinda like that idea."

Link smiled at him. "I thought you would."


	104. Pharmacy Run

Chapter 104: Pharmacy Run

…

Link and Line left the clinic with Layna lurking… somewhere nearby. Although Lutock's treatment of Queen Arla was limited, he had explained through Irleen that he was still capable of helping her fight pain caused by the illness. He remained behind, and Irleen remained to serve as a translator for him. It was a new experience for Link to not have Irleen nearby; he even felt the absence of her translator gem from his pocket. He wondered at one point why he was still wearing his hat, but he found that he could not take it off.

Line appeared to be brooding over something as they wandered back to the _Conductor_. It was usually rare for Link to see him thinking so hard; whatever whim Line had at the moment took less thought to enact (not that they had required much to be thought up in the first place). Link noticed that Zelda had also fallen silent in his mind, and he began to wonder if he had done something that both of them disapproved of. He seemed to have gotten enough of the king's approval to retrieve the medicine that the queen needed for her recovery, especially considering how horribly his credibility had been in the face of a table full of knights. Maybe Line was mad that they were going to expose themselves again when being at Skyrider Port was the safest move they had made all month. And maybe Zelda was a little upset that her rescue was postponed. But then… that did not seem like her, so he thought that she was fretting over her mother's condition.

Link and Line had arrived at a street down which the _Conductor_ waited. Before the dock was in sight, Line reached out and grabbed Link's shoulder. Both of them stopped, and Link turned and asked, "What's the matter?"

"Ah—" Line started before he thought better of it. He glanced around at the crowded street before spotting an empty alley between buildings. "Over here, come on." Line dragged Link into the alley by the shoulder of his tunic despite Link not protesting. He pulled Link partway down the alley, leaving enough space from the street so he was sure they would not be overheard. "Okay, here's the thing," he told Link. He then paused as he seemed to think of the words. "Link, between the two of us, you know that _I_ know more about the royal family."

"I think you know more than anyone else on the _ship_ really," Link said, giving him a grin.

"Then what was all that back at Leeta's?"

The grin faded from Link's face. "What?" he asked in honest confusion.

"C'mon, Link, _something_ is going on. Three Knights of Hyrule were about to kick our asses, and one decides he wants to _spill_ everything just because you say four words? I've been making people mad at me for _years_; no one _ever_ changes their attitude like that! Just _how_ did you know what to say?"

Link was not sure how to respond. Finally, he decided on the truest answer he could come up with. "The princess told me to say it," he said with a dismissive shrug.

Line shook his head. "No, there's more than that. If you knew how to get the knights to listen to you, we could've just walked up to the family's ship like you were planning."

"Line, look—"

Line held up a hand to stop him. "Just… what's going _on_, Link? You're hiding something from me, and I don't like it. You _never_ hide stuff from me, not stuff that might affect _both_ of us."

Link was not prepared to tell his best friend that he had been given directions by Princess Zelda, and that was mostly because claiming that Zelda was communicating with him before nearly upset the Gelto. At the same time, Line was the _last_ person Link ever wanted to lie to. With a sigh, Link said, "Here's the deal, Line. Yes, I know things that I probably shouldn't. But I can't explain it _just_ yet."

"Why not?" Line asked.

"Because you'll just think I'm crazy. And!" Link held up a hand just as Line opened his mouth. "I know you'll tell me that you wanna hear it anyway, but I _really_ don't think you're gonna believe me. I'll explain everything once we get back here with the medicine the queen needs. And I wanna wait until then because it's something I need to tell the king and queen about, too."

Line looked away and scratched the back of his head. "I wanna think we've seen enough in the past few months that anything you'd say, I'd believe it. But you're my best friend, and I trust you. Just… once we get back here. Okay? It's bothering me."

Link slapped Line's shoulder. "Okay. I mean… I don't _wanna_ hide it from you. I just wanna make sure you're convinced that I don't need a trip to the happy farm."

"If you say so," Line relented. They stepped out of the alley and continued toward the dock. "But, by the time all this ends, I won't be surprised if we _both_ need a trip to the happy farm." Link gave him a grin.

He glanced up at the sun just as they came into view of the _Conductor_. By his guess, it was mid-afternoon. It would take a few hours to get to Autumn Island, probably just a few minutes to obtain the medicine from the location they had been given directions to, and then a few hours to get back to the Port. He questioned whether he wanted to stay at Autumn Island or try to return to the Port overnight. He decided quickly to return to the Port as soon as possible, as waiting just left them more exposed to the Skyriders.

"Hey, Link," Line said when they were just two dozen paces from the dock. "Think we can jump that?"

"What, the bulwark?" Link asked, stopping and pointing at the _Conductor_. Line nodded. Link looked harder at the boat. The bulwark probably sat just a little shorter than him from the top of the dock. He might be able to jump it if he stood next to it, using the bulwark to lift himself. "No, not really."

"C'mon," Line urged him. "Just a good running leap."

"Line, that's too high for me."

Line put on a smug grin. "If you say so, Captain Shortpants."

Link gave him an annoyed look. "Really, Line? You're going with the 'Shortpants' thing again?"

"He—_You_'re the one who brought up the whole height issue. We'll go on three, okay?"

"I'm not doing it, Line."

"One."

"You're wasting your time."

"Two."

"It's stupid."

"Three!"

And, in spite of his objections, Link found himself breaking into a run. It must have been some kind of reflex; in the past, Link had known Line to count down whenever he had been about to start trouble, and the end of the countdown had usually meant that they had needed to run. Even though Link realized it was stupid, he was willing to live with it considering that he had not had any means of entertaining himself like this for some time. It seemed like a good idea. Both boys reached the dock's short set of stairs and leapt over them at the same time.

Only Link did not land where he was supposed to. Upon jumping into the air, he felt a tremendous force suddenly lift him higher. He only had half a second to comprehend what was happening. Then, as he sailed over the edge of the boat, one foot clipped the bulwark. He spun forward and barely got a shout of surprise out when his face landed and slid against the deck. It seemed like his body took a second longer to hit the deck afterwards, and he just lay where he was. His face stung from the rough deck, but he could not help feeling more embarrassed than any physical pain the landing should have caused.

"Great Goddesses!" Zelda hollered in his ears. "Link, are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm okay," Link groaned. "Did Line see that?"

He only had the question halfway out when Line burst into hysterical laughter, having pulled himself onto the bulwark to see where Link had landed. His comment about Link's embarrassing posture was drowned out by Zelda answering, "I believe he has, Link."

"Thank you, Princess. I noticed."

Line dropped onto the deck and stepped up behind Link just as Link began pushing himself up. "_Man_, Link!" Line told him. "You went _flying_! How'd you do that?"

"I have no idea," Link said as he used the front of the pilot's station to stand. "There wasn't a big gust or anything?"

"If there was, it forgot to grab _me_. Are you okay?"

Link rubbed a hand over the right side of his face. "Yeah, I guess. Layna?" Link glanced around, expecting Layna to have appeared behind him. "Layna?"

"Maybe you need to ca—" Line began to say.

"Ah!" Link shouted when he found Layna standing in the doorway to the cabin.

Line had jumped away at the sound of Link's shout, although he was also surprised by Layna's unannounced presence on the boat. "Shit, Layna," he said with an air of relief, one hand clutching his chest. "Don't you _ever_ say anything to people?" Layna only tilted her head in response.

Link removed his hat and tucked it into his belt. "Okay, all three of you can go below," he said.

Line attempted to share a confused look with Layna, but she only turned and stepped into the cabin. "You mean the _two_ of us, right?" he asked Link.

Link realized with uneasiness that he had forgotten Irleen was not with him. "Right…"

…

"Link, how come you did not tell them?"

Link tugged back on the _Conductor_'s throttle mostly to lower the sound the engine was making. Just that one question was enough to clue him into the princess's silence: he had forgotten to mention to them that he was able to communicate with Zelda. He knew he had done that, but he did not realize that it might upset her. He responded, "Sorry, I just… I kinda forgot."

Zelda sighed. "Link…"

"Honest, really," Link said. "I-I made a note about your stuffed cow, but I didn't bring my journal along."

"Perhaps it is best that you did not try," Zelda conceded. "You've already forgotten that it was a cucco."

"Did I? I thought it was a cow."

"Hence why you should not have tried…"

Link shrugged a shoulder. "Okay, it was a cucco. What else?"

"I really think you should write this down, Link. Or… maybe if I was with you when you meet my parents again. I could help."

"Can you sleep that long? It'll probably dark by the time we get back to the Port."

"Hmm… I cannot be certain; I have yet to try."

Link pulled back on the throttle to stop the _Conductor_'s engine. "Don't force yourself if you can't," Link told her as he pulled his flare gun out.

"Is that an order, Captain?"

Link paused inserting a smoke shell, staring at the wheel before him with a blank look on his face. Was she making fun of him? "Uh… w-well, you know."

Zelda giggled at him. "Aye aye, sir."

Link sighed and shook his head. He felt as if he might have nearly embarrassed himself again. It seemed to have been a miracle that she did not take offense to his command. He loaded the shell, cocked the pistol, and fired into the air above him after checking that his aim did not send the shell into the sail. The trail of white smoke erupted into a column of green just before the shell turned about and fell past the edge of the _Conductor_. Link glanced toward the _Island Symphony_ to watch a similar plume of green smoke fly away from the starboard side. Then he started the engine again. He looked up just in time to watch Line fall face-first out of the cabin with the sudden push of the engine. Zelda tried to stifle a giggle, and Link bit down on his lip to keep from laughing aloud. He could not see Line after that, but the subtle thumping above the engine's whine told him that Line had probably crawled back into the cabin.

Dholit, Biluf, and Flower used ropes thrown over the _Conductor_ to pull it into position over the boat deck while Link carefully lowered it. Line stepped out to watch the bow to make sure it did not hit the poop deck as it descended. After the _Conductor_ had settled in its supports, Biluf dropped through the poop deck and landed on the stern of the _Conductor_, startling Link. She then jumped off from there onto the boat deck to retrieve the ladder.

Dholit dropped onto the launch just as Link turned. Instead of being startled, Link asked, "Where's Leynne?"

Dholit pouted. "No greetings foh me, My Captain?" she asked.

Link rolled his eyes. "Hi, Dholit. How've things been here?"

Dholit put on her usual grin and saluted. "Everything is ship-shape, My Captain," she reported.

Link returned the salute. "No one uses 'ship-shape' up here. Where's Leynne?"

"On the helm."

Link turned around to find Line and Layna approaching him. "Line, I need a cou—"

"A course to Autumn Island," Line finished with a nod. "I know. I'll get right on it." He moved past Link, and then he immediately stopped in front of Dholit. "I-I, uh…"

"Pahdon me, Aihman," Dholit said, giving a slight bow as she stepped aside. Line stepped past her.

Then, without warning, Dholit wound up and smacked Line's bottom. "Yikes!" Line shouted as he jumped away. He nearly lost his footing as he scrambled for the ladder.

"Dholit!" Link snapped.

"It was an apology," Dholit replied.

The fact that she was still grinning convinced Link that she was lying. He sighed and said, "Dholit, take Biluf and Layna back on deck; we're gonna be leaving soon."

"Yes, this I've noticed," Dholit said as she waved Layna closer. "Do I undahstand that we shall be retahning to wheah we stahted from?"

Link nodded before he climbed down the ladder. "Autumn Island."

Link's feet touched the deck. As he rounded the boat, Dholit and Layna landed on the deck in front of him. "Does this mean we've been traveling the wrong way?" she asked, looking a little concerned once she looked back at Link.

Link shook his head. "Nope. We found them. And they're in trouble, just like Cale and Lilly said." He stepped past them, and Dholit and Layna fell into step behind him as he walked to the open doorway. "We need to get medicine."

"I imagine this run foh medicine is unavoidable," she asked.

"Sure is."

Link left them and went immediately to his cabin, where he found Line pondering over the few maps they had. "This is already a pain, Link," Line told him.

Link unbuckled the Lokomo Sword. "I know," he replied as he placed the sword on top of his footlocker. "But can you at least give us a rough course?"

"Yeah, but it's not gonna be a straight line." Link dropped the pouch holding his boomerang onto the footlocker and moved over to the table to look at Line's work. Line stepped to one side and explained while he moved a finger along the map. "Okay, from here, we're closer to the Outer West Line, which we can take south. Then we hop the Descent Line straight to the east side of the kingdom. Maybe an hour or two on the Scarlet Line, and then we're there."

"How long do you figure?"

Line sighed. "This is why I wish we had a map of the area. But… my best guess would be about five or six hours. Maybe more."

Link scratched his scalp. "Five or six hours, huh? Sooo… half a day? Roundtrip?"

"At _least_. And, since we're up here again, there's a chance that the islands _and_ the Sky Lines are swarming with Skyriders."

"Yeah, I know…" He glanced around the cabin. When he spotted his pen set sitting on his desk, he was struck with an idea. "Go relieve Leynne and get us underway. I've got a letter to write; I might have an idea."

"You know all those times _I_ would say that?" Line asked as he walked to the door.

"I remember how much I use to _dread_ it," Link answered. "Why?"

"I'm beginning to know how you feel."

Zelda giggled aloud, but Link gave him an annoyed look. "Whatever. I'm not turning into you, Line."

"I don't know, Link," Line said as he pushed the door open. "Give me a ship, and I just might sail it into danger, too."

"Would you just _go_?" Link snapped at him.

"I'm just saying," Line said before he slipped out the door.

Link removed his flare gun and placed it on top of his desk as he stepped around it. He fell heavily into his chair and stared at the door for a moment. "You know?" he said aloud. "I've got a feeling he's right."

"Wouldn't that be a good thing, though?" Zelda asked him. "It would mean that he's becoming the _responsible_ one, and your life would not be so complicated by his antics."

Link pulled open a bottom drawer and picked out a couple sheets of parchment. "I hope so," he said. "It would mean that he'll be able to bail _me_ out of trouble."

"What are you doing?"

"Well, while you're still with me, I thought you could tell me what I need to know. So I can convince your parents that you actually _are_ talking to me."

"Oh. Okay, but on one condition."

Link raised an eyebrow. "What's that?" he asked as he reached for a pen.

"Link, I'm telling you some personal things about myself. The least you could do is reciprocate."

Link felt his face turning red. "Uh… wha-what do you want to know?"

…

Link spent the first two hours of their new trip writing, and his hand was sore by the time he finished. Part of it was making a list of personal things that he could relay to King Lauris about Princess Zelda while he told her about some of the more embarrassing times of his life (mostly involving the kinds of trouble he and Line would get into, such as the time they were caught ditching duty in a coffin, the time he and Line fell through the Sail Tavern's roof while they were trying to fix it, the time his crewmates tried to stuff him into a cannon, and the few instances of "Dodge-Link"). After that, Zelda said she was waking up and would try to be back by the time they returned to Skyrider Port. So Link set aside the notes he had made and wrote a short letter to Captain Luke. Figuring that the _Island Symphony_ would be going to Castle Island after Skyrider Port, having a Skyrider escort them would help them get past the other vessels docked there.

The sun had started to turn the sky crimson before them. If it had been angled right, it would almost look as if the Descent Line, their current Sky Line, took them directly into the sun's path. As Link stepped out onto the deck, he wished he had considered that they would be sailing into such a sight. It was blinding, and Line was sure to be sore about having to stare into it and endanger his eyes.

But then Link stepped onto the forecastle and found that Line had already compensated for it. He wore a metal plate over his face. Link's first thought was that Line had just arbitrarily tied a plate to his head, but then he saw that the band holding it to his face was a belt that someone had gone through the trouble of securing to the plate with metal rings. He leaned in front of Line to find that there was a narrow slit in the plate.

And, when he did that, Line frowned at him. "Say it: it's stupid," he told Link.

"Can you see all right?" Link asked.

"Actually, yeah," Line said, his tone sounding amazed. "That guy you have seconding for you, uh… what's his name again?"

"Leynne."

"Yeah, him. He let me borrow it. He said he made these for himself while you guys were wandering toward Might Island. Takes a little time to get use to, what with having a metal _plate_ on your face, but I like it. But you gotta watch how you look up; one bad angle, and you get a beam of light in your eyes like nothing else."

"Can you see the Sky Line at all?"

Line shrugged. "Doesn't make much difference; it's a pain just trying to look at the Sky Lines in the day anyway."

"Oh, theh you ah." Link glanced over his shoulder just as Leynne stepped onto the forecastle behind him. "I undehstand that we'h retuhning to Autumn Island."

"Yeah," Link replied as he turned around. "The queen needs some medicine to help her sickness. Since Skyrider Port hasn't had any major shipments, the only way to get it to her is for _us_ to go get it. It's only made on Autumn Island, so that's where we have to go."

"We've got directions and everything," Line added, raising his voice to talk over the Sky Line's incredible wind.

"So we'h assuhed in ouh attempts to retuhn them to Castle Island then?" Leynne asked.

"As long as we don't get caught," Link said with a nod.

Leynne nodded as well. "I don't suppose I can talk you into remaining with the ship on this outing, can I? It isn't as if you need to retrieve the medicine _pehsonally_."

Link blinked at him, although he was sure part of the reason was the wind drying his eyes out. "You think that's a good idea?"

"Theh's no need to risk exposing youhself again. Aihman Floweh oh even _Line_ could go ashoh and get it. I'd even be willing to do it as well. Afteh all, how much could you possibly need?"

"I gotta agree with him there, Link," Line spoke up. "It wasn't even an issue when you and I went ashore back at the Port, but here's a different thing altogether."

"I could take Misteh Floweh and Misteh Gold along to keep me safe," Leynne continued.

"Why you?" Link asked.

Leynne gave him a half-grin. "I _am_ the one with the wallet, Link. This medicine will cost money."

"You know, we completely forgot about that, Link," Line said.

"I just assumed it wouldn't be any problem," Link replied. "Kinda like getting care at a clinic."

"Medicine doesn't cost money as long as you get it at a _clinic_," Line pointed out. "We're going to a shop in the port, remember?"

"Ah," Leynne said. "I just assumed."

"You'd be willing to pay for it?" Link asked him. "I know we've already used a lot of your money."

"My suhvival depends on this ship, Link," Leynne pointed out. "Besides, if money meant so much to me, do you think you would've found me in the middle of a dead wood south of Diggehton?"

"The middle of a dead _what_?" Line asked.

"I guess not," Link replied. He nodded. "Okay. Once we get to Autumn Island, you, Line, Flower, and Gold will take the _Conductor_ to the island while we try to keep our distance. Keep your eyes open, though; the rest of the Skyriders may not know who you are, but Captain North and his crew might recognize you."

"I would think that Nohth would keep his distance," Leynne commented, nodding at the main deck. "Especially if he suspects Layna to be neahby."

Link shook his head. "No. It means he'll just be smarter the next time he sees one of us. Do we still have either of those muskets the Gelto swiped from them?"

"One," Leynne said. "I've disassembled the otheh."

Link frowned. "How come?"

"I've just had a few thoughts on how to make a betteh one in the event things go bad. I must admit that access to a fohge would help in my endeavoh. That aside. Even if we have the single musket, we don't have any ammunition."

"What happened to that bag of lead rounds I'd found on Might Island?"

"Too big. And I've no means to melt it into smalleh shot; I don't have a tool to fohm it correctly."

"Besides that, Link," Line spoke up. "If we go around carrying guns, they might stick out more. Just don't worry about it; we'll be fine."

"I just don't like to send you guys ashore without any way of protecting yourselves," Link said.

"If anything, I'll cahry a flah gun," Leynne said. "That way, if we _do_ find trouble, you can come to ouh rescue."

Link nodded. "Okay."


	105. Revelations Small and Big

Chapter 105: Revelations Small and Big

…

The hours following the _Island Symphony_'s departure saw a transition from late afternoon to the final moments of dusk before the ship switched to the final Sky Line to Autumn Island. Link had to tell Line to get some sleep and let Gold take the helm so that Line would be ready to go ashore. Link took a short nap himself, not wanting to sleep through sending out his crew to do something he really felt that he should do himself. He awoke not long before their arrival. The night crew was naturally on duty, but the day crew still wandered the deck. Even Lawrence and Helo were on-deck despite the fact that both of them appeared quite tired. Line and Leynne were in the boat deck going over the _Conductor_'s controls since Line would be piloting the launch. Link could feel his crew's tension, and every passing light inside the opposing Sky Line was watched with special interest by the Gelto. This was a particularly amazing feat since Link could only spot a passing vessel after it was already beyond the stern. Perhaps the only one not being so observant was Layna, but that was because she would not leave Link's side even after he had both Dubbl and Dholit relay the order to leave him alone. Although, when he thought about it, Dholit's delighted reaction to the situation may have colored what she had told Layna.

Upon exiting the Sky Line and turning south to Autumn Island, the crew encountered a bit of bad news. In the light of the ships docked at the port on the east side, Flower reported at least three vessels bearing black banners. Link and Leynne decided to move to a secondary plan they had thought up before their arrival. Link ordered Gold to take the ship to the west side of the island. Because part of the island still sported some larger vegetation, including trees, they had decided that hiding the ship here would give them means to go back and forth as needed without the Skyriders being any wiser. The _Island Symphony_ was tied up to a pair of trees with their improvised moorings anchored to the cargo hold doors on the port side. From there, Line, Leynne, Lawrence, and Gold ventured onto the island; while the original intention was to send Flower instead of Lawrence, Link decided at the last minute that he would serve better as a lookout in case things turned ugly. Lawrence, in an attempt to get off the ship for a bit, volunteered. The ship's lights were turned off to make sure no one noticed trees on the horizon glowing a strange color.

Link was not sure what to do with himself. The first fifteen minutes, he tried to relax in his cabin with his eyes watching the northern sky through frosted glass. He would have made a journal entry, but he feared turning on his cabin light. So he wandered out onto the deck and inspected whatever rigging he could see. He was vaguely aware of the crew watching him, including Layna acting like his shadow as he strode across the weather deck. Soon, he was just pacing back and forth on the main deck. It was not necessarily in a straight line because he eventually stumbled into Helo.

"Whoa!"

"Hmm?" Link backed away as he could feel the Goron's presence rise from the deck. "Captain, is everything all right?" Helo asked.

"Y-you know it's me?" Link asked.

"Yes. We Gorons have excellent vision in the dark. Useful for caves and mines, but just as useful in the middle of the night."

"Oh."

Helo gave a confused groan. "You seem restless. Is there anything I can do?"

"No, thank you," Link replied. He sighed. "I just… wish they would hurry back."

"Forgive me for pointing this out, sir, but it is a feeling that we all have experienced a number of times since we became your crew."

"Really?"

"Mm-hmm. You leave the ship frequently when we reach a port. It tends to cause quite a stir among your Hylian-speaking crew, although I imagine the Gelto are just as concerned."

Link scratched the back of his head. "I-I didn't realize I was causing that kinda problem…"

"No one expected that you had, Captain. But it is a relief to know that someone else has gone ashore in your stead."

"Is it?"

"Yes. And, if it isn't too much for me to say, I have won a bet because of it."

Link paused for a moment. "You… won a bet? What bet?"

"We in the engine room bet earlier today on the expected composition of the next party to disembark. Lidago believed that the whole deck crew would leave; after all, it nearly happened almost a month ago."

"Yeah. Yeah, that was kind of a nightmare."

"Lawrence believed that you would go alone. Harley bet that you would take two or three members of the deck crew. I decided to make the bet interesting by expecting you to send someone out instead of going yourself."

"Helo… I know this might sound like a dumb question, but… what did you guys _bet_ with? I haven't been able to get any pay for you guys."

"The details were a little vague, but I believe that the winner was due a day to relax while someone from an opposing shift filled in." Link sucked in a breath and hoped that Helo could see the nervous look on his face. Although Helo gave no visual indication that he had taken in Link's reaction, he asked, "Should I assume that you do not want our current schedule altered?"

"I'd prefer it if you guys didn't do that sort of thing," Link admitted. "Including Sello, we only have five people working in the engine room. We really can't afford to have one person pull a full day and a half of duty; that'd be just too much."

"I see. It's just as well, Captain; I'd had the same consideration. Unfortunately, the terms of our bet were a little difficult to tease out, which was why the bet was such a high stake in the first place. I will inform the engine crew that we should not make such bets until we have a larger crew. As for my winning, I have no objections to forfeiting my free day."

Link let out a relieved sigh. "Thank you."

"But should further bets occur, would there be any sort of exchange that would not inconvenience you?"

"I don't know. Something mundane, I guess. Uh… maybe breakfast in bed? Or-or dinner, depending on the shift. Just as long as it doesn't affect the ship."

"Our problem returns, but I will make the suggestion of a meal after waking should another bet come up."

Link felt something nudge his back. "Helo, is Layna still behind me?"

"Layna? I do not believe so, Captain; she is maintaining vigil on you from the nearby mast."

"She is? Then who's…" Link trailed off when he heard sniggering from behind. Then the sniggering was muffled into a feminine laugh that he took a few moments to recognize.

Everyone on deck jumped in surprise when Link's shout rang out in the relative silence, "DHOLIT, WOULD YOU GET AWAY FROM ME?!"

"Nyaa~hah~," Dholit laughed as she skipped away.

Feeling a little shaken by Dholit's teasing, Link decided to try getting something to eat. He had only finished a miniscule portion of the ration pack he had opened when he realized that he was not very hungry. On his way back up to the weather deck, he wound up mentally berating himself for trying to duck away when his crew could be in danger. So his next step was to move onto the poop deck where both Flower and Twali were sharing the lookout position. In his anxiety, Link tried to engage Flower in small talk. Flower ended the conversation by pointing out that he barely had sight over the trees in front of them, meaning that the only way they could tell that Leynne and his party were in danger was by a flare. A few words later led both of them down into the boat deck with Biluf and Helo. They unleashed the _Conductor_ for Link and Flower, and Link piloted the launch by just its ballast. With little light to reveal the _Conductor_, he raised the boat until Flower had sight of the port on the opposite side of the island. He was silent as he looked around with the duoscope for any sign of activity.

Then, when he spoke up, his voice caused Link to start. "Hey, Lieutenant."

"Yah!" Link cried out, shocked out of his drowsiness. He had sat on the deck earlier, his back resting against the inside of the bulwark. He looked up at Flower's form silhouetted in the stars. "What is it?"

"You're not gonna believe who's in port with us."

Confused and a little worried, Link stood up and glanced out at the port. Flower nudged him with the duoscope, and Link took it to get a better look. At first, he thought Flower was talking about the Skyrider ships docked on the other side, their black banners the only clear evidence of their presence at this distance.

"Just off the bow of that Skyrider brig," Flower told him. "See that galleon?"

"Hang on," Link replied, turning to find the galleon. He found another brig instead, flying a regular banner. But then he realized that there was one more brig further down and looked past its bow.

It was a galleon, just as Flower had said. It had three square-rigged masts and the appearance of a fully-rigged ship. Of course, being in port meant that its sails were stowed. He could barely see an outboard sail mounted near the bow. The scant light of the port made it hard to tell, but the ship's hull looked to have been painted white. Some kind of trim which shone in the light made it easy for Link to identify some of the ship's features. At first, Link wondered at the significance of this vessel, which did not bear a Skyrider banner but an identifying banner that he did not recognize.

Then it dawned on him. His eyes passed over the ship again from bow to stern. Even from this distance, Link could pick out places where he had stood on that vessel once before. The shrouds he had had to climb to the crow's nest. The helm which he had manned on a few occasions before receiving his own vessel. The mast which he had dislocated his shoulder against. The main deck, over which he had been hung for the rather idiotically-named "Dodge-Link".

"The… Is that the _Grand Sails_?" Link asked, awestruck and already knowing the answer.

"If she isn't, she looks damn close to it," Flower answered. "If the banner's any indication, she's hiding right under the Skyriders' noses. Or they've captured her."

Link shook his head before returning his eyes to the duoscope. "I don't see anyone wearing black. They must be hiding because no one's wearing blue either; it all looks casual."

"Must be good cover then."

"We need to find Captain Alfonzo."

Flower was silent for a moment. "Lieutenant, I know you don't have the same standards as other ship commanders, so I have no compunctions about asking you if you're out of your mind."

Link sighed. "I was just thinking… an armed airship might help us make it to Castle Island. It isn't like we couldn't dress her up as one of the navy ships. With the _Grand Sails_ and the _Summer Breeze_ escorting us, we could easily pull into the castle's docks without anyone thinking twice about it."

"That, and you wanna see the captain again, don't you?"

Link turned and attempted to glare at Flower. "So what if I do?"

"Lieutenant, it'd be easier to send _me_. I know Captain Alfonzo, too, and I won't attract as much attention if I go out in public."

Link pointed down. "These are special boots I found on the surface. They help me run faster than ever, so if I get into trouble, I can be out of sight in a heartbeat. Besides, even if I _do_ get found, Layna will be there to save me. She's _always_ following me."

"Layna… that's the… that's the assassin, right? The one that nearly took Line's head off?"

"Yeah."

Flower sighed. "I don't like it, Lieutenant. I really don't. You're the boss here, I get that, but you _really_ shouldn't be risking your life by stepping off the ship."

"I've been doing it for a while, Flower. I try to do everything I can for this crew, even if it means risking my life. I'm not afraid."

"Anyone _else_ your age would be," Flower told him as Link stepped back into the pilot's station.

…

Flower was still objecting even after Link put on his usual gear (equipping himself with his regular sword instead of the Lokomo Sword) along with the ragged robes he had worn on East Iron Island and disembarked. Link was still listening to him even after he had left, and he admitted that Flower was right that Link should let him go instead. He spent part of the walk to the town justifying it to himself so he could offer a good reason to Flower when he got back. Nothing had come to mind by the time he reached the edge of town, so he decided to wait and see what happened. If he was lucky, his presence might offer an opportunity that _Flower's_ presence could not replicate.

He took mostly narrow roads and back alleys across the town, hoping that he would be above scrutiny as long as there were few people around to notice him. He did not see any of his crew around, although he had already assumed that they would be using the main roads. Skyriders occasionally rounded a corner or two, but Link had decided to leave his hood and hat off so that people had a good look at his face. This meant that, after looking at Link's face, the Skyriders merely dismissed him and went about their business. It did not seem too crazy to Link; walking through the back roads as he was, he found that a lot of people were wrapped in similar robes while they huddled against buildings. He was not sure why they were doing this, but he did not bother questioning it since it gave him some type of cover.

He arrived at the port after a while. He decided he wanted to be cautious and as out of sight as possible here due to the fact that, if someone _did_ happen to suspect him, he could be detained quite easily. So he snuck around behind different features of the docks. He ducked behind crates and underneath carriages and only moved when he was sure that there was no one in sight.

He felt a wave of nostalgia when he ducked into a pile of crates opposite the galleon. Even from this distance, he could tell for certain that it was the _Grand Sails_. One thing he did _not_ remember about the ship was the three panels of bare wood on the port side. He remembered Luke telling him that he had last heard that the _Grand Sails_ was being pursued by another Skyrider ship and that the pursuing ship had opened fire on them. It seemed as if the _Grand Sails_ had fared well, although he wondered why they would dare to hide this close to Castle Island.

"Hey, Chief." Link immediately ducked back into the crates at the sound of a man's voice so close by that he thought he might have been discovered. "You got a match on you?"

"Yeah, here you go." A second voice. And they sounded like they were on the other side of the crates. "Can you spare some of that plant you're smoking?" Link recognized the second man's voice after that second statement. Chief Mallard had become one of Alfonzo's chiefs-of-the-deck not too long before Link had gotten his own promotion. He had a graveled voice, and, despite that, he had probably been one of the nicest guys to ever have to put up with Line's shenanigans, second only to Luke.

"Sure, Chief." There was a pause as Link assumed the other airman gave over some of his tobacco to Mallard. "Any word yet?"

"I was about to go relieve Blair," Mallard replied. Link scrunched his face as he tried to remember the name. If he was right, Blair was Alfonzo's newest second-in-command, brought in to replace Lieutenant Greg after Greg decided that he had spent enough time on an airship. Link had yet to meet the man himself; he had been expecting to encounter him the next time he had sailed out with the _Grand Sails_. "All I know is the captain was up and talking early this morning. Might be getting better by now."

Up and talking? Might be getting better? Those did not sound like some very encouraging words. And, if they were talking about a captain, it would certainly have to be Alfonzo. What had happened since Link had been gone?

"I'd feel better once we're outta here. Two more ships sailed by this evening; that's what Awan saw on lookout. Whatever the others are doing, they're putting some serious air power into it. If they're still looking for _us_, they sure are going the wrong way."

The men paused, and Link could hear one of them shifting. "I'd keep the sentiment to yourself as best you can if I were you," Mallard said. "You never know when one of these black-clad bastards is listening."

"Sorry, Chief."

Mallard's voice became a little muffled, presumably because he was holding his tobacco pipe between his teeth. "Hey, I don't blame you. I don't like being stuck here any longer than we need. But it's the only thing we can do for the captain now. With his health as bad as it is now, we'd lose him if we tried going anywhere. Not that there's anywhere for us to go as it is…"

"Aye… Look, Chief. Some of the other guys've been talking. Much as we like the captain and all—"

"Mister, I'm going to forget that you even tried saying that."

"Chief, it's been over a _month_."

Mallard's voice became hostile as he said, "If you're gonna tuck your balls up your ass, then do what George and Wes did and just desert. The ship isn't yours or your buddies' to take, and that's _final_." Link heard a pair of clicks, which he took to be Mallard checking his pocketwatch. "I'm just about late for my watch. Like I said, I'm gonna forget this whole mutiny idea of yours. There hasn't been a mutiny on this ship for decades, and it sure as hell isn't gonna start here just because you're afraid of your own coworkers. Is that understood, Mister?"

The airman took in a deep breath and begrudgingly replied, "Aye, sir."

"Just do your job. Let _us_ worry about the captain."

Link heard boots leaving and quickly popped up from behind the crates to see what was happening. While one person was walking back to the _Grand Sails_, he spotted Mallard walking toward the alley Link had come from earlier. He only knew the back of Mallard's head from the times he tried to walk away after stopping Link and Line from doing something stupid. There was no mistaking that head sporting short, blond fuzz. Link had to follow him, but he was not sure how to.

He looked around and spotted a small shack on the outside of one of the warehouses. He immediately thought back to Skyrider Port when Line had dared him to jump onto the _Conductor_. His mind buzzing with an idea, he moved over to the shack and tried to jump up.

Now that he was aware of it, he could feel a definite surge of power flood his legs just before he left the ground. His jump took him past the shack's roof and halfway up the side of the warehouse before he came back down. He held his arms out to stop himself from slamming into the warehouse's outer wall. His feet felt soft against the shack's tin roof, and landing on it barely produced much sound. He turned to look down at the ground, trying to find anyone who might have seen or heard him do that. Then he looked up at the warehouse. He only took a moment to think before he leapt up again.

He caught sight of a shadow scrambling out of the way after he passed over the warehouse's roof. Its presence had distracted him, and his legs collapsed once he made contact with the flat roof. He fell forward and just barely managed to save his head from bouncing against the rough surface with his hands. A hand hooked under his arm, and he found himself being pulled to his feet.

"May Kyabtin?"

Link blinked in surprise at the person who had helped him up. "Layna?" he asked. She nodded. He glanced around the roof. "So _this_ is how you get around." This, as usual, prompted her to give him a confused tilt of the head. "Uh… never mind. Oh, shoot, Mallard!" Link quickly turned and stepped to the edge of the roof. Layna immediately reached from behind and forced him down to one knee. "Ah! What?"

"May Kyabtin, waba nayx yimidhujak sazagsiylw zhaybu," she told him in a low voice.

Link gave an exasperated sigh. "Right, sorry I asked." He glanced down into the alley. Then he tried to signal to Layna that he wanted to follow Mallard by pointing to his eyes and then pointing to Mallard's back. Layna peered over the side. Then she nodded and indicated the roof of the warehouse next to Mallard with a hand.

Before Link could fully comprehend her intentions, she took a running start from where she stood and jumped. Link was amazed to see her fly through the air before landing on the roof of the other warehouse. He did not know how she had done that, but he figured that he could do the same. So he stood up and took off at a run. His boots suddenly sped his feet up, and the edge of the warehouse roof came at him fast. He barely had time to think about the jump before he remembered that he had to. Again, he felt the surge of power in his legs, and he sailed over the gap between the warehouses and even over Layna's head. He was not prepared for this leap as he had thought, and his legs collapsed after he landed again. He rolled across the roof for a moment before coming to a stop on his back. He stared up at the stars for a moment while his head spun. Layna leaned into his vision for a moment. Link was not sure because of the darkness and his disorientation, but he thought he saw her giving him a small smile.

After Link recovered, Layna led him from rooftop to rooftop. Her pace was slow, probably due to the fact that Link had failed two more landings and, at one point, would have nearly rolled off a slanted roof if she had not caught him. Still, they kept up with Mallard and never lost sight of him. Link began to understand how it was that Layna could move around so well without being spotted: nobody looked up. All this time, Link had assumed that Layna was just that good at keeping out of sight. Which she was, of course, but Link had never considered that it was because she hid on anything higher than everyone else.

Mallard finally halted behind a clinic on one of the main streets through the middle of the island. Link and Layna watched from the roof of a blacksmith's shop behind the clinic as he looked left and right for anyone following him. Link was surprised by how secretive he was being, but then he remembered that he was probably trying to keep the other Skyriders from discovering Captain Alfonzo. So it would make sense that he would enter the clinic from the back instead of the front; if the Skyriders noticed him coming and going through the front, they might decide to see who was receiving these frequent visits. He disappeared into the back door. Link glanced around before deciding to drop down from the roof. His landing was as soft as any time he landed from a jump, but he still stumbled from the distance and from how sore his legs were beginning to feel. Just like Mallard, he looked up and down the alley before opening the door and stepping inside. He closed the door as quietly as possible.

On the other side were a few elderly women hand-washing bedding and surgical gowns in a small room. They all had their backs to Link, so Link tip-toed across the room to the door on the other side. This brought him to a small hallway with doors lining either side. He walked down the hallway with little more than a confused glance in his direction from orderlies and nurses passing back and forth between doors. He found another hallway to the left and just barely caught a glance of Mallard's back before Mallard disappeared into a doorway. Link followed until he was just outside. He heard voices from within and pressed up against the wall so he could listen.

"Yeah, okay," Mallard was just telling someone. "Thank you, Miss." Link quickly spun and pressed his back against the wall to make it look like he was just loitering. The nurse exiting the room glanced at him and dismissed him as she hustled down the hallway. "Hey, Lieutenant," Mallard said. "Wake up."

Someone on the other side of the wall snorted. "Huh? Wha?" a deeper, more grizzled voice asked.

"Shift's up."

"Oh," the lieutenant (which Link assumed to be Blair) replied. "It that time already?"

"I'm a little late."

Blair let out a yawn. "Aaaall right," he said before he could finish yawning. "All right."

"How's the captain?"

"Doctor says it's still the same thing. He just won't let himself get better. He was talking a little more today, but it wasn't anything he hadn't already told us. Just asked about the ship and the crew and if we'd been found yet. Told us to dig into the ship's bank again."

"That bank is nearly dry. And I don't mind telling you the crew's getting antsy. Two more guys deserted today. I just got done talking to Ross. He says some of the other guys are thinking about taking off with the ship."

Blair heaved a deep sigh. "That's the _last_ thing we need to worry about, mutiny…"

"I told him I was gonna forget he said anything, but this is beginning to worry me, sir."

"Well, I can't say I blame them. With as long as we've been here waiting for the captain to get better, I'm surprised they're just _now_ thinking about it."

"Uh… you think we should be talking about this in front of him?"

"The nurse gave him a tranquilizer so he could sleep. He'll be out until morning. For now, we think positive. He was talking to us earlier, so he must be getting some strength back. That's what we'll let the crew know."

"We've been positive about this as much as we could. I'm worried that the crew'll start seeing through all the fluff and realize we're just talking."

"We've got nothing else."

Link took in a deep breath and stepped into the doorway. He found that Mallard was talking to a man with thick, black hair and stubble across his face indicating that he had been without a razor for some time. "Excuse me," he spoke up.

Both men looked in his direction. "Can we help you, kid?" the black-haired man, Blair, asked.

But Mallard's eyes became wide upon seeing who had just stepped in. "You've gotta—… _Link_!?" he managed to ask through his surprise.

"Yeah," Link replied with a nod.

"You know this kid?" Blair asked.

"Yeah, I do," Mallard said as he stepped toward Link. He slapped a hand on Link's shoulder and turned back to Blair. "This is Lieutenant Link. He used to be an airman on the _Grand Sails_ before he got promoted. Went straight into command. Probably the youngest in the fleet." Then he turned back to Link. "We heard you'd been shot down. How'd you get _here_?"

"You _heard_?" Link asked. "From who?"

"Captain Alfonzo," Mallard said. "He got a letter from Airman Flower over a month ago and told some of us about it."

"Oh. Well, I… I kinda did, actually."

"What, did you just flap your arms back up here?" Mallard asked with a large grin.

Link gave a weak chuckle. "It wasn't _that_ easy," he answered. "I heard the captain was sick. What's wrong with him?"

"Sepsis."

Link frowned. "Sepsis? What's that?"

"It's an infection that's gotten to his whole body, Link. He came down with it not long before we brought him here. It started when he took some splinter shrapnel from cannon fire to the gut. He didn't tell anyone about it until the next day."

"That's right," Link said. "You were attacked; Luke told me."

"Luke?" Blair asked. "Who's Luke?"

"Captain Luke," Link told him. "He was Captain Alfonzo's second-in-command when Line and I first became part of the crew."

"How'd _he_ know?" Mallard asked.

"He's…" Link hesitated for a moment. "He commands one of the ships that the princess drafted. But he's a good man; he respects Alfonzo more than anyone else. He was worried when you guys were attacked. It was the last thing he had heard." He glanced around the small room. "Where _is_ the captain?"

"I'm back here." At the same time the deep, sickly voice spoke up, a curtain behind Blair shifted. "Someon—_hhk_!" The voice fell into a coughing fit. Both Blair and Mallard gave the curtain a concerned look. "… Get this… _damned_ curtain outta my way."

Blair tugged back on the curtain, revealing the head of a bed. Link was surprised to see Captain Alfonzo, especially since his beard had been shaved off. He recognized the way the captain's brow wrinkled, though, and he could see that the captain was still bald on the top of his head. Link immediately snapped to attention and saluted. But he still had an air of relief in his voice as he said, "Captain."

Alfonzo let out a long breath and nearly started another fit of coughs. But he saved himself, too shocked at the sight of Link to cough. "Goddesses Above…" he said under his breath. "It really _is_…"

Mallard placed a hand on Link's shoulder and shook him. "The kid came back to us, Captain," he told Alfonzo.

Alfonzo held up a hand. "C'mere, Link," he said. Link dropped his salute and stepped up to the side of the bed. Alfonzo looked past him. "Blair, Mallard. Give us a moment."

Mallard and Blair exchanged looks before both chimed, "Aye, sir." They stepped out without another word.

Alfonzo pointed at the edge of the bed. "Link, there should b—" He was cut off by a cough. "There should be a box or something under the bed. Go ahead and sit down."

Link leaned over and found a small, wooden crate under the bed. He pulled it out and sat on it. This left him sitting almost eye-level with Alfonzo. "How are you doing, sir?" he asked.

"You're supposed to be dead, Link," Alfonzo told him, wearing his usual frown. "I'm a picture of health."

Link looked down at his lap. "I… I lost the _Island Sonata_, sir. I was shot down by a ship inside the Undying Storm."

"If that's true, Lieutenant, you forgot to die."

"Yes, sir." He took in a breath. "I survived the crash with the ground, but I was severely injured. A lumberjack passing the wreck took me in, and he and his daughter helped me recover. It took over a week; there were some… complications."

"How did you get back up here?"

"I found out that the descendents of the original Architects were still wandering around the surface. They built a new airship for me and helped me raise it. Three of them are part of my current crew." Alfonzo silently nodded at him. "Captain… I'm sorry that you were attacked."

"It's not like you had a hand in it, Link."

Link shook his head. "No. I did. When I got back, I tried to get into the castle because I'd heard that the princess had returned. I found out she was a fake, and Sir Gilliam had to spring me out of trouble. But… he told me that, if she questioned him, he had to explain that I was a captain for the Skyriders and that _you_ were my only connection to them."

"Oh. I take that back then, Lieutenant. Better be thankful I'm laid out; I've got mind to flatten you right here."

Link raised his head. "I can make it right, sir. I can get her out of the castle. Right now, the…" Link trailed off and looked over his shoulder. Then he leaned forward and continued in a lower voice, "The king and queen are at the Port. They can remove her from the throne, and the king agreed to do that if I can bring back medicine for the queen. Without the throne, the fake princess can be exposed. And the Skyriders can go back to normal again."

Alfonzo was silent for a moment. "You have it all planned out, don't you?"

"Just… one more thing, sir." Link took in a breath. "The fleet is looking for my ship, too. But… I think, if we could set the _Grand Sails_ up to look like one of the navy ships… we _might_ be able to get in. But… if you're ill…"

"Link. A ship can work without her captain for at least a little while. That's what a second-in-command is for. Blair will help you, and Mallard has your back, too. If the crew doesn't see open skies again, we can only lose more."

"What about you?"

"What about me? I've had my ass glued to this bed for over a month, Link. I don't intend on going anywhere. After you get done, just come back and get me. And I'll tell you what. The next time you see me, I'm gonna be standing on that dock ready to kick and scream my orders beat any other captain."

Link hesitated before nodding. "Aye, sir."

Link made to stand, but Alfonzo held up a hand. "Just a minute, Link."

"Sir?"

"Sit down. We're not done yet." Link sat back down. "Link… didn't you ever wonder why you were suddenly given command of an airship? Despite your age?"

"Uh… well, at _first_," Link admitted. "After that, well… I just… kinda went with it. I… didn't really know what else to do." Something clicked in his head, and he asked, "Should… I _not_ be in command?"

"No, Link, the whole promotion was genuine. _And_ difficult. You wouldn't believe the number of loopholes I had to go through to see to it that you became a lieutenant. And the fact that you seem to have made it so far as a captain, well… It's good to see that all that training paid off."

Link paused as he tried to make sense of what Alfonzo was talking about. "What training, sir?"

"Do you think I would just promote you out of the blue, Link? Once you were on the _Grand Sails_, I started teaching you everything you needed to know about command. I showed you how a captain monitors what a crew does. I had you fill out paperwork that older men than you _still_ can't figure out. And I had you take on leadership roles with airmen easily twice your age. When you turned fourteen, I started the process of getting you promoted."

Link just stared at him for a moment, unsure of how he should respond. He did not recall that Alfonzo had taught him things like that. The paperwork, he could remember. But monitoring the crew? Commanding people older than him? He had no such recollections. But then he reminded himself of his current crew, how, despite him being only fourteen, they listened to his orders and never threatened insubordination on any occasion (with the possible exception of what had happened on Tabletop Island). And he knew most of his crew, how they behaved, and how they responded to each other. Link managed to accept that he had been taught things that he might not remember and asked, "Why, sir?"

Alfonzo broke into a smile that quickly turned into a look of nostalgia. "Maybe… for just that one single moment. When you walked across that throne room and received your tunic from the princess. It's that sort of thing I'd spent fourteen years waiting for, Link. The kind of thing a father can be proud of."

One word hit Link with such a shock that he could not be sure he had heard it. His mystified stare prompted Alfonzo to smile brighter at him, something that the captain had never done before. Link finally managed to stutter, "Wh-wh-wha-what?"

Alfonzo jerked as he tried to hold back his chuckling. "You're my _son_, Link."


	106. Okay, Let's Try That Again

Chapter 106: Okay, Let's Try That Again

…

Link was silent for the longest time. It was also probably the longest time he had ever seen Alfonzo smiling, although the record had already been broken the moment the smile began. He tried to think back to his time on the _Grand Sails_ in search of any sort of clue to this revelation. But his mind simply blanked. How was he supposed to respond to this? Should he be mad? Glad? The best he could come up with was even more confusion. He silently stammered in front of Alfonzo, and it only seemed to make him smile wider.

He finally managed to get out, "You're… W-why? How? Wait… Huh? Did…? Uh…"

Alfonzo folded his arms behind his head. "I'll just let you think that over for a second," he said.

"No, wait…" Link said, scratching at his head. "Ugh… okay. Okay, so… you're… you're my father."

Alfonzo raised an eyebrow. "Is that so hard to believe?"

"I-I don't _know_!" Link cried out. "How co—… How come you never told me before?" Alfonzo pointedly stared at him. "Sir?"

The smile left Alfonzo's face. "Link, how many times did you and Line get into trouble? At _least_ three times in a week? Four, maybe? And any of those times, if you had known who I was, you would have come directly to me. Favoritism, Link. It was the first thing I made sure you _didn't_ have. Oh, sure, Luke and Greg and Mallard let you and your friend get away with things every now and then. They can do that. I couldn't afford to. The moment anyone saw me treating you as a father should, you would have been reassigned, maybe even thrown out of the Skyriders. That wasn't what your mother or I wished."

"My-my _mother_?" Link asked. "Wha—… Who's _she_?"

"Lady Leeta."

Link's jaw dropped open. "Lad—… Lady _Leeta_!? She's my… She's my _mom_!?"

"I was actually surprised all the affection she showed you over the years didn't tip you off. She always talked quite fondly of you when we stopped at the Port."

"I… I thought she was just _like_ that. You know. She just liked to hug me." He started rubbing his neck as he remembered many of the times she would do just that. "Really hard." He shook his head. "I don't get it. _Why_ a captain?"

"Because that's what _I_ am. Don't you think it's natural for a father to want his son to follow in his footsteps?"

"I don't know. How could I _know_ that?"

Alfonzo raised a hand. "Just calm down, Link. While I admit that subjecting you to that kind of secrecy was a little distasteful, would you believe me if I told you you were always one of the strongest airmen I'd ever commanded?"

Link sighed. "I don't know. I mean… I'm not very big. Even _Line_ makes fun of my height. And the other airmen always found some reason to _pick_ on me!"

Alfonzo nodded. "True, all true. But you never gave up. You never broke down and cried when things got tough. Hell…" He smirked. "I watched you and Line take down an airman twice your size." Link glanced down at his lap, ashamed at the memory of that fight. "If I didn't have to be mad at you when you did that, I'd've probably egged you on. As I recall, that prick had it coming. Men have bitched and cried their way through a year of sailing just like him, Link. But you and Line… you were only kids. You _especially_ have grown into a very responsible young man. And I may come to regret not having spent quality time with you and your mother over the years. But I will _never_ regret what I've done to turn you into what you are now. You're a proper captain, Link, and I'm proud of it." He sniffed, and Link thought he saw his eyes water. He cleared his throat. "So hate me or do what you will, Link."

"I-I… don't hate you… sir…" Link replied through a cracking voice. "This is… it's… just so much… What about Line?"

"Line is the son of another airman that had been under my command. When I explained to him my plans for you, he asked that I take Line in, too. His plan wasn't as grandiose as mine, but he thought that someone about to spend seven years going through hell should at least have a friend."

Link shook his head. "We weren't even friends at first. We only got the way we are now because he kept other airmen from stringing me up from a yardarm by my feet."

"Another reason to be thankful. Where else, after all, would you find a friend willing to stick up for you?"

Link nodded. "You said… You said Lady Leeta wanted me to be a captain, too. Why?"

"That's something you'll have to ask her. The short of it was her handing you over to me and telling me to make you a captain. My thought was she just didn't wanna raise you in a tavern."

Link nodded. "I remember always having a room at the Sail Tavern. I just… she never had me call her 'Mother' or anything like that."

"By the time you were assigned to the _Grand Sails_, you seemed to have all but forgotten who I was. It was what _I_ thought was the best thing for you. No dependence on me other than as your captain. No believing that your assignment would be easier than any other airman's experience. Just a boy to raise into a man and an airman to turn into a captain."

Link's eyes wandered around the floor for a moment. Then he asked, "So… now that I'm a lieutenant… were you _ever_ gonna tell me?"

"I _had_ expected to tell you once you returned from your journey to Forelight Island. Obviously, things happened since then. I figured now would be the best time to mention it."

Link gave him a worried look. "Captain…"

Alfonzo let out a dismissive sound and shook his head. "I'm not _dying_, Link. Just sick. I'll get better. But that's for another day. It sounds like you need to get going as soon as possible. On your way out, send Blair and Mallard back in; I'll have a talk with them. After that, tease out the details between yourselves and haul ass back to the Port."

Link stood up and saluted. "Aye aye."

Alfonzo dismissed the salute. "And Link?" he spoke up just as Link turned to leave.

"Yes, sir?" Link asked.

"The next time you see me, you'd better call me 'Dad', boy."

Link finally smiled at Alfonzo. "Aye aye."

…

Link talked to Blair and Mallard after Captain Alfonzo had had a word with them. They agreed to scrounge up a few more supplies and set sail for Skyrider Port at dawn, meaning they should arrive in the afternoon. Meanwhile, Link was going to go ahead with the _Island Symphony_ and make sure the island was safe for them to dock at. Link passed his letter to Captain Luke into Mallard's possession with the instruction to send it out before they left Autumn Island. He then left and returned to his ship through the back roads.

Upon stepping back onto the main deck, he was almost immediately confronted by Leynne. "Link," he said, sounding a little exasperated. "I know you have youh own agenda at times, but I thought we agreed that you would remain with the ship this time."

"Yes, I _know_ I agreed to remain behind," Link replied. "But I don't just go out on a whim, you know. Who's on the helm?"

"Gold at the moment. I asked him to be ready to set sail once you retuhned."

Link nodded, despite it still being too dark for them to make out each other's features. "Good. And the medicine?"

"Safely stowed in my cabin. I'm amazed it cost so little, actually."

Link nodded again. "All right. We're heading back to Skyrider Port."

"I already have ouh couhse ready."

"Great. Oh, one more thing. The reason I was out is because I found the ship I used to be stationed on. They're gonna act like they're taking us in when we make this trip to Castle Island. They'll meet us at the Port in the afternoon."

Link turned away, but Leynne grabbed his upper arm to stop him. "Wait. These Skyriders can be trusted?"

"The captain is…" Link hesitated before deciding what he knew about Captain Alfonzo was only for him to know at the moment. "We have a personal connection. And I know part of the crew. They've been on the run from the rest of the company just like us. I've trusted them with my life for almost five years."

"Sounds reasonable enough. I'll give the ohdeh to Gold. Then I'm going to submit to my pillow. I trust you'll be tuhning in as well."

Link nodded. "Yeah. But have Dubbl wake me up once we're back at the Port. We'll have a lot to do once we get there."

Leynne let out a sound. "I believe it."

Link started for his cabin. He could not help grinning to himself when he heard Leynne bellow to Dubbl from across the deck. When he stepped into his cabin, he immediately pulled off his robes and his extraneous gear. He landed heavily on his footlocker so he could remove his boots. After he had pulled off his tunic, he decided that he would dare turn on his cabin light. This allowed him to locate his desk and sit down to fill out his journal. He was surprised by how long it seemed since he had done this and glanced back at his previous entry to remember what day it was.

~~Day 89 (Command, Day 52)

~~We made it to Skyrider Port this afternoon and found the king and queen. Just like Cale and Lilly said, the queen's pretty sick, and the Port doesn't have the medicine necessary to help her. So we set out and made Autumn Island this evening. We have the medicine with us, and I've just ordered the ship back to the Port.

~~We also have something else working for us. The Grand Sails was hiding at Autumn Island. Captain Alfonzo was severely injured after action, and he's been sick since then, but he's sent the Grand Sails to meet up with us at Skyrider Port. If we can get it to look like one of the princess's drafted ships (and if Captain Luke shows up in time), we should be able to get the king into the castle without a problem. There might be a lot of waiting involved, so I'm planning to give the crew some liberty once we reach the Port. Ironically, it's one of the safest places for it.

~~I've been contemplating what Captain Alfonzo told me about my promotion. It's all so amazing; I'm still a little shocked by it. All this time, and I never knew about any of it. I'm not sure if I want to mention any of it to anyone else right now. I know there's gonna be one person I'll look forward to seeing once we get back. It's probably the most I've ever looked forward to seeing her.

Link contemplated his entry for a while. Then he felt the ship shift around him as Gold lowered the ballast. Deciding that it would be enough for now, he blew on the page to help dry the ink. Then he closed his journal, removed his trousers, and laid down on his bed. With his mind still buzzing from everything Alfonzo had told him, though, it took him a while to fall asleep.

…

Link stirred when the bed started moaning and shifting. He did not want to open his eyes in the small hope that he might get a little more sleep. He tried to move his left hand, but he found it being pressed against something. Frowning, he squeezed.

"Aah…" The feminine moan left Link a little confused. He opened up one eye, located his arm, and followed it to the object he had just squeezed. "Good mohning, Captain." Dholit was lying on the bed next to him, one arm propping her head up. Her other hand held his hand against her chest. She wore her usual grin and gave him a wink.

Link's brain spurred into action, and he ripped his hand away and jumped up to get away from her. "Ah!" he cried out, pressing himself against the bulkhead. Then he shouted, "Dholit, what are you _doing_!?"

Dholit rubbed her breast for a moment with a pained look on her face. "My Captain, I didn't think you could be so rough," she told him. Then she stretched her arm into the air and twisted her wrist around as if to make her hand dance. "But then I should expect that from such a hahdened wahrioh. Did it feel nice?"

Link looked down at his hand and flexed his fingers. Then he slammed his knuckles into the bulkhead behind him to clear his head. "_What_ do you want?" he demanded as his face grew red.

"I would think you knew by now," she said as she sat up. "But then… well, the innocent routine does favoh to youh attractiveness."

Link gave her an annoyed look. "Is that all?"

She shrugged the shoulder she was not leaning on. "Oh. We may have also retahned to Skyridah Poht, but who can say with such things when theah ah cehtain activities to undahtake on this fine day?"

"You're right, there are," Link told her.

"Oh?" Dholit asked, a delighted look appearing on her face.

Link grabbed the overhead boards and pulled himself across the bed and past Dholit. He set foot on the deck and walked over to his footlocker. "I've gotta get dressed; I have a ship to command."

Dholit huffed, although she had a humored look on her face as she gaped at him. "You'h teasing _me_, My Captain?"

"You do it to me all the time," Link said as he pulled his trousers on. He fit his fingers through the gash in the right leg. "_Man_, do I need some new trousers. Never mind what Layna did to my undersuit."

Dholit swung her legs over the edge of the bed and leaned back. "Yes, I noticed that, My Captain Hotpants," she said. She raised her eyebrows. "Did Layna tiah of the old look?"

"No. She was trying to bandage my leg."

"Aaaaah. So Layna has a fondness of playing suhgeon and patient. I would have nevah expected it of a pretty little killah, but it creates quite the pictuah. Especially if she supplies heh own patients."

Link had to hasten pulling his tunic over his head so he could respond. "She didn't do it, Dholit. I was really wounded. Just… just _where_ do you get these thoughts?"

"Look, My Captain, in lieu of having any soht of non-professional relationship with you, you have to fohgive me the frequent fantasy. Afteh all, theah's only so much tension that I can relieve through the otheh Gelto onboahd."

Link paused in the middle of securing his regular belt. "Wait, what have you been doing to them?"

Dholit stretched one arm ahead of her and acted as if she was inspecting her nails. "Practice."

Link pointed to the door. "Get out."

Dholit left, and Link stepped out onto the deck a few minutes later. A look to starboard revealed that they had returned to Skyrider Port. He guessed the time to be sometime in the middle of the morning, particularly because the day crew was on-deck. Leynne was not immediately in sight, so Link strode across the deck while ignoring the fact that Dholit was speaking to Biluf and Layna as if she was gossiping.

His bootsteps on the stairs alerted Leynne and Line to his presence. Leynne glanced over his shoulder and said, "Good mohning, Link."

"Good morning, guys," Link said. "Where are we?"

"Holding position in the same place as befoh."

"Sure would be nice to _dock_ somewhere today, though," Line said.

Link held up a hand to indicate the bow. "Well, pull us against the shore and dock, Line," he said. "No one's stopping you."

Line let out a sigh and turned to operate the engine controls. "Think we can actually pull into a _port_ sometime this year, Link?"

"Only if you stop being a grouch," Link replied. Then he said to Leynne, "I'm going ashore to deliver the medicine."

"Naturally," Leynne replied.

"While I'm gone, I'd like you to work out a timetable for the crew. At most, we should have two people on-deck and two people manning the engine room. The rest can go ashore for a bit of relaxation."

"How long shall I make the arrangements foh?"

"The letter should have gone out this morning. I don't know how long it'll take for the _Summer Breeze_ to get here, so we'll just go with two days for now. Maybe make one for a third day just in case."

"Personally, I'm sick of seeing the shore," Line spoke up. "Feel free to schedule me in the evening; I'd like to at least see Lady Leeta and maybe relax back at the office. If we can get in."

"You can check on it while we're ashore," Link told him. Then he added to Leynne, "I'll also see if I can make some arrangements at the Sail Tavern. Maybe see if the crew can start tabs." He glanced aside for a moment with a nervous look on his face. "Leynne, I know you've said it doesn't bother yo—"

Leynne held up a hand to stop him. "I have no objection to giving money to the crew as long as they don't expect to spluhge on my good will."

"Thanks. And don't forget to set up some time for yourself. Just make arrangements so that at least _one_ of us is on the ship."

"Of couhse."

…

Line settled the ship near the middle of the southeastern coast, where there was still a clear path to the town and tall buildings to block the presence of the _Island Symphony_'s masts from anyone approaching from the Sky Line to the west. After retrieving his journal and the notes he made yesterday, Link disembarked with Line and Layna accompanying him (for those definitions of "accompany" which include already being hidden by the time of departure, per Layna's routine). They went north to the clinic, and Link was a little surprised to see one knight waiting outside the front door. He had to remind himself that, while he, his crew, and the _Grand Sails_ were all in hiding, the rulers of Hyrule technically had no reason to hide. The man gave them a nod and stepped aside for them to enter.

Link and Line came into the recovery ward with Layna trailing them. King Lauris glanced up at the new arrivals, and then he stood up. "Captain," he addressed Link.

Link turned to Line, and Line held up a large, cloth sack. "Just as promised, Your Majesty," Link told him. "All the way from Autumn Island."

"Here, let me take that," a nearby nurse said as she stepped around King Lauris. Line gave her the sack, and she took it with her through another doorway behind the king.

"Link."

Link glanced up to see Irleen hovering over the doorway. "Hey, Irleen," he said. "Miss me?"

"Link, we have a problem," Irleen told him in a grave tone. "Lutock is gone."

Link exchanged a look with Line. "Gone? When?"

"Sometime last night, probably a few hours after you left."

"I was awake at the time," King Lauris spoke up. "Lutock tended to my wife, and then he simply left the room without even a word. Sir Golwin mentioned seeing him step outside, but not a trace of him is to be found."

"You don't think he snapped, do you?" Line asked. "He _was_ down there for a while."

"I thought he might have just stepped out to stretch his wings," Irleen said. "But… I'm wondering if he might've just left the island."

"Can he do that?" Link asked.

"It is quite difficult," Irleen admitted. "The Sky Lines are too rough to be flown by wing for a long time. The only alternative would be that he decided to descend to the surface, but I cannot say why."

"You're talking funny," Line commented.

"Focus, Line," Link told him. He looked back up at Irleen. "If he went down to the surface, could he get back?"

"Not on his own wings," Irleen said.

Link sighed. "Well… I suppose there's nothing we can do unless he shows up again. I mean… I know it must've been nice to have another Sorian around and all."

"I am not particularly upset. Just a little shocked. Besides, being free of the Technoworks may give him some time to recover from his experience. Like you said, Line, it _is_ possible that he might have lost his mind a bit."

"He was a blessing to have, albeit for what little time there was," King Lauris spoke as he sat back down. He watched his wife as she continued to sleep undisturbed by the talking around her. "It was nice to see her not suffering from the pain, if only for a little bit."

"Your Majesty," Link said. "I… I don't want to be rude or anything, but we still need to work out how we intend to retake the castle from the fake princess."

"I take no offense to your change of subject, Captain," Lauris replied. "After all, it is _my_ kingdom that we must discuss. What resources do you have available?"

"Well, so far, Your Majesty, we only have my ship and yours. One more ship should be in port by this afternoon. Given at least two more days, we'll have four total."

"If your intention is to storm the castle, I should remind you that the cannons on the outer wall will stop any advancing ship."

Link nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty. But we've got a solution. The last vessel to come in is going to be one of the navy vessels. Its captain is an old friend of ours. We're going to dress the ship coming in this afternoon to look like another vessel of the fleet. Then, both ships will escort my ship, the _Island Symphony_, to the castle docks like they've taken the ship captive."

"I see. Interesting. But… what of _my_ vessel?"

Link frowned. "I'm… not sure. I hadn't thought about it."

"I think I've got an idea," Line spoke up. "You see, Your Majesty, while the _Island Symphony_ and the escort ships dock at the castle, all attention will be on them. So your ship can sneak into the port. Her Majesty still needs her doctors, right?"

"Ah," Lauris said. "I see where you're going with this, young airman. If the ruse fails, at least we will have secured the queen's survival. Governor Lore should be able to hide her and get her the treatment she needs."

Line nodded. "Exactly, Your Majesty."

"It is a rough plan," the king admitted. "But it would appear that we have few options. I suppose that I shall be accompanying your _Island Symphony_, Captain?"

"I think that, if yours is the first face they see coming off the ship," Link replied, "then they should stand down, Your Majesty. We'll have a couple days to work everything out."

A doctor in a white coat stepped in with a steaming bowl in his hands. "Excuse me, Your Majesty," he said. "We've readied the medicine."

"Yes, of course," Lauris said as he stood. He moved and pulled his chair along so that the doctor could reach the head of Queen Arla's bed. "Doctor, how long will the medicine take to have an effect?"

"Given throughout the day, we should…" The doctor paused to set the bowl down and pull out a crate from under the bed. He sat and continued, "We should see some improvement by tomorrow afternoon, Your Majesty. She's gone without it for some time; it will take time for it to aid in her recovery." He carefully placed a hand on the queen's shoulder and shook her. "Your Majesty. I need you to wake up. We have some medicine for you to take."

"Boys, let's move over here," Lauris said as he stepped in their direction, one hand indicating the ward's empty beds. Link and Line moved backward and waited until the king had seated himself on a bed before they sat on the bed opposite from him. Like this, the king could not see the queen, and Link had the impression that he had done it on purpose. Irleen settled into a hover over the boys' heads, and Layna sidled up next to the foot of the bed. "First," the king told them, "I would like to express my gratitude toward you and your crew for what you have done in service to us. I must admit that I had misgivings about sending you to retrieve that medicine, but I felt that we should not become stranded here should something happen to my vessel."

"We're glad we could help, Your Majesty," Link answered while Line nodded.

"But… at the same time, I am a little puzzled by your involvement in all this. Captain, you have clearly had contact with my daughter, and _one_ of you was there when this… eh, this kidnapping occurred. How is it that you know so much?"

Link turned to Line. Line shifted uncomfortably. "W-well, uh…" he said as he tried to find the words he needed. "I was… there… Y-Your Majesty. I was on the Sorian airship with Princess Zelda. They took _all_ of us captive."

"You escaped?" the king asked.

Line shook his head. "No. They… The monsters who caught us made me and two other airmen bring the fake princess back to the kingdom with a bunch of their crew. The monsters ditched us, and we didn't know where they'd gone until the whole kingdom started going crazy. We tried to organize some resistance to her, but the best we got was a blockade around Bold Island."

"Okay then," the king said with a nod. Then he looked at Link. "Captain, I spoke with the knights you and your bodyguard accosted in a tavern."

Link's eyes widened. "That-that was an accident, Your Majesty," he quickly said. "Layna, she… uh, she just…"

"She does not know any better, Your Majesty," Irleen finished.

"I understood this," Lauris said. "But my question is to how you had been able to obtain information about my knights. Sir Gilbert explained to me that, despite asking for his name, you spontaneously knew it a moment later. Then, you gave the codeword to indicate danger to the Royal Family. No one but my staff and the knighthood should know those words. How is it that you came about such knowledge?"

Link glanced up at Irleen, and then to Line, who was waiting to hear the explanation as well. He sighed and told King Lauris, "Because Princess Zelda told me, Your Majesty."

"Oh, boy, here we go…" Irleen groaned.

"The same princess that you claim is now being held captive on a demon airship," the king said with an air of incredulity.

"I-I know it sounds crazy, Your Majesty," Link said as he leaned back to dig into a trouser pocket.

"Happy farm, Link," Line told him. "Happy farm."

"Just a minute," Link told him. He set down his single sheet of notes on the bed and opened his journal. He flipped through the pages in search of the first remark he had made about Zelda's toy. When he found the page he needed, he turned the book and offered it to the king. "This was the note I made when I woke up one night."

King Lauris leaned forward to read the page. Then he gave Link a strange look before reading aloud, "'Try not to talk with a pillow in my mouth if she does it again. It's kind of embarrassing'."

Link blinked and turned the book around again to read the page. "Oh. I forgot about that. Uh, the line _above_ that, Your Majesty."

Link let him read the page again. "Toy cucco?" the king asked.

Link nodded and glanced at the journal again before he set it back down. "I made that note while we were sailing to Might Island." He picked up his notes and unfolded the paper. He skimmed it before he said, "The toy was a cucco with gold tail feathers and a blue… uh… comb… I think that word is. I think I misspelled it. Comb…" He turned to Line. "What's a comb?"

"Isn't it that weird thing on the top of their heads?" Line asked, one hand hovering over his scalp.

"Oh, right," Link said. "Anyway, it was something she received for her eighth birthday. It had eyes that she thought looked like little chocolates."

King Lauris shook his head. "The princess never received a toy cucco like that," he said, his voice sounding a little heated. "You are wrong, Captain."

"Lauris…" The king looked over his shoulder, and Link leaned over to see past him. Queen Arla, now appearing wide awake, had turned her head toward them. Her voice was slow and strained as she told them, "He speaks of Mister Choco. She enjoyed that cucco so… That was the toy she bought when you took her out of the castle on that birthday. I remember her coming home with it wrapped in her arms."

Lauris glanced back to Link with a surprised look on his face. "Arla, are you certain?" he asked his wife.

"Certain… as the stars at night, my love."

Lauris stared at Link. "Go on."

Link looked back down at the notes in his hand. "Uh… one evening when she was ten, someone set fire to an old tapestry hanging near her room. The staff panicked, and when you heard about it, they all tried to take blame for it. She then said that _she_ was the one who set it on fire. You were so mad that you didn't talk to anyone the next morning."

"I do recall that," Lauris said, his face conveying complete shock. His voice sounded a little distant as he added, "I never found out who really set fire to it."

"It was the princess, Your Majesty."

"My Zelda?"

"My love," Queen Arla spoke up. "Zelda came to me that morning… and gave the full explanation to me. She had set fire to the tapestry on accident. The staff tried to cover for her by confessing to the incident. She confessed to the deed… because she feared that you would severely punish the staff. She knew that you would have to give it up. She… told me that she did not want to give the details to you for fear that you would discipline the staff… for trying to cover her mistake."

"She was wandering around with a candle," Link said, "and she accidentally touched it to a hanging part of the tapestry. The staff had to rip it off the wall and stomp it out."

Lauris turned to Arla, and Arla nodded at him. "How could you know all of this?" he asked Link.

Link nudged Line, who was trying to read the paper in Link's hand, away and offered the notes to King Lauris. "Because Princess Zelda told me, Your Majesty," he said. "I wrote these notes not long after we left Skyrider Port yesterday."

"Okay. I'm spooked," Line said.

"Me as well," Irleen said.

Lauris looked at them. "You have cause to believe this?" he asked.

"I'm convinced," Line said. "I watched Link get shot down. And I _know_ the princess is still in the Undying Storm."

"Somehow, it sounds as if she modified the magic gem I left to Captain Koroul," Irleen said. "I did not think that it was possible; in fact, I have spent the past months _denying_ the possibility."

"If magic is involved," Queen Arla spoke up, "Zelda has a habit of producing… small miracles of her own."

"This is a serious matter, Link," Irleen said. "It is very difficult to alter magic gems to such a degree. The very fact that Princess Zelda was able to turn my simple concentration gem into a viable means of communication speaks to a source of magic much more powerful than my own. Maybe even something rivaling the talents of a Grey."

Line had been staring at her with a vacant expression. He told her, "I have _no_ idea what you just said."

"Is she communicating with you now, Captain?" King Lauris asked.

Link shook his head. "She hasn't spoken to me at all today, Your Majesty," he answered. "She's able to speak to me while I'm awake, but _she_ has to be asleep in order to do it. She can't tell time from where she is, so it happens at random sometimes. I usually don't know when she's watching until she says something."

King Lauris glanced down at his lap. Then he looked up and asked Link, "Captain. Should we prove successful at removing the false princess from the throne, would you consider using your knowledge to lead your Skyrider companions against this demon airship and retrieve my daughter?"

"It isn't a choice, Your Majesty," Link said. "I already promised her that we would save her."

King Lauris stood up, prompting Link and Line to do the same. "I shall await your readiness to move, Captain," he said. He turned to look at the queen. "My love, I hope you will forgive me for leaving your side temporarily."

"Do what you must, my love," Arla replied, a weak smile on her face. "I shall await your return."

"It shall be no later than tonight." With that, King Lauris stomped out the doorway and bellowed, "Knights to my side!"

Link tapped Line's arm. "Line, go see if the main office is open," he said. "See if there's anything there we might be able to use. I'll meet you there."

"Where're you going?" Line asked him.

"I just need to make a quick detour," Link said. He looked up and said, "Irleen, why don't you go with him?"

"Nūc?" Irleen asked. "Līnca, kákirōlat ō."

"What'd she say?" Line asked.

Link felt the outside of his pockets. "Uh oh," he uttered before squeezing past Line to get out the door. "Your Majesty!"

…

After retrieving Irleen's translator gem and sending Irleen with Line, Link traveled across town to the Sail Tavern on his own (although he assumed that Layna was still nearby). He found the tavern to be nearly empty, its only patrons a pair of knights and a passed-out junker sleeping in the corner under the stairs. This early in the day, Leeta was the only one working. She was wiping down the counter when Link took a stool near the door.

"Welcome back, Link," she told him with a smile. "Any news yet?"

"About?" Link asked, confused.

She shrugged. "_Anything_ at this point. Did you find the king and queen?"

Link nodded. "They're here at the Port, just like we thought."

"Oh, good."

"There's something else, too. I took the _Island Symphony_ to Autumn Island last night."

"Oh?" she asked, setting down her rag.

"The _Grand Sails_ was there. Captain Alfonzo's sick right now, but that's where he is. We'll be picking him up as soon as we're done at Castle Island."

Leeta placed a hand on her chest and heaved a sigh of relief. "Oh, that's so good to hear. I've never been so long without him visiting. Did you speak with him at all?"

Link nodded. "Yeah I did. He told me everything." He paused for a moment before deciding to tell her. "Mom."

Leeta's eyes widened. Then they began to well up, and she put her hands over her mouth to keep her awkward sobbing in check. Link gave her a huge grin.

The grin then disappeared into panic when she reached across the bar, wrapped her arms around Link's neck, and pulled him close, causing him to kick his stool to the floor. "_Hrek!_" Link croaked just before his face was buried in her chest.


	107. Link, Captain of the Welcoming Committee

Chapter 107: Link, Captain of the Welcoming Committee

…

~~Day 90 (Command, Day 53)

~~We returned to Skyrider Port by about mid-morning. The queen has had her medicine, and the king is off preparing to return to Castle Island.

~~I must admit that I'm a little shocked myself to know that I've been talking to the real Princess Zelda this whole time. It was getting difficult to believe that I might have actually been only dreaming of her. Now I know for sure that I'm not losing my mind; even Irleen says that it's possible if Zelda's able to change the way her gem works. I think that's the general agreement since there's no other explanation at all. But, whatever the reason, I'm glad to know that she's real.

Link stared down at his journal for a while, wondering if there was anything else that he should jot down. Then someone knocked at his cabin door, so he put down his pen and pushed the journal aside. "Come in," he called to the door.

The door opened, and Flower stepped in with Chief Mallard following behind. "Hey there, Lieutenant," Flower said, giving Link a quick salute. "Look who was wandering around the Port."

"Lieutenant," Mallard said with a nod.

Link stood up from his chair. "Thank you, Mister Flower," he said. Flower nodded and left, closing the door behind him. "Welcome to the _Island Symphony_, Chief."

Mallard nodded and looked about the cabin. "Nice ship you've got here, Captain. Crew doesn't look half-bad, either."

"Gelto," Link told him. "They came from the surface with most of my crew."

"No Gelto men looking for work?"

Link managed a weak grin. "Almost no Gelto men at _all_."

Mallard's half-smile turned into a dumbfounded expression. "Really?"

"That's how Airman Cale explained it to me, as far as I can remember."

"They any good?"

Link shrugged. "They have their own ideas sometimes, but they follow orders. Uh…" He sighed. "Maybe except one, but she's getting better about it."

"Discipline problem?"

"No, she just… ugh. Sometimes, she just can't leave people alone. Like she just _has_ to bother someone."

Mallard crossed his arms. "Sounds like a certain pair of airmen I used to know."

"Ah—… Well, in my defense, _Line_ started it all."

Mallard nodded and replied with an air of skepticism. "Uh huh." He stepped forward and rested his hip against the front of Link's desk. "So what's the plan?"

"Well, we need you to look like one of the princess's vessels," Link replied as he sat down. "Did Captain Alfonzo ever receive the new regulations the princess was enforcing?"

Mallard shrugged and shook his head at the same time. "Who knows? After we got the orders to submit to conscription, the captain stopped opening anything official-looking. After that, mail service just kinda halted. None of the crew got mail, and the Skyrider branch offices getting shut down didn't help much. Then we went into hiding. We started losing crew because of that."

Link nodded. "I'd heard. Can you still sail all right?"

"We aren't missing _that_ many, Captain."

"Okay. Well, it doesn't look like we'll have to do anything complicated. We'll work out the details once the _Summer Breeze_ gets here. The main thing is that the whole crew needs some black tunics, and we have to find a black flag to replace the _Grand Sails_' banner. Do you have enough to do that, or are you gonna need some funds?"

"It'll be easier to just spill ink all over their clothes," Mallard said. "In fact, we just might do that. Just dye everyone a black tunic. And I'm sure we can find a flag around here we can do the same thing to."

Link nodded. "Then we can start there."

"It'll take time."

"I know."

"And it's a pretty rough plan."

Link nodded. "Rough as a cutter in a Sky Line."

Mallard gave him a large half-grin. "I'll go let Blair know."

Mallard had just taken a step away from Link's desk when the cabin door opened. "Oy, boss?" said Lawrence, who appeared to be a little out of breath. "We go' a prob'm."

"Sello set fire to the engine room again?" Link asked automatically, his reaction almost completely neutral. Mallard, on the other hand, gave Link a surprised look.

"Nah, we know be'er," Lawrence told him. "Bu', eh… 'e _is_ missin'."

"Could he be hiding his couch again?"

Lawrence shook his head. "No, Cap'n, 'is couch's where 'e lef' i'. I searched all over. 'E ain' on-board."

Link sighed. "Okay, that's a new one. Who's down in the engine room right now?"

"Harley 'n Lidago," Lawrence said. "Helo 'n I was goin' ashore."

Link nodded. "Okay, well, if you find him, bring him back here. I'll also have the Gelto looking out for him."

"Are you guys talking about a pet or something?" Mallard asked.

Lawrence put on an amused look. "Screwy enough t' be. Righ', Cap'n?"

"Sello is my chief engineer," Link told Mallard. "We need to find him before he builds or repairs something."

Mallard frowned at him. "You make it sound like a bad thing."

"The last time he repaired anything, it terrorized a mining town," Link said as he stood up. "It was a complete nightmare. The stuff he builds is just as horrifying."

Mallard blinked several times in silence. "I think I'll just leave at this point, Captain."

…

~~The Gelto found Sello placing some kind of small machine on a carriage. They weren't sure what he was supposed to be doing, but I'm pretty sure that turning the carriage into splinters and scrap metal against the side of a bakery was just a side effect. He explained that he was still in search of a "smooth hat", but he was so drunk that he couldn't stand on his own, so I doubt if he actually knew what he was saying. No one knows why he left the ship; he still had plenty of alcohol.

~~The Grand Sails has a black flag now, and most of the crew have black tunics. However, the Grand Sails does not have any weapons to distribute to its airmen. A few of the crew have personal weapons, but it's gonna look bad if we can't at least make it look like the deck crew is armed. Leynne found a gunsmith earlier this evening, and he thinks that he might be able to build some fake weapons in case another Skyrider ship happens to appear. He also seems to be working on something else, but he's keeping it under wraps for now. I figure he's just inventing something new. I hope it's something we can use.

…

~~Day 91 (Command, Day 54)

~~I met with Blair and Mallard this morning to see what we're still missing. Blair asked if I knew what the flag standard was for a captured vessel, and I realized that we still didn't have any signal flags. So we went to the company office. There's just a few of the staff there; I guess they're waiting to see if the ships are gonna be released from service (which, I'm sure, they will be soon). They supplied us with a set of flags, and I also got some of my spare clothes from my old quarters. It's nice having a clean outfit again, especially one that fits me right.

~~Leynne is still making fake weapons to supply the crew of the Grand Sails. We're also having some tunics dyed black for Lawrence, Gold, and Flower to make it look like they're crew from either the Grand Sails or the Summer Breeze. Obviously, we can't expect to fool anyone with the Gelto wearing black tunics, but it helps our story if the Skyriders already know part of my crew is made of women.

~~The king sent one of his staff to the ship to give us a report on their situation. The queen is recovering, and the clinic staff says that she should be well enough to travel in another day. The Summer Breeze should be here by tomorrow, and the king says that he would like to move out the morning after preparations are finished. I think, at the rate we're going, the last thing we'll need is the Summer Breeze.

…

"And then we fell into a bunch of tunnels under the mines," Link was saying to Leeta. "And that fall was _long_. I mean, I've fallen from all sorts of things: masts, trees, the _sky_. But this was a pretty long fall even compared to most of them. The hole was like _thi_—whoops." In attempting to illustrate the subject, Link had stretched his arms apart and nearly spilled his drink over onto the floor.

"Be careful, Link," Leeta told him with a giggle. "You make the mess, you clean it up." She glanced toward her only other mid-afternoon patrons before adding, "_Especially_ since you're my boy."

"Yeah, I know," Link replied with a cheesy grin. He took a quick drink of his fizzy juice and set the mug on the bar. "Anyway. Cale and I are at the bottom of the shaft trying to call up to the miners, and Cale notices that we're standing on some kinda stuff. It was kinda like spider webs, but they weren't sticky at all. Well, once we get the lantern the miners are handing to us, we turn around and find that this stuff is all _over_ the tunnel! So we get Irleen down th—"

"That's the fairy girl, right?" Leeta asked. "The one you're trying to help?"

"Yeah. Anyway, we c—"

"Link, hold on for a moment," she said as she stood up straight. "I wanna check on these guys first."

"Oh, sure." He watched her walk down to the end of the bar before returning attention to his drink. Having spent what felt like an hour telling his mom about his adventure on the surface, he had forgotten that there were customers in the tavern. With a shrug to himself, he tried to make a mental note of where he had left off and took a drink. Then he took another drink, and he upended the mug until he could not see the door. Nor did he see the person who had just run in; all he heard was someone running across the floorboards.

"Kyabtin!"

"Bwah!" Link spat in response, spilling his drink down his front and dropping the mug onto the floor. He coughed and slid off his stool so he could do it away from whoever was standing near him. When he overcame the juice that had spilled down his windpipe, he looked up to see Twali standing nearby. "Twali…" he croaked. He shook his head and cleared his throat. "You didn't have to shout like that…"

"Kyabtin… nwiy sunway… than," Twali said in between breaths. It amazed Link that she had to pause like that; she did not appear to be very winded otherwise.

Link sighed and told her while he rung out the front of his tunic, "Sorry, Twali, I'm still not very good with Geltoan."

"Nwiy sunway tab mudhjya zahxwiyl May Kyabtin," Twali told him. Link gave her a helpless shrug. Twali sighed and thought for a moment. She said to herself, "Oh, halcix 'axiltin tab May Kyabtin nadmaythos Gilto 'anik…"

"Is it the crew?" Link asked her. "Did something happen?"

Twali scrunched her face. Then she said, "Manak."

"Huh?" Link asked, tilting an ear toward her.

"Manak!" Twali shouted at him.

Link recognized the word, but he took a moment longer to discern its meaning. When he realized that it meant "danger", his face became appropriately worried. "Let's go," Link said, indicating the door. "Show me."

Twali grabbed his outstretched arm and dragged him across the floor. "Link!" Leeta called to him. "Where are you going?"

"I don't know," Link managed to reply before he was out the door.

Twali pulled him down a few side streets and alleys going roughly toward the docks. He was not sure what was wrong, but, considering that it had something to do with the docks, he came to the quick conclusion that a Skyrider vessel might have appeared. He expected that it might have been the _Summer Breeze_. Dholit had made sure that the Gelto knew what airships they were running from a while back. If the _Summer Breeze_ had just pulled into port, she was likely to recognize it as an enemy ship rather than an ally.

His expectations were dispelled when she turned one sharp corner and immediately jerked to a stop, causing Link to stumble forward and nearly fall over.

Directly in front of them was Captain North. He had just been talking to a street vendor in one of the island's open-air markets when Twali and Link had turned the corner. As surprised as Link was to see him, Captain North and the two airmen flanking him looked even more surprised to see them. For a moment, the only one to react with any other emotion was the confused vendor.

"You!" one of the airmen snapped. He, along with North and his crewmate, reached for the pistols holstered at their hips. At the draw, the vendor ducked behind his booth, as did a number of people around them while others quickly dodged onto whatever street was nearby.

"Gah!" North shouted when, a long, drawn-out split second later, Layna dropped out of the air behind him and wrapped one arm around his neck while her opposite hand waited underneath his jaw with a small blade pressed to his throat.

"Captain!" one of the airmen shouted as both of his crew twisted in response.

"Don't, you idiots!" North barked. He held his pistol up for Layna to see and settled the hammer back into the resting position. "You'll only provoke her. Put your guns away." Both airmen shared a look before they de-cocked their own pistols. North grunted and said to Layna, "I assume that's what you want, young lady." Layna, her face cold and distant, did not respond. So he said to Link, "I hardly expected to find _you_ here, Captain Link."

"I'm just as shocked, actually," Link answered. "Do you plan on chasing me here, too?"

"I have orders."

"The princess is a fake. You're not taking orders from _anyone_ in the Royal Family."

"You don't have any proof of that. I told you before on Tabletop Island, and the remark still stands." Link just glared at him, so he continued, "I admit that I was a little taken by that stuff you left behind. It had me convinced that not only were you not a real Skyrider because you left your tunic behind, you are also a fool of a captain. I've clearly been mistaken on both parts, but I assure you that you will not so easily fool me twice."

Link shook his head. "It doesn't have to be like this. Listen. The King of Hyrule, King Lauris, is here on Skyrider Port. Let me take you to him. He'll tell you what's going on."

"I'm not inclined to trust you."

"Then you'll trust _me_, Captain North." North's eyes widened at the sound of an authoritative voice from somewhere nearby. Link glanced behind North and his airmen to see King Lauris standing just a little further behind him, flanked by a pair of armored knights holding drawn swords.

"Y-Your _Majesty_?!" North said, his attempts to look behind him hindered by Layna's hold on his neck.

"Captain Link, please call off your bodyguard," the king said.

"Layna," Link said. He then took a moment to remember the correct word. "Uh… yay… Oh, yaynoan. I think."

"Yaynwo'an?" Twali asked him. Link nodded, so Twali beckoned Layna. "Layna, yaynwo'an than." Layna slowly released Captain North. She maintained her distance as she rounded the airman standing further in the open, and then she skipped backwards until she knelt between them and Link with her eyes trained on them.

North felt around his throat as he turned around. "Your Majesty," he said in a calm voice. "Forgive my ignorance. I did not know you were here."

"I am afraid that our recent traveling has left us unable to communicate with anyone," King Lauris said while gesturing to his knights. The knights sheathed their swords. "I am inclined to forgive your indiscretion if you are willing to listen to your fellow captain. He is not the wanted boy you believe him to be."

North glanced over his shoulder at Link for a moment. Then he asked, "Your Majesty, if it is not too bold, what are you doing away from the castle?"

"Matters of country. I have since been unable to return due to the trouble with the Sky Lines. So far, Captain Link has been quite helpful."

"So… he speaks the truth then? Has Her Highness Princess Zelda been replaced by an imposter?"

The king nodded. "Captain Link has shown overwhelming evidence that there is indeed an imposter sitting upon the throne. Our intention is to return to Castle Island and remove her through whatever means necessary. You, Captain North, should travel with us to better the chance that our plan will succeed."

North immediately dropped to a knee, and his airmen dropped a second later after not knowing what else to do. "Your Majesty, I have pledged to serve the Royal Family for the rest of my life. I shall be honored to help in your plan to retake the throne."

"Captain Link? Do you think the _Moon's Shadow_ can be incorporated into the plan?"

"Uh… yeah, I _suppose_ so," Link replied, glancing at Layna as she moved to stand behind him.

"Captain," one of North's airmen said in a low voice, so low that Link almost missed it. "The spy."

North nodded. "Your Majesty, the false princess has placed a person on my ship to oversee my actions. This came about after I had reported my failure to capture Captain Link, and I believe that he will interfere with the plan if he is allowed to remain in his current position."

The king pondered for a moment. "Is this person one of my subjects?"

"Your Majesty, I know nothing of this person. He is a man taller and wider than any other man I have known. He conceals himself in armor from head to toe. Yet, in the dark, his eyes give a faint glow, as if he has some sort of demon presence."

"Wait a minute," Link spoke up. "Wearing nothing _but_ armor?"

North looked over his shoulder. "Yes. Of a kind not worn by the Knights of Hyrule."

"And its eyes glow?"

North nodded. "Yes."

"Uh oh."

North shared a confused look with one of his airmen, who in turn asked, "You know what it is?"

"It sounds like a Stalarmor. It's one of the things holding the real princess captive. I can take care of it, but you might want to get your crew off the ship just in case. I have to get to my ship first."

"I will return to my ship as well. Captain Link, fire one of your signals into the air as you near so that I can move my men out fast."

"Twali, Lay—…" Link looked around where Layna had been standing to find that she had already disappeared. He let out a sigh. "I hate when she does that. Twali, let's go." As he and Twali started jogging away, Link called back, "Captain, look for green smoke. We'll be on our way."

…

Leynne was a little surprised when Twali and Link hustled up the gangplank. Dholit, however, remained her impish self and started suggesting that Link was "moving in" on Twali now. Link called Layna down and hurriedly explained the situation to her through Dholit. Layna agreed to help Link get rid of the Stalarmor, and Link gathered his usual gear. On the way out, Link encountered Line and Irleen roaming the deck, and Irleen asked to go along.

Five minutes later, she jumped out of Link's hat and shouted, "Are you _kidding_ me!? That's gotta be the worst trip _ever_!"

"Shhh!" Link hissed at her. "Keep it down, Irleen."

Irleen glanced around. "Uh… are… are you two on top of a building?"

"Yeah," Link said as he slowly stepped to where Layna hid behind the raised edge of the roof. "This is the top of the Skyriders' main office. We should be able to see the _Moon's Shadow_ from here."

"You know, I still didn't get that part where you _help_ the man who tried to kill you and your crew," she said as she followed.

"He's gonna help _us_," Link answered, huddling near Layna. "But we have to get the fake princess's spy off his ship first. It's one of Cunimincus' crew. Think you can head over there and take a look?"

"You… you want _me_ to scout it out?"

"No one will notice you if you just remain over everyone's heads and don't make any noise. There should be a Stalarmor over there. Once you come back and tell us what you found, we can go after it."

Irleen hesitated. Then she said, "Well… okay, I think I can do that."

Link glanced over the top. "It's that ship with the black hull."

"Right. The _only_ ship in the port." She left Link sighing and shaking his head.

While Irleen scouted, Link pulled his flare gun and loaded a green smoke shell into it. Layna watched him for a moment. Then she sat on the roof and pulled out one of her circular blades. Link watched curiously as she appeared to stare at something in it, angling the blade ever so slightly. She held it up a little higher, and Link caught on that she was using it to watch the airship without stepping out of cover. At least, that was what he _thought_. She seemed to silently fuss over her hair, pushing loose strands against her scalp. He took it to be her trying to get her hair out of the way.

"Okay, Link," Irleen said as she dropped back into Link's sight some time later. "I've got bad news, and I've got worse news."

"Okay…" Link replied, giving her a confused look.

"First, the bad news. That's not a Stalarmor."

Link sighed and placed a hand over his eyes. "Ugh… And the _worse_ news?"

"It's a Darknut."

Link stared at her for a moment. Then he asked, "What's that?"

"Sorta like armor wearing air."

Link gave her an annoyed look. "That doesn't help, Irleen."

"Living armor, Link. Almost like a Stalarmor, but these things don't have much underneath. It's just armor on top of a cloud of evil."

"Okay. Okay, any tips on beating it?"

"I _think_ you can beat it by taking off its armor."

"You _think_?"

Irleen shivered side to side. "Look, it's been a while since I read about these things. Exposing whatever's inside to light _should_ get rid of it. Not that you have to worry; you've gotten good at killing things easily a hundred times your size anyway."

Link put a hand into his pocket and pulled out her translating gem. "Explain it to her really quick," he said before offering Layna the gem. Layna took the gem, and Irleen started talking while Link turned to look at the _Moon's Shadow_. It appeared as if Captain North had already moved some of his crew off the ship, a number of them loitering near a bunch of crates on the main dock. With the ship docked with its stern to Link, though, he could not see the deck at all. The best glimpse he had was of the small opening in the transom, and no one really had reason to be standing there.

Layna tapped his shoulder and offered the translator gem back. Link took it, and then he indicated a small shed closer to the ship. Layna nodded, and Link followed her to a corner of the building. Link cocked the flare gun and fired it into the air. _Fzzzzzzzzzzzz!_ Link did not wait to see the smoke turn into a column of green; Layna was already falling to the ground. He swung his legs up and over the edge of the roof hard enough that he put a bit of distance between himself and the building when he landed. He staggered from the fall for a bit, then he launched himself into a run that triggered his boots. He sped right past Layna (who nearly tripped when he went by) and had to slide to a stop behind the shed. Layna slipped up behind him while he peered around the side, making sure she brushed against him so he knew it was only her. They were close enough for Link to make out faces, and he could see North at the top of the boarding plank.

"Thanks for the warning," Irleen hissed at Link as she came to a hover over his head.

"Sorry, Irleen," Link replied as he spotted more airmen stalking across the cargo pier on the ship's port side. He looked around the edges of the ship. "I don't see it. Where's the Darknut?"

"Standing in about the middle of the ship," Irleen replied. "Darknuts aren't exactly known for being very active. Armor."

Link nodded. "So we'll use the boarding plank going into the transom. We'll be able to see him from there. Ready, Lay—" Link turned to find that Layna had already disappeared. "I hope she reads minds."

"Where the hell'd she go?" Irleen asked. "There's nothing for her to hide behind between here and there."

Link leaned backwards to see if she was on the shed's roof. "Nope, not up there. C'mon, we need to get going." Link stepped out into the open and jogged around the crowd of airmen until he stood at the bottom of the boarding plank. North, just stepping off the plank, gave him a sharp nod before moving to his crew to talk to them. Both Link and Irleen glanced around once more to see if they could spot Layna. When they did not find her, Link carefully climbed the boarding plank with his hand already on the hilt of the Lokomo Sword.

Once Link set foot on the poop deck, he crouched low and slowly advanced to the rail ahead of him. He spotted the Darknut standing in the middle of the main deck, just as Irleen had said. It wore black armor with bright red marking on the edge of many of its plates. North had been right; the Darknut was easily larger than any man Link had ever met, even accounting for the fact that _every_ man Link had met looked large to him. It was gazing off to starboard with a tall, wide sword stabbed into the deck in front of it. Link wondered if it realized that the crew was missing.

"I could use a bow right about now…" Link groaned.

"Wouldn't do any good, Link," Irleen whispered. "Arrows would just bounce right off. Like I said, see if you can knock its armor off."

Link sighed and slowly pulled the Lokomo Sword. "Somehow, this doesn't seem like a good idea."

"Really, Link? Between Drumstik, the Lizalfos, and three _freaking large_ Technomos, _this_ seems like a bad idea?" Link just shrugged at her. "Man, Link, just how _skewed_ is your perception of danger _anyway_?"

"If anything happens to us," Link told her, "get to Captain North."

"Be careful, Link," Irleen told him before she spiraled higher into the air.

Link moved to the port side, which he hoped was still out of the Darknut's line of sight, and descended the stairs onto the bridge. Then he moved down the stairs onto the main deck, stopping at the foot of the stairs as he planned an attack. He felt that his best shot at a quick defeat would be to knock its helmet off. It was tall, so Link might have to take a stab at its helmet. He slowly moved across the deck, keeping near the bulwark. Then he started stepping toward the Darknut's back, sword poised for an upward stab at the back of its head. He was only a few steps away.

Then the Darknut looked over its shoulder, one yellow, glowing eye peering at him through the narrow slit in its helmet. Link froze in place. Then he stumbled backwards when the Darknut suddenly spun around. "Whoa!" he cried out as he fell to the deck, ducking just out of the Darknut's sword swing. He watched with horror as the Darknut then raised the sword above its head. "Yikes!" he shouted, flipping to get his feet beneath him and scrambling aside just as the blade smashed into the deck. Then he spun with the Lokomo Sword held up just as the Darknut used a single jerk to tug its sword out of the groove it had left in the deck.

_Tnk! Tunk._ The Darknut's head jerked to one side, and Link spotted one of Layna's throwing blades embedded in the deck nearby. He immediately took the opportunity to lunge forward and jab his sword at the helmet. But he found that his reach was too short for him to put much power into the blow, and the tip of his sword skipped off the round side of the Darknut's can-shaped helmet. The Darknut used its free hand to twist its helmet back into the correct position, and its glare made Link realize that he was still standing within its reach. So Link struck the shoulder of the Darknut's cuirass and backpedaled. The Darknut stabbed the thick sword forward, and Link hit the sword from the inside flat with the Lokomo Sword to nudge the Darknut's blow away from his head. Nudging was all he could manage; Link could feel the strength the Darknut hid under the armor now that they had traded a blow.

_Tnk!_ The Darknut's head jerked again just as it drew back its sword for a horizontal slash intended to remove Link's head. Link leaned backwards out of range, and then he took a step forward and landed a blow on the Darknut's exposed elbow. This jarred its vambrace loose, and the Darknut had to back off so it could switch its sword to its opposite hand. It shook off the vambrace and gauntlet, revealing a hand clad in a chainmail glove. With that gloved hand, it straightened out its helmet to look at Link, who had halted to see the effect of his attack. He quickly backed away when he saw the sword rise, and he managed to go just a little faster so that he could avoid the slash aimed for his neck again. It followed through with the strike by aiming its shoulder at Link and charging forward with the intention of running Link through with the spikes on its pauldron. Link skipped to one side, and the Darknut tried a backhanded strike in a last-minute attempt to slice Link. Link then lunged with a horizontal strike. He was not sure what he was aiming for, and he struck the Darknut's back as it was standing up straight. The Lokomo Sword rang from the impact, and the Darknut tried to twist and strike Link with the elbow of its remaining vambrace. Link had already moved out of the way by stepping directly behind the Darknut, and he used an upward diagonal strike to hit the armor on its thigh. Something metal snapped, and the Darknut's faulds dropped to the deck. The Darknut spun on Link and dropped its sword in a diagonal swing to try to cleave Link again. And again, Link backed out of its range.

_Tnk!_ Once again, Layna's blade caused the Darknut's head to jerk. This happened while the Darknut was bent forward while it had tried to extend its reach a bit, and Link took the opportunity to slide right beside it while its off-center helmet had it distracted. He raised his arm and dropped the Lokomo Sword into the side of the helmet, knocking it loose over its eyes. The Darknut retaliated by shoving Link backwards with its free hand, causing Link to stumble and fall backwards. Link watched the Darknut then reach behind its head and rip the helmet off, expecting the exposure to kill it.

Irleen's shout after the helmet hit the deck summed up Link's internal reaction.

"It's wearing _two_ helmets!? Are you _kidding _me!?"

The Darknut turned to reveal to Link that it wore a mail coif banded with steel to form it in a shape almost the same as helmet. Although the slit which allowed it to see was wider, Link could still not see what lurked underneath.

He quickly got back to his feet and moved out of the way as a vertical slash nearly removed one of his legs. He was moments from delivering a blow to its head again when the Darknut released its sword to backhand Link across the face. Link spun and fell to the deck, vision spinning from the blow. He pushed himself up and spotted his sword lying on the deck nearby.

"Link, behind you!" Irleen screamed. Link looked over his shoulder to find the Darknut standing with its sword high above its head. He rolled toward the Lokomo Sword and held it with the flat waiting to intercept the blow. But Link realized that he could not possibly block all the force that was about to impact the sword. Even if it did not break the blade, the sheer power would drive the Lokomo Sword backward, and Link would quite possibly take the Darknut's sword into his skull anyway.

_TNK. Krrch._ The impact was light, but that was because what hit the Lokomo Sword was one of Layna's blades. It had skipped off the blade, and the following crunch came from the Darknut, who reeled backward upon taking the circular blade directly into its right eye. Despite not having a visible face, the Darknut appeared perplexed. It lowered its sword and used one hand to feel its face. When its fingertips found the blade, it jerked its head upward. Link followed its gaze to see Layna crouched on one of the yards above. The Darknut, seeming to have forgotten that Link was still in perfect killing range, turned and stomped across the deck. Link flipped over and watched as the Darknut stopped in front of the mast which Layna was on. It raised its blade and delivered a powerful, horizontal swing to the mast, causing the structure above to rattle and shake. Layna's feet slipped, and she spun herself to catch the footrope underneath the yard before she fell any further.

"Layna!" Link shouted.

Then his panic gave way to determination, and he charged the Darknut from behind. His boots caused him to surge forward, and he held his sword level with the deck. His primal scream caused the Darknut to pause, wondering at the sound. Then it jerked when Link's blade pierced its back plate. It first glanced over its shoulder, and then it had to raise its arm and look underneath to see that Link had stabbed into its back. It turned, and Link, with his hand still gripping his sword, stumbled as he turned with it. He pulled the sword out just before the Darknut ran him into the mast and backed away. The Darknut spun further with the intention of taking Link's head off. Instead, its horizontal swing embedded its sword into the mast again while Link had ducked into safety behind the mast. Link then stepped out and swung low as he strode past the Darknut, striking the side of the Darknut's right greave and breaking the metal clasp holding the two pieces together. The Darknut swung its gauntleted hand around to try to strike Link, but Link had already spun around to block the attack. Link had blocked with a forward swing, and the combination of force caused the Darknut's gauntlet to fall loose. The block also stung Link's hand, and he backed off a moment to shake the pain out of his left palm. The Darknut grabbed the handle of its sword and, placing its foot on the mast, yanked the sword out. It advanced on Link, who stepped backwards to lead it away from the mast. Then Link took a leap at the Darknut. The leap caused Link to sail over the Darknut's head, leaving him barely enough time to twist around and aim a diagonal strike into the side of its head. The Darknut stumbled from the blow, but Link did not see anything else after hitting the deck hard with his shoulder.

_Bam. Ba-bam._ Link looked up to find that the Darknut had fallen to the deck near him. He started when he saw that its head was missing and immediately looked around, not believing that he could have taken its head off with that awkward strike. He saw the Darknut's mail coif lying on the deck further away, completely empty. He took a moment to comprehend the scene, and then he sighed with relief.

"All right, Link!" Irleen hollered as she descended. "You did it! Just like I said, too. You have to take its armor off."

Link picked himself up from the deck, holding his left shoulder. "Funny," he commented. "You didn't sound too sure when you first suggested it."

"Hey, at least it was an idea."

"Is Layn—" Link began to say as he looked up at the yard above. But when he saw that she had disappeared again, he just sighed. "Yeah, she's fine."


	108. Where Legends Whisper

Chapter 108: Where Legends Whisper

…

~~Day 92 (Command, Day 55)

~~My face hurts. I don't know if that Darknut might've broken something when he hit me, but I've got a large bruise on my cheek. But now, we have Captain North and the Moon's Shadow on our side. We threw the Darknut over the side of the ship so that, if it came back to life, it wouldn't hurt anyone. Unfortunately, there was damage done to the Moon's Shadow's main-mast. North says that I owe him a new mast, but for now, they're gonna steal a mast from the shipyard and work all through the night and into tomorrow replacing the main-mast. It's occurred to me that the Darknut looked like the knights standing in front of the castle wall. I'm glad that we can get past them into the castle, but I hope they'll disappear once the fake princess is gone. Otherwise, it's gonna be hard to get rid of six more of them.

~~We still haven't heard or seen the Summer Breeze. They'll probably be in some time tomorrow, though; lately I've forgotten that mail is gonna take some time. I hope they get here soon. I'd hate to think that even the captain of the Moon's Shadow can be suspected of playing hooky from his duties.

Link looked over that last sentence and grinned to himself.

…

"Captain Link!"

Link looked down from his position between the port main-mast and the gaff near the top. This did not offer him much of a picture, but he could make out two black-clad people on the deck below, standing next to whom he believed to be Flower. With one hand firmly grasping the throat halyard, he cupped his opposite hand over his mouth and called down, "I'll be right there!"

"What you zink, Kyabtin?" Dubbl asked, standing further along the gaff with her hand grasping the peak halyard.

Link glanced up at the top of the mast (partially blinding himself with the near-noon sun), and then he looked past Dubbl to the end of the gaff. "Well… I wouldn't _mind_ giving it a try," he told her. "I mean, sure, you could probably squeeze a bit more speed out of the ship. But… I think… with how much extra mast we have now, it wouldn't make much difference. You're gonna have to rig up an extended topmast. And _then_, you'll have to make sure it's secure to the rest of the mast or else the first Sky Line we jump into is gonna take it right off. And probably tear up the rigging as well."

Dubbl nodded. "I unde'stand, Kyabtin. We haf time to make zis?"

Link shook his head. "Not really likely." He could not help grinning as he added, "Maybe once we're done overthrowing fake royalty."

Dubbl frowned at him for a moment. Then she seemed to catch on to Link's intended joke and gave him half a grin. "Okay, Kyabtin."

Link reached out and took hold of the shroud attached to the mast. He pulled himself onto it and started climbing down on the inside. Dubbl watched him until he was about halfway down. Then she stepped over to where Link had been standing. She reached a gloved hand around the mast and grabbed the other side of the throat halyard. Then she swung herself around the mast and grabbed the peak halyard with her other hand as she fell. She tightened her grip to slow her fall, and she landed on the deck just a few seconds before Link.

Flower stepped over to Dubbl, took her hand, and raised it over her head. "Winner!" he hollered. Dubbl, annoyed, ripped her hand out of his grasp and elbowed him in the ribs. "Dohf!"

"Giyroxwan," Dubbl spat before walking away.

"Ach…" Flower groaned as he rubbed the spot she had struck. "Sore winner…"

"Walk it off, Mister Flower," Link said. Flower grumbled and started toward the stern. Link then turned to his guests, and his eyes lit up. "Captain Luke!"

"Hope I'm too late," Luke, one of the men wearing the black tunics, replied. "Your letter said you were ready to make your move."

"I might've gotten ahead of myself," Link replied.

"I've taken the liberty of explaining the gist of the plan to Captain Luke," Captain North, the other visitor, spoke up. "I feel at this point, after a few more preparations are made on the _Grand Sails_, we should be ready to leave tomorrow morning."

"Boy, was _I_ cutting it close," Luke remarked with a grin.

"Have you guys explained what's gonna happen to your crews?" Link asked.

"Just about as much as I know," Luke said. "The princess is fake, and we're gonna help get her off the throne."

"I've had similar words with my crew," North said with a nod. "I felt that they are safer knowing that we are only going to return the king and queen to Castle Island."

"Safer?" Link asked.

"Plausible deniability," Luke said. "The less our crews know, the better the chance they have if things go bad. And, although I trust you, Link, this whole thing can go straight to the _ground_ if she gets our fleet moving against us before we can even get to the castle."

"It isn't likely to happen," North told Luke. "Although she has our own ships patrolling the skies around the island, we have the advantage of betrayal."

"Betrayal?" Luke asked with an amused grin. "Is _that_ what you call this?"

"Captain Link," North said. "I understand that your second-in-command is finished making fake weapons for the _Grand Sails_' crew. Have they been distributed yet?"

"Leynne said that he'd be taking care of that this afternoon. He says they should stand up to distant observation, but the crew's in trouble if someone boards the ship."

"I bet the King of Hyrule stepping off the _Island Symphony_ will take care of the scrutiny," Luke said.

"His Majesty King Lauris requested your presence," North said.

Link frowned. "What for?"

"I didn't question it, Captain. He asked that you be on the _Royal Winds_ as soon as you were available."

Link nodded. "Okay, let me tell my chief-of-the-deck," he said. Then he started jogging across the deck while calling out, "Dubbl, wait a moment!"

…

Link had never gotten a good look at the deck of the Royal Family's vessel, the galleon _Royal Winds_. Its main deck and quarterdeck were almost the same length. He found that, as he boarded the _Royal Winds_ at the quarterdeck, there was a dais with three thrones arranged with one sitting further forward than the other two. The crew bustled about the deck in rich-looking tunics or robes, looking nothing like the hardened airmen he was familiar with. The general feel was strict professionalism which Link had never encountered before, a far cry from the rugged and casual methods he had seen on his previous assignments or the whimsical and outright crazy works of his current crew.

King Lauris stood at the helm, his clothes fresh and his cuirass and newly-added pauldrons looking recently polished. Link was not sure how he should approach the king, so he waited a moment. He spent that moment remembering the difference between superiors and subordinates saluting (mostly because he had spent so much time saluting like a superior). Then, when the king finished his conversation with his staff, Link saluted with his left hand once the king had spotted him and said, "Permission to board, Your Majesty."

"Please," the king replied. He held out an inviting hand and added, "Place yourself at ease, Captain."

"Yes, Your Majesty," Link replied, dropping the salute and stepping forward.

The king whispered something to a nearby youth wearing a white robe before taking two steps toward Link to close their distance. "Thank you for responding so quickly," he told Link. "There were just a couple of matters I wished to discuss. First, I wonder if you have heard from my daughter recently."

Link put on a hesitant look before shaking his head. "Sorry, Your Majesty. She hasn't said anything to me since we returned to Skyrider Port. I don't know why yet."

"But you have spoken with her recently. Do you know of her condition?"

Link took in a breath. "She was worried, Your Majesty. Mostly about Queen Arla."

The king nodded. "Zelda knows her mother's ailments well. How natural of her to be concerned of others in spite of her own plights."

"She is… very brave, Your Majesty."

"She is very intelligent, Captain. Compassionate as well." He stared at the bow, but Link could see that his eyes were looking beyond the distance. He was not sure if he should say anything else, but the king's concentration broke before he could speak again. "How are the preparations coming along?"

"We should have everything we need by tonight, Your Majesty," Link answered. "We're on schedule to depart at dawn, like you wanted."

"Good. Another matter concerns me before I release you to your crew. I have spoken with Captain North regarding his pursuit of you over the past month. Am I to understand that you abandoned the tunic given to you by my daughter on Might Island?"

Link looked down at the deck in embarrassment. "Yes, Your Majesty. My tunic was shot up. And, when I found out that Captain North was still looking for us on Might Island, I left my tunic behind to help convince him I was getting desperate. Now that I think about it… I-I just realized how irresponsible it was."

"The captain described the tunic as being shot up and covered in blood, as though you had just been through a battle. He was convinced, however, that it was action that he was not aware of, something apart from your encounter on Tabletop Island."

Link nodded. "It was a fight on Might Island with some of the creatures holding the princess. One of them was shooting at us with some kinda new gun. But most of the blood came from Layna, the Gelto Your Majesty knows as my bodyguard. She… nearly died."

"Captain Link." Link looked up. "While I am dismayed whenever one of my servants destroys something as proud as a green tunic, I find more worth in the person wearing it and for what it was destroyed. I applaud you in your actions. And I would like to present you with a replacement." Link did not know when the king's attendant returned, but the king turned around and retrieved a green bundle from his arms. "We have very few extra clothes on-board. I had this tailored for you, however I fear that it may yet be a little large. This is a style of tunic worn by one of my knights." He handed the bundle to Link, who found it to be the same material as his first tunic but significantly heavier. "I would appreciate it if you were to wear this tomorrow morning. After all, the one who will stand with me when the false princess is confronted should be prepared for anything."

Link looked down at the tunic in his arms and ran a finger under the V-shaped collar. He found that a layer of mail had been sewn to the tunic's interior. He then looked up at the king in awe. "Thank you, Your Majesty. I will."

"One other thing." The king turned back to his attendant. In response, the attendant removed a strap from across his chest and offered something large to the king. The king then turned to show Link a shield. It looked brand-new and polished. It was a heater-shaped shield which also had a point on the top edge. Over a field of blue was the familiar half-circle and spurs design that he had seen in the castle, each of the spurs ending at the field's edge. Seated atop the half-circle was a down-pointing, yellow triangle. "This is a gift from Sir Gilbert," the king explained. "He felt that, if you intend to carry around a sword, you should have a shield to go with it. It is a little bulky, but I assume you know how to use one."

"I've learned, Your Majesty," Link answered, shifting his new tunic into one arm. The king turned the shield, and Link slipped his arm into the small straps on the back. He felt the weight of the shield for a moment. "It's perfect, Your Majesty."

"Excellent," the king replied with a smile. "I look forward to seeing you with both of these in the morning."

…

~~Day 93 (Command, Day 56)

~~Preparations are complete, and, for once, the entire crew has had the opportunity to rest before we set off again. I'm amazed by their willingness to continue on with me, especially since we are now at risk of being blow out of the air sailing into hostile areas. I hope I can arrange a reward for them once the Skyriders are back in business. They deserve it.

~~With the Moon's Shadow, the Summer Breeze, and the Grand Sails on our side, I'm confident that we'll be successful tomorrow. The other Skyriders would have to be crazy to fire on our ships. And the king is sure to get us into the throne room. I don't know what it was Cunimincus used to replace the princess, but it couldn't possibly be any more of a threat than what I've already seen. I may be jinxing our luck by even thinking this, but we're ready. Nothing's gonna stop us now.

~~I'm a little concerned that Princess Zelda hasn't said anything for the past few days. I wish she would; I'd like to tell her that we're on our way.

…

Link was restless. Between excitement for the next day and worry over the princess's silence, he just could not relax long enough to fall asleep. So he patrolled the _Island Symphony_'s lit deck, occasionally pausing to examine some nearby rigging or to see what the night crew was doing. Although he had informed the entire crew that they would be leaving in the morning, he eventually became concerned that some of them might have decided to stay at the Sail Tavern for one last drink. Against his better judgment, he decided to leave the _Island Symphony_ to see if any of his crew lingered.

When he reached the Sail Tavern, he found that business was winding down. The bar was packed with local people, some of which recognized and greeted Link. He was a little surprised to find Helo there, although Helo quickly explained that he was not there to drink; he had gotten lost and only knew where to find the tavern. Link pointed Helo in the direction of the ship, which made it easier for him to start walking back. Link decided he would have to check when he returned to the ship. Leeta gave Link a few drinks, and, by the time he was finished drinking, all desire to sleep simply left him. So he visited with a few of the patrons, finding out about people he had not seen for months and telling anyone who would listen about his own adventures on the surface. He had lost track of time, and, by the time he decided looking for a clock was a good idea, it was well beyond midnight.

Still, Link found himself unable to sleep even after Leeta offered Link a room. He tossed around on the bed until he decided to get dressed and find the ladder to the roof. There was no moon out, so Link could only see the edges of the slightly slanted roof by the light of the streetlamps below. That was fine for him. He lay down on his side with his head propped up by one arm and watched the eastern sky. With his mind blank, he figured that it would only be a matter of time before he fell asleep.

"Wow…"

The whispered voice made Link stir out of his haze and sit up. First he looked to the hatch in the roof from where he had stepped out, but no one was in sight. So he asked aloud, "Is that you, Zelda?"

"Yes," Zelda replied in a regular voice. "I apologize, I must have awoken you."

Link shook his head. "No, you're all right. I wasn't really sleeping anyway."

"Where are you that such a beautiful sight exists?"

Link grinned as he looked back to the east. "Back at Skyrider Port. It's good to hear your voice again; I was getting worried."

"I am sorry, Link. The _Smiling Gunner_ gave a great shake not long after we last spoke, and I dropped Irleen's gem. I only recently recovered it. How long has it been?"

"Four days. We got a lot of stuff done. We've got the _Summer Breeze_, the _Grand Sails_, and even the _Moon's Shadow_ escorting us to Castle Island tomorrow morning. Uh… well, later _this_ morning; it's after midnight now."

"So I see."

"And after we get your parents back to the castle, we'll try to get to you as soon as we can. I… I don't really know when; we won't have anything figured out until _after_ we get rid of the fake."

"That's okay, Link. Knowing you have come so much closer in the time we have not been able to speak… you have renewed my spirit. Thank you." Link's smile grew wider, her words bringing about a great amount of relief. "So, why is it that you cannot sleep?"

"Ah, well…" Link paused for a moment. Then he realized something. "Uh… you know what? I completely forgot."

"Would you like me to leave you be so that you might sleep?"

Link shook his head. "No, it's all right. I got a feeling that I won't really sleep much anyway."

"How has your crew fared?"

"They're doing okay. Well, Sello was a bit of a problem. So was Dholit, but that's completely expected."

Zelda giggled. "Yes, you have told me about their previous antics."

"It's about the same thing. Sello's drunk… Dholit… does… things."

"And my mother?"

Link nodded. "She's all right, too. She'll be on the _Royal Winds_ tomorrow, and we're gonna have the knights take her to Governor Lore that way she's safe in case something happens."

"An excellent idea. At least she will be looked after." Both of them fell silent for a moment. "Link. May I ask you something?"

He shrugged. "Sure."

"Throughout your ventures… have you ever stopped to wonder about what you are doing? Perhaps ponder the motivation behind some of the more outrageous things you've done?"

Link crossed his arms and contemplated in silence. "I don't really think I did. I mean… I _suppose_. But…" He scratched the back of his head. "There really hasn't been any _particular_ reason to question what I've been doing. Why? You're not worried, are you?"

He thought he heard her sigh. "No. Not at all. From the moment I met you… it is difficult to explain, but… I had this _feeling_ that you were different from any other captain I had seen before."

"Heh. Yeah." Link held his hand above his head. "Probably because they were all twice my height."

"Link… I think that there is more going on here than you believe. I have had this feeling since meeting you. It is… as if our paths were _supposed_ to cross. There are legends of the surface kingdom which speak of such chance encounters as being the wills of the goddesses of old."

Link scrunched his face. "Iiii… Well, I don't really know about all _that_." Then he started blinking quickly as he remembered something. "But, you know, that kinda reminds me of something that happened on the surface. It was in the Tower of Spirits. This little guy I met… he was—he was a Lokomo."

"A Lokomo? They still exist?"

Link shrugged. "In a way, I guess. He said he was waiting for me to get there, and that I was supposed to be… hmm. What was it? I think he said the 'Hero of Journeys'."

"The Hero of Journeys…" Zelda mused. "I like it. It sounds appropriate."

"I guess he expects me to defeat Cunimincus once we get you to safety."

"Then perhaps it is not a stretch to call this an act of fate."

Link sighed. "I don't know. Maybe."

"Link." Link frowned when he realized that the princess's voice had changed. Hearing it in his head was like she was standing right in his boots. But that last time she spoke did not sound right. It was as if she was standing to his right. So he looked in that direction.

He jerked and backed up a bit, startled by the appearance of an ethereal figure next to him. It was definitely Zelda, still wearing her airman outfit. But her whole figure was pale, and he could see the stars in the sky and the roof behind her. She gave him a soft smile, not put off by his surprise a bit. "We are both in the midst of an adventure," she told him, her voice coming from her likeness strong. "Chance must sleep for the duration."

"H-holy…" Link trailed off, words failing him for a moment. "H-how are you doing that?"

Zelda looked down at her arm and seemed to admire her skin for a moment. "Faith manages," she told him. "I cannot be certain how, but I have found that the smallest amount of belief in the world can go a long way. It is perhaps the only way I have remained rational."

Link gulped. "A-are you s-s-sure you're not…?"

She closed her eyes and softly shook her head. "No, I have not died."

"Positive? Because the _last_ ghost I talked to didn't really know he'd died, either."

Zelda fell silent with a look of surprise on her face. "Oh, my… you have… spoken with the dead before?"

"Yeah. Yeah, that was a pretty weird train ride."

"Well, I assure you that I am _not_ deceased," she told him with a smile returning to her face. "Irleen's gem seems to feature more function than she mentioned."

Link adjusted his legs so he was comfortable again. "Actually, she said that _you_ might be changing it around. I guess… well, whatever magic you use for your miracles or whatever makes the gem act different from the way it should."

"_I_ am doing this?" Link watched her put a hand in a pocket of her skirt and remove an oval-shaped gem from her pocket. She pondered at it for a moment. "Dear. I know that strange things happen around me, but I find that this is rather confusing."

"The queen said you make these little miracles happen. So Irleen thinks you're using it to change the gem."

Zelda stared at the gem as if waiting for more explanation. Then she placed it back in her pocket. "Then I hope that it lasts long enough for you to find me again." She carefully squat into a seat in front of Link. "So. If you cannot sleep, why is it that you are on the roof of a building?"

"I don't really know," Link confessed. He turned to look toward the east again. "I was just thinking that I might just fall asleep if I watched for the dawn."

"Do you think you still may?"

Link chuckled and shook his head. "Not really. Not at _this_ point. Now I guess I'm just waiting."

"Do you mind if I wait with you?"

He shrugged. "It's fine if you want." He heard shuffling, and he glanced over to find that she was carefully sliding herself across the roof toward him. He quickly looked away, his cheeks warming up as she settled down next to him.

"Have you spent many nights just waiting for the dawn?" she asked him.

"No-not really," Link replied, trying to keep his voice even and casual. He could not believe that being this close to just an _image_ of the princess was making him uncomfortable. "I jus—I just needed something to do."

"Somehow, it does not seem to be a terrible way to spend time."

Link dared a glance at her and found her giving the horizon a soft smile. "You think so?" he asked.

"Perhaps it is an effect of my captivity. Or the fact that I have never seen such a bare sky before. What about it do you suppose attracts you, Link?"

Link realized he had been staring at her and quickly turned his head in the opposite direction, causing it to crack. "I-I don't know," he said, one hand rubbing the dull pain he now felt in his neck. "I-I just… thought it was… w-well, you know… something to do."

"You could have remained inside."

"I-I didn't feel like it."

"You could have sat down to read."

"Li-library's closed."

"You might have done this on your ship."

"I-I don't wanna walk back right now. Be-besides, if I started talking to you in front of the Gelto again, they'd freak out."

"I think this will be the best dawn I have ever witnessed."

Link pondered at her statement until he turned back to her. "Why?"

She finally looked back at him. "Because you are showing it to me. Of all that I have seen through you, Link, this is the most beautiful."

"Ah—" Link started before he clapped his jaw shut. He looked back out at the starry horizon and indicated it with a hand. "We-well, it hasn't really _started_ yet, so…"

"I still love it, Link."

Link scratched the back of his head so that his arm would block out her view of his face. It felt like his cheeks would explode at any moment, and he tried to focus on something else. When his shyness abated, he told her, "You know… I-I kinda like this, too. Watching the sun rise with you. I'm-I'm glad you stuck around."

"As am I."

Link took in a breath, but he found that he had run out of conversation. What was there to talk about now but their current circumstances? And, really, was there anything they did not already know about each other? Well… yes, Link admitted that he and she had not really been quite _that_ open with each other. Still, what was there to discuss other than the fact that she was still on a demon airship and he was coming to her rescue? Should he talk about the dawn some more? He did not have anything else to say about it. It was the dawn, and that pretty much spoke for itself.

In the silence, Link's eyes shifted between watching the horizon and glancing at Zelda. Then, when Link realized that the faintest stars were beginning to disappear, he stared at the sky. Black faded into purple, and then the purple faded into indigo. When Link identified the color blue, he stood up and took in a deep breath.

"Time to go," he told himself. Zelda stood up and nodded.

…

**End Arc 2 of 3.**


	109. Glace, Living Mirror

Chapter 109: Glace, Living Mirror

**Arc 3 of 3**

…

Link hustled the last few steps up the gangplank and onto his ship. His boots pounding on the wooden deck alerted Leynne, who seemed to be in the middle of speaking to King Lauris before he turned around. "Link!" he said, surprise prevalent in his voice. "Ah you all right? We couldn't find you eahlieh."

"Sorry, I'm fine," Link said. He paused to catch his breath. "I-I was back at Sail Tavern. Don't worry, I'm-I'm ready. Is the rest of the crew here?"

"Ironically enough, _you_ weh the only one missing," Leynne said, giving the collar of his black tunic an uncomfortable tug. "Gold is standing by on the helm."

Link nodded. "Give him the word: due west at half speed and bring us to a stop over the docks. The _Moon's Shadow_ will give us formation instructions there."

"Got it," Leynne said before jogging toward the bow.

Link turned to the king and said, "I'm sorry I was late, Your Majesty. But I got to talk to Princess Zelda this morning."

"Has she any news?" the king asked, appearing eager despite his level voice.

"Well, she's still doing all right," Link said. "I told her we'll be on our way as soon as we can take care of the fake princess on Castle Island."

The king took in a deep breath. "I hope that it will not be long. I find myself longing to see my daughter safe once more. I cannot believe that it has come to such a situation."

Link nodded and told him, "Faith manages, Your Majesty."

The king looked taken aback by Link's words. "You truly _have_ spoken to my daughter. I have known her to say those words at difficult times. Perhaps now is the most appropriate time of all."

Link nodded again. Then he stepped over to Dubbl and Dholit, who were watching him with interest. "Have the deck crew clear our moorings and stand by to open the sails," he told them.

"Ay'a, Kyabtin," Dubbl said with a quick salute.

"Yes, sir, My Captain," Dholit replied, a wide grin on her face as she held a salute.

Link then turned back to the king and indicated the bow with a hand. "Your Majesty, would you like to view from the forecastle?"

"I would indeed," the king said with a nod. Link waited for him to proceed before falling into step behind him.

They found both Leynne and Gold standing on the forecastle, Leynne standing by the instrument panel and Gold behind the helm. One of Gold's hands was wrapped around the engine controls. Just as Link and King Lauris stepped past them, Leynne said, "Moorings cleah. Half-speed due west, Misteh Gold."

"Aye, boss," Gold said as he started pushing up on a very resistant propeller lever. "'Alf-speed… due… c'mon, yeh shore-weathered git!" The lever suddenly stopped resisting, nearly causing Gold to smash his face into the panel. He backed off and gave a sigh. "'Alf-speed due west." He then pushed the throttle half-way up and turned back to the wheel.

Link leaned his hip against the bulwark further up the deck and looked over the side. The ship rose up from where it had been moored almost directly against the island and slowly turned to port. He had always enjoyed sailing over an island, usually because people liked to stop and look up. It normally was not done by large airships due to fears that the crew may throw something overboard, but Link trusted his crew not to be so idiotic, particularly in light of the task at hand. Besides, he thought to himself with a grin, if anyone did, he would leave them to Dholit for punishment. From up here, he could see people stepping out into streets lit by just beams of sunlight filtering between the buildings. He was a little surprised to see Lady Leeta and Gale standing on a rooftop; he did not recall telling them where they were moored. Still, he smiled and waved a hand. They waved back. Then it looked as if Leeta had turned and started sobbing into Gale's shoulder.

After a few minutes, the _Island Symphony_ was holding position above the Skyriders' office. The _Moon's Shadow_ and the _Summer Breeze_ had already risen from the docks, but the _Grand Sails_ seemed to be off to a slow start. Link had to take a moment more than usual to read the signal flags draping from its hoist, being out of practice for some time now. When he felt he had the arrangement understood, he left King Lauris's side and moved back to the helm.

"The _Grand Sails_ has been held up a bit," he told Leynne and Gold.

"Any indication why?" Leynne asked.

Link shrugged one shoulder. "Takes a little longer to get a fully-rigged galleon moving. Our arrangement is a triangle formation with the _Island Symphony_ in the middle. Gold, when the _Moon's Shadow_ begins heading for the Sky Line, I want you to bring us behind. The _Summer Breeze_ and the _Grand Sails_ will flank us."

"Aye aye, Cap'n," Gold said with a nod.

"Leynne, would you hoist the signal flags?"

"Of couhse," Leynne said. "Flat yellow… followed by half-black, half-white, cohrect?"

Link nodded. "Yep."

"Undehstood," Leynne replied with a quick salute. Then he turned and hustled down to the main deck.

"Captain Link?"

Link turned at the sound of King Lauris's voice. "Your Majesty?" he asked.

"Have you attempted a ruse like this before?"

Link gave him a nervous smile. "Actually… this is a new one for us, Your Majesty. But I'm confident."

The king nodded. "I am grateful for your role in this. Is there some place where I might find food? I am afraid that I could not eat breakfast this morning due to a lack of appetite."

"Yes, Your Majesty. The galley is two decks below the main deck. I'm afraid all we got is rations."

"Actually, Cap'n," Gold said as he leaned forward on the wheel, "yeh 'aven't been 'round much. Leynne picked up some groceries, 'n Lilly's been cookin' meals since."

"Ah," the king said. "What luck then."

Link and Gold watched the king step down to the main deck and disappear into the port hatch. Then Gold said, "Cap'n, I don't wanna admit it, but I got me doubts 'bout all this."

"What?" Link asked.

"This 'ole plan. I don't know, I just don't think the phony princess's gonna buy it. It feels… kinda obvious."

"We'll get through it," Link said. "I know she isn't stupid, but who would suspect three Skyrider ships being our allies? _Least_ of all the _Moon's Shadow_?"

"I guess…" Gold replied, scratching the back of his head.

"Don't worry," Link told him. "Faith manages."

"Faith… manages…" Gold repeated with an air of skepticism. "I tend tae think I'm a realist, but I guess blind luck's a good second."

"If you don't mind, _Captain_," Zelda suddenly spoke up, causing Link's smile to disappear quickly, "I would prefer that my words remain my own for the time being."

Link caught the annoyance in her voice and quickly spun away from Gold before replying, "S-sorry."

…

~~Day 94 (Command, Day 57)

~~Well. Here we go.

…

Link's new equipment made him feel heavier than before. But he had to admit that it felt good to have some extra protection, especially after the recent fights he had been involved in. He spent a few minutes in his cabin swinging the Lokomo Sword around as he tried to get a feel for both it and the shield. He intended to hold onto this shield much better just because it looked like it would actually protect him from harm. He hoped that it would work fine against the fake princess, a creature they had yet to actually figure out.

"Link?" Irleen spoke up a little later as Link stared out the windows at the back of his cabin. "I just… thought I'd let you know that I'm sorry."

"For what?" Link asked.

"For… for telling you that you weren't really talking to the princess," she said. "I meant to apologize for it earlier, but I-I just didn't have the chance."

Link shook his head. "You don't have to apologize, Irleen. You were just telling me what you know, like you always do. With all we've been through, well… I really don't blame you for thinking that I'd gone crazy."

"Well, you tried so _hard_ to tell me," Irleen argued. "And I feel bad that everyone was brushing it off just because _I_ said it wasn't possible. It wasn't really fair."

"I don't particularly mind now. How could you know that she was changing your magic around?"

"I suppose. But I still feel bad about it."

Link turned to his bed, where Irleen hovered near her own bed. "No hard feelings," he said. "I mean, whether it was real or not, I think you all helped me realize that was beginning to act crazy. I'd've probably done something _really_ stupid if you let me keep thinking I was talking to her." The ship gave a jerk beneath Link's feet, and he glanced out the frosted windows. Even without being able to see clearly, he knew that the ship had just dropped out of the Sky Line. "Ready to go?"

"You're taking me along?"

"I've _always_ taken you along. Especially if we're going up against Cunimincus' crew."

"Oh. Right. Sorry, I've been here in your cabin for the past few days. Ugh. I think I'm getting too used to it."

Link lifted the front of his hat. "Let's go."

Irleen flew into Link's hat, and he stepped out onto the deck a moment later. Ahead of the ship was the _Moon's Shadow_ while the _Grand Sails_ and the _Summer Breeze_ flanked to starboard and port, respectively. The _Grand Sails_ had its gunports open and its cannons run out as if ready to shoot the _Island Symphony_. This was not part of the plan (although it helped with the show), and Link hoped that the cannons were unloaded. It would certainly turn into a bad day if one of the cannoneers forgot that they were _helping_ Link.

He crossed the main deck and stepped onto the forecastle, where King Lauris, Leynne, Gold, and Flower stood with Line manning the helm. The breeze off the bow was a little strong, so Link placed a hand on his head to help hold onto his hat. "How are we looking?" he asked.

"So far so good, Captain," Flower responded.

"I'm a little suhprised," Leynne said. "Theh doesn't seem to be as many vessels as befoh." At first glance, Link could see Leynne was right. As the _Moon's Shadow_ descended closer to the island, he could see only a couple of Skyrider cutters and a brig hanging in the air above the castle.

"Must be their day off," Link joked.

"Or maybe they're off doing other shit," Flower said as he crossed his arms. Then he started when he remembered who he was standing next to. "Uh… if you'll excuse the language, Your Majesty."

"I share your concern, Airman," the king replied. "However, I will be certain to release all Skyrider ships as soon as possible. Hopefully, we shall be able to put this situation behind us." He glanced aside at Link. "That tunic and shield appear to suit you well, Captain Link. If not for your height, I would likely mistake you for one of my knights."

"Youh Majesty, pehhaps you would like to wait on the quahtehdeck," Leynne suggested. "Afteh all, we would prefeh it if youh direct subjects saw Youh Majesty fihst to avoid any immediate complications."

"Of course, Mister Leynne," the king replied. He nodded at Link. "Captain."

The crew around Link waited until the king was some distance away from the forecastle. Then Flower, Line, Gold, and Irleen all snorted at the same time. "Always seems to come back to your height problem, eh, Link?" Line asked.

"Shut up, Line!" Link snapped. "Find us a place to dock!" Line stuck his tongue out in response, but Link's attention had already shifted to Flower and Leynne. "Flower, I want you on the moorings. We don't want them to suspect something wrong if all we have handling the deck work are the Gelto."

"Aye, Captain," Flower replied. He started walking away to carry out the order.

"Leynne, I want you to plot an escape course in case things go bad," Link continued. "If things go wrong here, break away from the dock and find a safe haven somewhere."

"What shall be ouh panic signal?" Leynne asked.

"If any of the castle staff board with the intention of arresting all of you," Link replied. "Or red smoke, if I can get it off. But don't wait up. If things go wrong, get everyone else to safety."

"What!?" Line asked, sounding surprised.

"Link, I don't like the idea of leaving anyone behind," Leynne said.

"Friend to the crew," Link reminded him.

Leynne aimed a glare to one side. "I've half a mind to write my own book," he told Link. "It's stupid to treat the captain as expendable."

"If we survive this, we'll see about rewriting the manual for you. You have the ship."

"Undehstood," Leynne replied in a contemptuous tone as Link turned and stepped down the stairs behind him. Link made a mental note to actually see about finding a real book for a second-in-command, if anything so Leynne could burn it to his satisfaction.

He crossed the deck to the starboard side near the starboard main-mast where Dholit, Layna, and Biluf were conversing. Layna noticed him first and stepped aside so that he could talk to Dholit. "Dholit, I need to talk to Layna right now," he told her.

"Oh?" Dholit asked, her face betraying confusion.

Layna stepped up beside him, and he glanced at her to acknowledge her presence. "Tell her that she won't be protecting me this time."

"She… won't be?" Dholit asked, sounding even more confused.

"While we're in the castle, I need her to protect King Lauris," Link explained. "Without him, this whole plan fails."

Dholit nodded and spoke to Layna, "Layna, My Captain sanagidhak wabnik 'anw sanwukint. Zhi dhibixak."

Layna and Biluf appeared shocked. Both of their eyes shifted between Dholit and Link for a moment. "'Itab… Giltiyn Dholit…" Layna started before trailing off.

"May Kyabtin nadlwaythukwmak!" Biluf cried out.

"Giltiyn Dholit, 'inu nadlwaymlayximak," Layna said. Link was a little surprised; she sounded worried.

"Kwal?" Dholit asked.

Layna looked down at the deck. "Foltab… 'inu mibiloynak… 'inu milwacis May Kyabtin."

Both Dholit and Biluf stared in bewilderment at Layna, causing Link to wonder what was happening. Then Dholit gave Layna her usual smirk. "Ah, Layna, maddix 'ataymci 'alwaycmi…" she said.

Link saw anger flash on Layna's face as stared at Dholit. "Nadsaycokwan 'inoy, Dholit."

"What's going on?" Link asked.

Dholit, undaunted by Layna's show of emotion (which Link was sure would have resulted in spontaneous execution at a different point in her life), placed her hands on her hips as if to challenge Layna. "Ouh pretty little killah has resehvations about not coming to My Captain's defense," she said. "Something about admiring My Captain, it seems."

Link sighed and looked at Layna. She returned the look, worry once again the dominant emotion on her face. "Sorry, Layna," he told her. "Not this time. Dholit, tell her it's an order."

Dholit blinked, struck dumb by Link's words. Then she told Layna, "'Nwaki 'atoyn,' to My Captain nagthya'ak."

Layna appeared shocked. Then she looked like she was about to cry. She snapped to attention and saluted. "Ay'a, May Kyabtin."

"What was—?" Link began to ask, turning his head to Dholit.

_Shuh!_

"Whoa!" Link called out, grabbing his hat to hold it to his head in defense of the sudden gust next to him. He immediately turned to look at Layna again to find that she had disappeared. It was far less subtle than what he was used to, so he asked Dholit (who was looking up at the nearby mast), "What just happened?"

Dholit, still smiling, told him, "You gave heh an ohdah. She was happy, My Captain."

"I didn't think she could _ever_ be happy," Irleen commented from under Link's hat.

"Hmm?" Dholit asked.

"She was _happy_?" Link asked.

"In heh own, quihky way," Dholit replied, giving up the search of the mast.

"Oh," Link replied. "Listen, Dholit. Leynne has orders to leave if things look like they're getting dangerous. I want you to know that this is _my_ order. The crew is more important than us alone."

"I know you think that, My Captain," she said. "But remembah that we Gilto shall have ouh _own_ response should anything happen to you."

"The crew comes first," Link told her firmly.

"Of couhse," she replied with a salute.

Link dismissed her salute and crossed the main deck again to the stairs. He climbed up to the quarterdeck just as the ship was coming level with one of the mooring towers. King Lauris waited near the bulwark as Flower and Lwamm (whom Link had not realized was on-deck) prepared to throw mooring lines. The dockers waiting on the top of the towers signaled, and both of Link's airmen threw. And Lwamm's line struck the docker catching Flower's line in the head. This confused Link until he saw that Lwamm was not even _looking_ at the dockers. She seemed to be busy staring at Flower. Fortunately, the dockers were able to take up the slack and lashed the lines to the mooring posts. Then they brought a boarding plank, and Flower stepped back to allow the king through. He noticed that Lwamm was still staring at him, and he glanced over to Link. Link gave a helpless shrug before he used a hand to tell him to do something about her. He crossed before the king and, after leaning over to unlatch and open the door in the bulwark, used a hand to guide her out of the way. The gangplank was placed in the opening, and the king strode forward.

Link then spotted the dockers placing hands on pistols they were wearing at their hips and quickly grasped his sword. He was concerned that they would draw on King Lauris (which he hoped Layna could react to faster than anyone else), but then they appeared to realize who was approaching them and stepped back for a moment. One of them took a knee and bowed, causing the other to give him a confused look. Link could hear the king exchange words with them (eventually causing the other docker to give him a salute), but he could not tell what they were saying. Whatever it was seemed to do the trick because both of them stepped aside. The king turned and waved to Link.

"Keep an eye on the crew," Link told Flower as he stepped past him onto the gangplank. Although the plank was thick and wide, Link still found himself grabbing the ropes that served as guardrails due to how shaky it felt. He set foot on the tower and found it to be swaying a bit like an airship sailing at a beam reach to the regular gusts of an island. Fortunately, just as with the plank, someone had had the presence of mind to place railing around the top of the tower, and the staircase on the opposite side of the top platform was encased by a wooden frame. Link jogged to catch up to the king as he descended to the next level. Below was an empty floor. They pondered at it for a moment until they noticed a large pulley peering through the frame. Then they saw the separation in the floor and stepped onto a platform. Overhead was a thick bell, and the king reached up and flicked it with a finger. The bell gave a thick ring, and the platform carefully descended.

"Your Majesty," Link said about halfway through the journey. "Sir Gilliam was the knight who helped me escape from the castle when I first returned. We might want to find him; he knows about the princess."

"I see," the king replied. "As soon as we set foot onto the ground, I shall send for him."

As they descended, the tower became wider. At the bottom, they discovered that the elevator they had just ridden was being driven by a large crank. Operating that crank was a pair of men, advanced in age but not appearing frail in the slightest. "Grim!" the king spoke up, his voice betraying surprise. "Wilth! What are you doing?"

Both men started and stepped away from their position so they had room to kneel. "Your Majesty," one said. "We are acting on orders from Her Highness the princess. We have been removed from our original positions and placed here."

King Lauris shook his head. "This will not do." Then he raised his voice. "One of my chefs and an attendant reduced to manual labor! What shall I find next!? A knight digging a hole to plant a rosebush!? A dishwasher standing guard for the night!? Perhaps my governor now cooks meals for the staff! Captain Link, this impostress has disrupted the lives of my people with her lack of intelligence! I am not one to see physical discipline upon my subjects, but I intend to see her lashed for the trouble she has caused my staff!" Link gulped, taking a step back.

"Is 'impostress' a word in your language?" Irleen whispered from under Link's hat. Link just shrugged and offered a small sound of uncertainty, worried that talking aloud might interrupt the king.

"Grim, return to your original duty immediately," the king then said in a calmer but still authoritative voice. "I can only wonder if the rest of the castle is starving."

"Yes Your Majesty," one man said, giving his head a slight bow before standing and quickly walking away.

"Wilth," the king continued. "Find Sir Gilliam and tell him to report to me in the throne room. Then I want you to start directing the staff away from the throne room. We shall have this matter settled before noon."

"Yes Your Majesty," the other man replied before leaving the tower in the same manner as the first man.

"Come, Captain," the king told Link. "I shall see this madness no longer."

"Uh, y-yes, sir—uh, Your Majesty," Link replied as he fell in step behind the king.

They walked out of the tower and crossed the large grass area before the castle. As they approached the brick walkway directly between the main gate and the front doors, Captains North and Luke advanced toward them from the other side. "Captains, I have had my patience put to the test," the king said, stopping in front of them. "We end this now."

"Yes, Your Majesty," North and Luke said, each snapping him a salute.

"Your Majesty!" Link and King Lauris turned to find Chief Mallard jogging toward them. He stopped and said, "Lieutenant Blair would like to know if there are further orders for us."

The king thought for a moment. Then he said, "Yes. Have the _Grand Sails_ move to the port and assist the _Royal Winds_ with whatever they may need."

"Yes, Your Majesty," Mallard said with a quick salute. As he started to jog back, Link just barely caught him groan, "Should've docked closer…"

"Captains, at my side," the king ordered as he started for the castle. Link and Luke quickly fell in stride behind him while Captain North trailed behind. There was no one to open the large front doors of the castle for the king, but, upon watching him rip the doors open and bash them against the wall with as loud a bang as possible, Link decided that the king did not really care anymore. The staff working in the foyer immediately stopped what they were doing upon realizing that the king had just stepped in, and none of them moved or spoke up as he walked across the burgundy carpet and up the dais. He paused in front of the doors leading into the throne room, his path blocked by an armor-clad knight who appeared to be too frightened to move. King Lauris raised a hand and calmly indicated that the knight should move to the side. The knight moved. The king then brought up his foot and kicked the doors open, demolishing the latch with a crunch.

On the other side, Link was surprised to see a number of women servants surrounding the middle of three thrones. At the sound of the doors striking the walls, they stood up straight. The only one who did not respond immediately was the person sitting across the throne. King Lauris started across the room, and Link was about to follow when Luke placed a hand on his shoulder. Luke then stepped in front of Link and signaled for Link to stay behind him. North seemed to be in agreement, because he quickly moved to block Link from view as well, one hand resting on the hilt of his saber. Link decided to go with their caution and remained out of sight. When they were close enough, Link peered past Luke.

He saw the fake Zelda give a signal to dismiss the female staff around her. As they filtered out, she then turned in her seat so that she was no longer draped over the arms of the throne. She stood, revealing that she had recently changed into a blood-red dress with a black cape and apron. Additionally, she had silver pauldrons adorning her shoulders. She did not wear the circlet that Link had once seen on the original princess, instead wearing a silver hoop crown with a velvet cap. Link immediately ducked back behind Luke.

"Captain North," she said as the four stopped near the base of the steps. "You may find this difficult to believe, but this fat, old man is _not_ Captain Link." The remark caused Irleen to snort.

"Shut up," King Lauris snapped. "And remove that crown from your filthy head."

The fake princess was taken aback for a moment. "Excuse me?" she finally answered, her voice heated. "Who are _you_ to tell _me_ what to do?"

"_King_ Lauris. The rightful ruler of Hyrule and the father of the _real_ Princess Zelda."

The fake princess paused. Then she asked in a loud voice, "I assume this show to be of your doing, Captain Link? Will you not show yourself and take responsibility for this?" Link stepped out from behind Luke and looked up at a pompous show of cool-headedness, the fake princess with her nose raised as if in fear of smelling him. "Well. I must say that I am disappointed that _two_ of my captains have betrayed me."

"Give it a rest," Luke said, crossing his arms. "Every Skyrider captain already knows you're a phony. Link just gave us the opportunity we needed to confront you."

"Your actions against the people of Hyrule have been atrocious and idiotic," King Lauris said. "I shall see you chained in a dungeon for the chaos you have wrought upon my kingdom."

"I accept orders from a higher being," the fake Zelda said as she removed the crown. She took it by one hoop and placed it on the seat of the throne behind her. "I have no interest in the words of a fleshling."

"'Fleshling'?" Irleen asked in a quiet voice. Link had not really noticed the word before Irleen had said something. He wondered what it was supposed to mean.

"And I have no interest in the words of a liar and a coward," King Lauris responded to the fake Zelda. "The kingdom is mine again. You will tell me how I am to take my daughter back."

"I think you overestimate your chances, Your Majesty," the fake Zelda said as she moved to one side of the throne. "After all, what are a boy, an unarmed man, a _fat_ man, and a gnarled cripple to do against something they do not understand?"

_BAM!_ Heads turned to the back of the throne room at the sound of the doors slamming shut. Further to their surprise, two of the suits of armor that lined the throne room had stepped out of ranks to do it.

"Link?" Luke asked. "Did… did that armor just move?"

"Uh oh," Link uttered. In as low a voice as possible, he said, "Irleen, two of the suits of armor just moved."

"Be careful, Link," Irleen whispered back. "They might not be the only ones."

"Faith manages," the king said, attracting the captains' attention back to him.

"Really?" the fake Zelda asked, sounding unimpressed.

"The people of Hyrule will never accept you."

The fake Zelda laughed, her hysterical glee shrill. It made Link's spine shiver. "Your Majesty, I would have never expected you to be such a funny man!" she hollered between fits. "You truly do not understand your position here!"

"Your crewmates are dead." The fake princess stopped laughing at the sound of Link's words. He had said them with the intention of discouraging her, if anything to get her to stop that laughing. He continued, "The Stalarmors, the Lizalfos, _and_ the Geozards. Your plan to get rid of the Sky Lines failed."

Fake Zelda smirked at him. "So?" Link was surprised by her callous response, so much that he did not have a response of his own. So she continued, "No one expected them to succeed in the _first_ place. They were only supposed to make the Hylians' lives difficult. The fact that you spent your time hunting them down only goes to show how _incompetent_ you are. You could have come after me all this time, so are you unaware of how stupid it is that it took you so long?"

"Considering that Captain Link disposed of your crew," Captain North spoke up, "I fail to see his incompetence when he has been the victor against your freaks."

"The Lizalfos and the Geozards are fleshlings," she replied. "Stupid and weak, vulnerable to even the smallest wound. Blood is for those not meant to live at all. And as for the Stalarmors, their ferocity and loyalty hardly make up for their dull personalities and the fact that they had to _die_ to become what they are. What world would call them anything greater than 'drone'?"

"You are a disgrace of an airman," Captain North told her with venom in his voice. "Scoff companionship all you want. It will only lead to your death. Look at you, you vile _bitch_. You have no friends here to defend you. Even the staff of this castle would move against you at the drop of—"

"Shut up," the fake princess told him with an air of mild irritation. She picked up a hand mirror from the arm of the throne and used it to examine her blond bangs. "What kind of captain thinks he can make friends out of his crew anyway? You, North, are nothing by a cold slave-driver."

"I respect my men," North argued.

"Then I doubt if they respect _you_."

_Shnk. Shnk shnk._ Attention went to the suits of armor around them as they each pulled a sword and held it at their side as if awaiting the order to attack.

"You all are fools," the fake Zelda told them. "You know that, right? What have you accomplished here? What made you think that I would rely on the loyalty of people who have come to hate me? Those of my _own_ creation are all that I need. And guess what. You've just stepped into a room _full_ of them."

"I know these suits," the king said. "They are made of nothing but glass with silver _paint_."

"Ha!" she laughed. She held her arms open. "Then, by all means, Your Majesty! Fight them! You will only guarantee my permanence on the throne. If you thought your people suffered before, then I will see to it that they beg for _death_ once you're put out of my way. Goodbye, Your Majesty."

North pulled his saber and held it in a fighting position, directing his attention to the suit nearest to him as it took a step forward. Luke pushed Link back behind the king as he drew a pistol, although he could not decide which of the three closest to him he should shoot his only bullet at.

Link lifted the front of his cap. "Irleen, I need a distraction!" he whispered urgently.

"Get her, Link!" Irleen whispered back as she shot out of Link's hat. Link lost track of her, but he was focused on the best way to attack her.

He decided on the boomerang.

"Hey, Fake Zelda!" Irleen shouted from among the suits of armor. She popped up and spun in large circles to make herself more visible. "Look over here, you stupid bitch!"

Link immediately jumped sideways between King Lauris and Luke so that he was out in the open. He threw his boomerang as hard as possible, and he could feel an additional burst of strength which he took to be the bracelet still on his wrist. The boomerang did not have very far to travel, and the fake princess had fallen for Irleen's taunting, leaving her completely open and unaware.

_Krrrrsh!_ The sound was unlike any other sound that should come from a human head when struck by a flying object. With a cry of surprise, the false princess twisted and fell to the floor with a perfectly normal (and particularly satisfying) thump. Silvery shards littered the air where the fake princess had been standing for just a second. The moving suits of armor around them simply fell to pieces where they stood, littering the floor with swords and different parts of armor.

"What happened?" Luke asked, glancing over his shoulder.

"You struck her down," the king observed. "Well done, Captain Link."

"Irleen?" Link called. "Is she still up?"

"Yeah, she's moving around," Irleen called back.

The fake princess gathered herself up and grabbed the arm of the throne to pull herself to her feet. "_**You**_!" she screeched in a broken voice. Link stared in surprise at her face. North and King Lauris looked horrified, and Luke dropped his guard to gawk in astonishment at the fake princess.

Link's boomerang had struck above the princess's left eyebrow. Where any other human would likely have a disgusting welt, a large chunk of flesh was actually _missing_ from her forehead. The wound looked jagged around the edges. Cracks had formed, the more prominent of these bisecting her left eye down to her cheek and traveling up through her hair to provide a sliver of visibility of what was behind her. Her eyes wandered their faces. The wrath on her broken face slowly became horrified. She brought her left hand up and, as she continued to stare at them, felt around her wound. She pressed her fingertips into the crack down her face, not reacting at all when they slid through her divided eye.

She dropped her gaze to find her mirror on the floor. She carefully picked it up and flipped it around to look at herself. "_**Aswuk… aswuk ngalgh…**_" she said to herself in a high-pitched voice that sounded as if she talked while fragments of glass were being crushed in her mouth. For what felt like the longest time, she just stared at her fractured face while Link, Luke, North, and King Lauris watched in shock.

"_**Hhhhhhhh raaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!**_" she screamed at the ceiling. Glass sounded as if it was shattering all around them, and the four Hylians started when they realized that the glass suits had broken into a number of large fragments. Windows exploded overhead, and they ducked in expectation of glass raining down on them. Instead, glass rose all around them, encircling them in a tempest of sharp edges. Luke felt one shard slice into his right sleeve and backed away into the safe zone in the middle of the room, clutching his right forearm as it began to bleed.

"_**Nwadexh fix!**_" the fake princess shrieked, stepping forward so that she was just at the edge of the platform. "_**Aswuk ngalght mbeg abaxght! Aswuk NGALGHT mbeg abaxght FAHXGH!**_" She held her right arm straight out to the side. The mirror she held then broke its gold frame apart at the top. The reflective glass stretched further and further away from her until she held a sword blade three times the length of her arm. "_**Saghmwe mbaxgh zogh asu zhaxhaih TAHVI!**_" She swung the blade, knocking the throne next to her backwards. As she continued to scream, she then swung the blade about as if trying to cut up enemies all around her. "_**Saagh mbawuxh ihjaxgh ZOGH KAHXGHASHQAT bwevxh asu zhaxghlesh TAHVI! Mbagh ZOGH zhashoxghen TAHVI! Saghmwe TAHVI! Shoxghegh TAHVI SMEXHT! Zhashoxghegh TAHVI mbaxgh asu!**_" When she finally stopped waving the sword about, her eyes settled on King Lauris. She raised the sword over her head. "_**PWAXGH! SHOXGHAINE TAHVI!**_"

_KANG!_ The sword stopped just short of cleaving through the king's forehead when Link, shield raised over his head, stepped into the swing to intercept it. Link was glad he used his left arm to help brace the shield against the strike; there was enough force behind it that using just his right arm would have bashed his shield into his own head. He pushed up and swung his right arm to throw the sword off. "RUN!" he screamed at the king. "Get outta here!"

"Go go _go_!" Irleen shouted as she flew back and forth between Link and the king.

"Your Majesty!" North shouted as he used a hand to push the king backwards. "The door! Hurry!"

"Agreed," King Lauris replied as he backpedaled toward the door.

Link stepped backwards as well. Then he jumped backwards to avoid having the fake princess's sword tear a gash in his chest.

_Chi-PAH!_ Luke fired his flintlock pistol at the fake Zelda. When he saw that he had missed, he threw the weapon aside. "Never good with guns anyway…" he muttered to himself as he pulled his own saber. "Shit…"

"Go, get the king outta here!" Link shouted as he backed out of another wild swing aimed for his face.

"_**Pwaxgh!**_" Fake Zelda shouted as all four Hylians retreated. She thrust her free hand in their direction.

And Link saw a number of large shards of glass part from the tempest behind her. "Look out!" he shouted as he ducked behind his shield, realizing that she was aiming their sharp edges at them.

_Kr-tink! Kr-tink kr-tink kr-tink!_ Link glanced to aside just in time to see one of Layna's blades, hurtled from somewhere behind and above them – _kr-tink_ – shatter a large piece of glass by flying straight through it.

"_**Qaxghsh!**_" Fake Zelda screeched. Link peered around his shield to see that her attention was on the ceiling behind them.

His eyes went wide as she swung her free hand upward, and he spun around. "Layna, watch out!" both he and Irleen cried at the same time.

Layna swung out of her hiding place in the rafters and jumped to a different beam just as the glass shards the false Zelda had redirected embedded themselves in the wood nearby. Somehow, as she jumped to the next beam to avoid more, she had managed to hurl another throwing blade. Link spun back to the fake Zelda to see her quickly swipe at the blade with her sword, causing Layna's blade to skip off her glass blade and into the wall behind her.

"Shi—Link!" Luke shouted. "She's got the door blocked!"

"Is there another way out!?" Irleen shouted as Link finally decided to pull out the Lokomo Sword.

"She has _every_ door blocked!" the king shouted.

"Gyah!" Link hollered when, as he was distracted with watching the king and the two captains, a shard of glass sliced into his trousers. He dropped to one knee due more to his surprise than any pain. And he saw that, in the process of attacking him, she had sliced open his pocket and caused Irleen's bomb gem to drop to the floor. He placed the sword on the floor and grabbed the gem. "Cover your ears!" Link shouted at them. Then he threw the gem. "Irleen, your gem! Now!"

"And the world goes _boom_!" Irleen hurriedly cried out.

_BOOOOOOOM!_ Link felt part of the burst from the bomb gem and fell onto his back. For a moment, he could hear nothing but a faint ringing in his ears. He rolled onto his stomach and looked up to find the king, Luke, and North with their hands over their ears. Although his vision was unsteady, it looked as if all the glass the fake princess was hurtling about the throne room had fallen dormant to the floor. Slowly pushing himself back to his feet, he shouted (although it sounded little louder than a whisper) to them, "Go! Hurry!"

"Did that get her?" Irleen shouted.

Link, feeling a migraine coming on, was holding his head as he turned back to the thrones. The blast had knocked the fake Zelda to the floor, but she was slowly recovering as well, using what remained of a throne to pull herself up. "Nope," Link replied, searching the floor. He located the Lokomo Sword and picked it up. "What _is_ she?"

"A living mirror," Irleen replied as she found a place to hover near Link's head. "It's like a curse. Whoever she started as, she's magically altered her appearance so much that she's just glass that can take on any form she wants. Even if it's someone _else_."

"How do we fight _that_?!" Link complained as he turned to see the captains pull open the doors.

"It's the same as with the Stalarmors and the Technomos," Irleen told him. "Anything not made of flesh has to have _some_ kind of central point where its existence rests, otherwise it would be mindless. You just need to figure out what makes her tick. It's gonna be something on her body."

Link fell silent as he watched the fake princess finally find her way to her feet. She turned to him and stepped up to the edge of the stage. "_**Aswuk ngalght mbeg xaapt abaxght me…**_"

Then a figure stalked past Link, so silent that Link flinched once he saw that someone was standing in front of him. He barely had time to tell who it was before a single shot rang out.

_Chi-PAH!_

The fake princess jerked when Gilliam's bullet struck her stomach. She took a step back. Then she corrected her posture and gave Gilliam, who was dressed in his tunic once more, an annoyed look. "_**Really?**_" she asked. "_**You decide to chance treason to remove me, and the best you could come up with was shooting a bloodless being with a gun?**_"

A surprised Gilliam took a step backwards. He spoke in a low voice that Link and Irleen were close enough to hear, "That played out quite different in my head."

"If it helps," Irleen spoke up, "that _was_ a pretty badass march across the room. That whole 'shoot-first-question-later' attitude was pretty cool, too."

"Sir Gilliam, you gotta get the king to safety!" Link shouted as he saw the fake princess pick up her glass sword.

She placed her free hand on the blade and, with a crisp snap, broke the upper half free. Link barely had time to move before the upper half of her sword sailed through the air. "Agh!" Gilliam shouted just after the tip punched through his tunic and into his chest.

"Gil!" Link cried out while Irleen screamed in horror. Gilliam fell backwards, landing flat on the floor. Blood started soaking into his tunic, and his body convulsed.

Link turned a wrathful glare to the princess while she re-grew the blade from what remained of the sword. In a flash, he was standing at the bottom of the steps with his sword poised for a jab. The fake princess, distracted with her sword, barely had time to twist her hand and deflect Link's jab. Link spun with the parry, turning it into a horizontal slash that, at their differing heights, struck her hip. Link felt as if he had hit metal, but the fake princess still fell with the blow. She rolled down the stairs and recovered to one knee with a wild slash aimed for Link's leg. Link jumped up to avoid the attack, and he rose so high that he staggered when he landed. The princess, now back on her feet, stabbed at him with a blade sporting a point but not its original length. It gave Link enough room to hold up his shield and intercept the attack. Link then raised his sword and brought it down in a vertical slash. The princess had backed away after her attack had failed, so all Link found was air. She was still trying to back away, so Link advanced as much as he could in two steps. Since she had stepped off to his right, a strike with his sword was not immediately possible. So he pulled his right arm back and swung his shield as if throwing a right hook.

_Bam!_ The edge of his shield caught her in the face just as she was exposing herself in preparation for a diagonal downswing. Link then pressed the upper corner of his shield against his shoulder and rammed it into her head. When he caught sight of her stumbling backwards, he saw that both blows had caused more of her face to crack and chip off.

"_**Smexh…**_" she swore under her breath as she regained her footing. She took her sword into both hands and attempted a horizontal swing while Link was still out of range. The wild swing caused her to expose her back to him, and Link quickly advanced on her and delivered a horizontal blow of his own to her shoulder blades. "_**AGH!**_" She stumbled forward to one side. Once she had recovered, she aimed a hand at a shard of glass on the floor and directed it at him. The glass flew in an arc, and Link took in a sharp breath as it sliced through his bodysuit and into his right shoulder. He attempted to retaliate by whipping his sword into a short, upward swing meant to at least clip her head again. Instead, she leaned backwards and directed the shard back down. Link's left forearm burned when the glass penetrated flesh again.

This fight was turning bad for him. He was beginning to lose blood as she gained the upper hand.

The opportunity to turn the fight around came when she reached her hand straight out toward him.

She had been directing the glass shard to stab at him. He turned his shoulders to dodge it. Then, while he still had the blade of his sword pointing up, he aimed a quick downward swing at her outstretched hand. "_**AAAAAGH!**_" she wailed as Link's blade removed her thumb and caused a spider's web of fractures all over her palm. She aimed an upswing at his exposed face, but Link followed through with his attack by dropping to a knee. He barely escaped the strike. He then held his sword at level with his left shoulder and swung a horizontal strike that caused a significant crack to form on her left thigh. "_**GAAAGH!**_" She staggered to her left, dropping her guard in the process. Her right arm was held outward so she could try to keep her balance, and Link rose at the same time he launched an upswing. He caught her arm right at the elbow, and her forearm simply snapped off where he had struck. Both her forearm and her sword fell to the floor while she released another inhuman scream of pain. Once again, she was sent staggering, and this gave Link enough time to wind up for a strong attack. As soon as she had found her footing once more, Link put all of his strength into a horizontal strike that landed hard on her right temple.

If it was not for all of the adrenaline pumping through him, Link would have probably been disgusted by the sight of the fake princess's head snapping off at the neck. Between the damage done by Link's initial attack and every other time he had struck her in a similar location, her head hit the stone floor hard and smashed to pieces. Her body fell lifelessly to the floor, breaking into large glass pieces of human anatomy.

"Link!" Irleen cried out. "The head! Look!"

Link looked back to where her head had landed and saw a glowing gemstone sitting on the floor in the middle of the remains. Still charged with excitement, he hustled over to it.

He froze in place when the fake princess, now sounding nothing like herself, released a shrill laugh. "_**YOU THINK YOU'VE WON, BOY!?**_" she taunted him with a voice no longer produced by a mouth. "_**YOU WILL NEVER WIN SO LONG AS MY CAPTAIN LIVES! YOU WILL **__**NEVER**__** SEE YOUR PRINCESS AGAIN! AND I WILL BE HERE TO ENJOY IT! YOU CANNOT KILL ME LIKE THIS! THIS STONE IS INVINCIBLE AGAINST ALL KINDS OF… Wait, what are you doing?**_"

Link had dropped both his sword and his shield with a loud clatter. Then he removed his hammer from his belt. "Seeing how 'invincible' you are," Link replied.

He took a knee next to her. He raised the hammer over his head. "_**N-NOOOOOO!**_"

_Chrch!_

Her voice cut off right as the pin pierced the gem. It simply shattered under the hammer, its glow disappearing with the excitement of a light bulb that had just died.

Then Link collapsed next to the pile of shattered glass as the effects of blood loss began to cloud his mind.


	110. Where Legends Bleed

Chapter 110: Where Legends Bleed

…

Link stirred and opened an eye to find a low ceiling in front of his face. His body burned, particularly his left forearm and right shoulder. He found that neither arm was easy to move, so he resorted to turning his head. In the bed on his left was Luke. However, Luke sat up in the bed with his back against the headboard, giving something across from him what appeared to be an annoyed scowl. His torso was bare, and his right forearm, sporting a fresh bandage, rested on his lap. Link groaned and attempted to prop himself up by his elbow.

The noise caught Luke's attention, and he turned his head to give Link a grin. "Hey, you're awake," he said. "Good to see you survived, too."

"Where are we?" Link asked.

"The castle sick wing," answered a graveled voice. Link glanced toward the foot of Luke's bed to find North standing there, sporting a bandage over his left brow. "This wing is dedicated to caring for the castle's staff as an area isolated from the rest of the castle in case of serious disease. It's also expected to handle massive amounts of casualties in the event of disaster."

Link turned his head and found that, to his right, was a long room with beds lining the walls. It amazed him that the castle was ready to house people for those beds, but it amazed him more that someone thought that there would be such a need in the future. "Wow…" he breathed to himself.

"We should consider ourselves lucky that only three are occupied," North commented.

"Yeah…" Link said as he lay back on the bed. Then he realized that something was off about that count. Certainly he was wounded, and Luke and North were sporting bandages, too. But he thought that there was one other person who had been hurt in the fight against Zelda's replacement. The moment he realized who, he sat up so fast that, on top of aggravating his wounds, he made himself dizzy. "Gilliam!"

"Watch it, Link!" Luke called out as Link's left hand slipped off the edge of his bed. He reached out his wounded arm, but Link quickly grabbed the opposite side of the mattress to keep from spilling over the side. "Take it easy."

"What did you say?" North asked.

Link had to wait for his head to stop spinning before he could repeat himself. "Gilliam. Sir-Sir Gilliam."

"Was he that guy who ran in after we got out?" Luke asked North.

"I believe he was," North replied with a nod. He then said to Link, "I'm sorry, Captain, we don't know at this time."

Link's voice caught in his throat as he tried to ask the next question, "Is h—hhk… Is he dead?"

"The last we heard, he was barely surviving," North replied. "He's with the surgeons right now."

Link sighed and shook his head. "Not again… not another…"

"Oh, you're up!" Irleen said as she suddenly rose from the foot of Link's bed. "How are you feeling, Link?"

Link placed a hand over his face. "Not too good…"

"What's he mean by 'not again'?" Luke asked before swinging his legs over the edge of the bed.

"What?" Irleen replied.

"We told him that his knight friend was barely surviving, and he just mumbled to himself 'not again'. What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh," Irleen replied. "Well… ever since this whole situation started, we've been… we've been finding out that people have died from different events. A couple months ago, we found out that part of the crew who were supposed to be escorting the princess back to the kingdom had been killed. One of Link's airmen was _also_ killed in the assault. Then we found out that the Skyriders shot another vessel out of the sky. The fall killed all but one of the crew. The one who survived died just barely an hour after we found the ship."

"Oh, wow…" Luke mumbled.

"Looking at death at such a young age must be quite an experience," North said. "But we cannot afford distraction from our current task. You must understand that, Captain, or else you would have never come up here again."

Link gave a small nod. "I know," he said. "I just… wish it would stop."

"Well, if it helps, no one's told us he's dead yet," Luke said. "There's a chance he'll survive, especially since that girl who was with us in the throne room pulled him out."

"Layna?" Link asked.

"Yeah," Irleen replied. "You weren't paying attention, but after you went berserk and started beating the crap out of that glass girl, Layna dropped down to the floor and dragged that knight out of the room and into the hallway."

"She almost took my hand off when I went to take the blade out of his chest," Luke said, holding up his right arm to show a small bandage around his wrist.

"I tried to tell you to leave it in," North replied. "Fortunately, Captain Link's master assassin has no compunctions about killing an ally."

"I'm sure she was just making sure no more damage was done," Irleen said.

"What?" Luke asked defensively. He opened his arms wide in an exaggerated show of confusion. "I'm not _that_ bad, am I?"

Irleen snorted, and Link allowed himself a small smile. "And you two are all right?" he asked.

"Weeeeell, mostly," Luke replied as he turned to show Link a large pad on his lower back. "She tried to get me just before we got out." When he saw Link give him a confused look, he clarified, "The fake, not your assassin."

Link pointedly looked at North. "This is nothing," North replied, pointing to his bandage. "I've taken bullets and blades to most of my body. A shard of glass isn't gonna kill me any faster."

"Are you kidding?" Luke asked him. "Captain North, I have it on the best of authorities that you, sir, are made of wrought iron held together rusty nails and steel wire hammered into shape with a battleaxe."

"_Clearly_," North said as he used a hand to cover his face, "I need to speak with my crew about spreading these idiotic rumors again."

"Didn't hear it from your crew," Luke said as his grin became wider. "I found that written on one of the office toilets."

"Who writes that kinda crap on a _toilet_?" Irleen asked.

"What would that be, Miss Irleen?" Luke turned his head away to help hide his mad grin from King Lauris as he approached North from behind.

"There seems to be much debate among the Skyrider captains concerning my construction, Your Majesty," North replied, half-turning in response to the king.

"There is no mystery as far as I understood," the king said. "You were molded of the finest wrought iron in the kingdom using a massive battleaxe and fastened together with rusty nails and steel wire."

"Uh… for the record, he wasn't standing there that long," Irleen spoke up while Luke tried his best to suppress his laughter.

"I am relieved to see that you captains are in good health," the king said. "As much as I dislike the idea of interrupting your recovery, I find myself fearing for my daughter's life in light of these recent events."

"It's not a surprise, Your Majesty," Luke said. "I don't know _what_ that thing was, but I'm glad she wasn't a better fighter."

"Someone who flies into a murderous rage like that can only ever associate themselves with those of a similar disposition," North said. "I feel that I understand, or at least vaguely comprehend your concerns, Your Majesty. We can only hope that the princess Zelda would do nothing to provoke such actions from any more of the monster crew that holds her."

"Actually," Link spoke up, "the crew holding her have left her alone. They don't talk to her, they don't even visit their brig. They just locked her up and left her."

"Madness," North replied. "Without food or water? And what of relieving herself?"

"It sounds crazy," Irleen said, "but it's true. That's how the Storm of Purgatory… uh, what you call the Undying Storm, works. Actually, the Undying Storm sounds a lot more accurate compared to what we Sorians call it."

"How come?" Luke asked.

"The storm is a prison intended to keep Cunimincus confined for eternity," Irleen explained. "And when I say 'eternity', I mean until the final ends of the world. The Undying Storm locks everything _outside_ of itself. From what I've read, this may also include the effects of time."

"Boy," Luke commented as he scratched the back of his head. "When you say 'eternity', you really _mean_ it."

"So, left on her own, Princess Zelda could survive whatever time it takes for us to rescue her?" North asked.

"Left on her own, yeah," Irleen said. "But if one of Cunimincus' crew gets a wild hair, it just might mean the worst for her. I don't know if anyone's noticed, but Cunimincus' crew aren't exactly sailing with all sails open." She glanced around to find the Hylians giving her confused looks. "Uh… that's… not an expression you guys use, is it?"

"Not really, no," Link replied.

"Oh. Well, I mean to say that Cunimincus' crew might be out of their minds."

Link nodded. "She's right. Although the Stalarmors didn't seem to be very wild, the Lizalfos, especially that _big_ one, didn't exactly seem to be all that sane."

"Granted," Irleen quickly added, bobbing side to side, "anyone here would probably be pissed to take a boomerang to the head, too. And the Lizalfos, well, they _live_ on insanity."

"This doesn't help matters," Luke said. "We're only three captains with _four_ airships up against an insane crew of monsters and demons."

"Excuse me, Your Majesty." Attention turned to a surgeon that, sometime moments before, had come to stand behind the king. Lauris turned around and stepped to one side. Link felt nauseous at the sight of the surgeon's white surgical gown stained around the chest and belly with bright red blood. He was still wearing a surgical mask over his face, but he did not wear any gloves. "I am sorry to interrupt, but I have news concerning Sir Gilliam."

"What news have you?" King Lauris asked.

The surgeon's glance fell on Link for a moment. "Perhaps we should talk in private, Your Majesty," he suggested. "I'm afraid that what I have to say may be a touch sensitive."

"No," Link replied. With some effort, he spun so that his legs dangled over the side of the bed. "He's my friend, too. I wanna know."

"Your Majesty?" the surgeon asked after casting a concerned eye to Link.

"Please continue your report," King Lauris said.

The surgeon was hesitant, but he relented. "First, the good news is that we've treated all of the wounds we can find. For the moment, Sir Gilliam is out of danger."

"The fact that you've got good news kinda implies you got _bad_ news, too," Luke said.

The surgeon sighed. "Well, this was something I was concerned about when I first looked at him," he explained. "The glass broke his sternum and sliced part of his aorta open along with his left lung. Uh… do… any of you know what the aorta is?" All four present shook their heads, so the surgeon indicated his chest with a finger as he explained. "It's-it's the main artery in the chest, where blood comes out of the heart and filters into the rest of the body."

"Oh, boy," Luke uttered while King Lauris grimly lowered his head.

"We've had to sew the aorta closed," the surgeon continued. "By the time we received him, his lung was nearly filled with blood. We used a hand pump to remove the blood and refill the lung with air, and then we sewed the cut closed as well. My concern, however, is how long these wounds will take to heal, if _at all_. And… on top of that, there's a very real possibility that Sir Gilliam may be paralyzed."

"My… word…" King Lauris uttered.

"Is there _anything_ you can do for him?" Link asked.

"I've sent for a thoracic specialist," the surgeon said. "As a general surgeon, my expertise is to find where people bleed the most and fix it; I have no idea of the long-term effects. The fact that he made it at all is a _miracle_. According to literature, an open aorta is supposed to be immediately fatal. Unfortunately, that isn't to say that it _won't_ be."

"If there were to be complications," North spoke up, "how soon would you expect his condition to worsen?"

The surgeon shook his head. "I can't say. He could've passed away the moment I stepped into the ward here, or he just might go here in a few hours. I wouldn't go as far as to say that it will _never_ happen, though. In this case, the aorta has been injured very close to his heart. Just the pounding of his heart could tear out my stitches and open his wound again. And just breathing could also take my stitches from his lungs.

"The short of it, Your Majesty, is that, until we can determine how well Sir Gilliam heals after all of this, he cannot be allowed to continue service to you. If he were to be exposed to too much stress, he would surely die shortly after. He cannot move, he can barely speak… he could not even afford to feed himself; just the effort of lifting a spoon to his mouth could cause a wound to rip open."

"You are saying that someone as young as Gilliam could never recover from this?" the king asked.

"With time, he could probably bring himself to return to a simple life," the surgeon said. "But, quite frankly, Your Majesty, his career is over. These kinds of wounds would make any job a grave challenge. Anything could cause him to die right on the spot."

"That's too bad," Luke said. "He seemed like a decent enough guy. Shooting the fake princess notwithstanding."

"I can't believe this…" Link groaned, gripping the sides of his head and dropping his gaze to his lap.

"Link," Luke said in a somber voice. "The man's alive."

"And I may very well be _wrong_ about his condition," the surgeon pointed out. "In fact, I _hope_ I am. Uh…" He looked at the king. "'Shooting the fake princess', Your Majesty?"

"It has… been a strange day," King Lauris replied with a sigh. "Please keep us informed of his progress, doctor."

"Yes, Your Majesty," the surgeon said. He gave a bow, turned, and left the ward.

"Captains," the king then addressed them. "There is nothing more to be gained by taking further action today. The three of you are wounded, and Captain Link especially needs some time to recover. I will send out summons to all Skyrider ships and have them come here to be released from duty."

"I can provide a list of vessels, Your Majesty," North said.

"Thank you, Captain North," the king said. "Gentlemen." He gave them a nod and left the room with North in tow.

"Layna?" Link asked.

Luke lifted his head to look around. "Huh?"

"Wait for—" Irleen began.

"Yah!" Luke cried out when the bed suddenly jerked beneath him. He turned his head to find Layna had landed on the bed right behind him.

"Dammit!" Irleen shouted. "I thought we were gonna catch her this time!"

"Are you kidding?" Link asked as he fished into his remaining trouser pocket. "We're _never_ gonna catch her." He pulled out Irleen's translator gem. "Irleen, I want you and Layna to go back to the ship and explain what's going on to Leynne. I don't know when we'll be able to get moving, but have him get ready to leave tomorrow morning."

"Whoa, whoa, hold on, Link," Luke spoke up. "You just got dragged out of the throne room _bleeding_. You should give yourself a little more time to heal up."

Link gave Layna the translator gem. "I'll be fine in the morning," he told Luke. "I don't plan on going into the storm yet, but I wanna be nearby. I wanna give Zelda good news before we go after her."

Luke raised an eyebrow. Then a humored smile came across his face. "'Zelda'?" he asked. "No title?"

"Ahp—" Link uttered before clapping his mouth shut. Then he glanced over to see Layna digging into the footlocker in front of his bed. "Layna, what are you…?"

Layna pulled out what she was looking for. She pondered over Link's hat for a moment until she carefully fit the top of her ponytail into it and pulled it down. She looked to Irleen and asked, "Nway mixiltak max, 'Afi'il Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn?"

"Wasocikwotak, 'inax?" Irleen replied, her tone sounding a little annoyed.

"'Inu nadyisocikwotak, 'Afi'il Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn," Layna replied.

"She talks?" Luke asked. Link gave a helpless shrug, unsure of what response to give.

"Nway huxwnwak," Irleen said.

"Kwal?" Layna asked, tilting her head in her usual manner.

"Nway 'olwu huxwnwak," Irleen snapped.

"Foltab 'inu amidh max?" Layna asked.

Irleen's response was a little delayed. "Na'," she said in an annoyed tone.

"'Afi'il Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn yilayximak May Kyabtin ga'na."

"Nwaki thacomak, Layna."

"Foltab zhi sanway max?"

"Na'. Taf kwal waba dijubak zagfiylw rayn Liynk safonw?"

"'Afi'il Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn nayx yimidhjak yazasmul 'inoy. Nwaki nayx xinwulak."

"'Inu nayx nadlayxomak wammu ga'na, Layna."

"'Inu nayx misinwmak."

"_Na'_, Layna."

Layna stiffened her stance. "'Al May Kyabtin 'atnya wabnik, 'Afi'il Cayminnadhiyf Irliyn nayx yilayximak 'immu ga'na max?"

"Are you two gonna go?" Link asked, finding himself a little impatient.

Both Layna and Irleen looked at Link. This was a mistake for Irleen because, the moment she turned her back to Layna, Layna whipped Link's hat off her head and caught Irleen inside it with a single swipe. Irleen immediately released a string of muffled screams. Layna bowed to Link and then departed from the room at a run.

"What was that all about?" Luke asked.

Link shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe Layna wanted to… wear my hat?"

…

"Link, are you asleep?"

Link groaned and pulled his face out of the pillow. Despite the darkness of the recovery ward, he could see Zelda's ethereal form standing next to his bed. "Not really," he said.

"I thought as much," she replied as she looked around. "When we did not appear in a different place, I felt that this was the situation. Where are we now?"

A snort reminded Link that Luke and North were sleeping nearby. So he kept his voice low as he explained, "We're in the castle's sick wing. We arrived this morning, and we got rid of that thing that was imitating you."

"Oh, how excellent!" Zelda declared.

Link started and quickly hissed at her. "P-please keep it down," he told her.

"Oh?" she asked, glancing around. "But it appears as if you are the only person to hear me."

"Well… y-yeah…" Link muttered when he realized that she was right. "Just… please don't shout."

"Sorry," she said with a giggle, shrugging her shoulders and covering her lips with her fingers. "But it _is_ good to hear that my double has been defeated. How did you do it? She bragged that no mortal blade could vanquish her."

"I used a hammer," Link replied as he rubbed his eyes with a hand.

"You used a… a hammer? You carry one with you?"

"Yeah, ever since we met Sello in the volcano."

"Oh." She giggled. "My, what an unexpected solution." Then she gave him a worried look. "But, if you are in the sick wing, then you must have been seriously injured."

Link grinned at her. "Yeah. About-about as much as usual."

"How bad is it?"

Link showed her the bandage on his forearm. "Just a few cuts. It was worse when we fought the Lizalfos' boss."

Someone snorted again, and then Luke asked, "Thachu, Link?"

Link slapped his hand over his mouth, and Zelda giggled at him. "Perhaps now is not the best time," she told him. "I will allow you to rest. But I would like to speak with you in the morning. I have been hearing some strange sounds from this vessel, and I fear for the Sorians on Forelight Island."

Link nodded before her image faded. Then he let his face hit the pillow.

…

"Good morning, Captains," the king said as he approached the beds used by Link and Luke.

Link groaned as he rolled over. Then he sat bolt upright when he realized who was addressing them. "G-g-good morning, Your Majesty!" he shouted.

"Oh, good morning, Your Majesty," Luke said as he pushed himself up. He glanced over the king's entourage, and this seemed to wake him further. "Uh… Captain Link, am I wrong, or did His Majesty bring _us_ breakfast in bed."

Link blinked the sleep out of his eyes to find that five of the king's staff had filed into the room behind him, four of them pushing silver carts adorned with covered serving plates. The fifth, at the end of the line, looked to be carrying something else, although it was hard to see with the other servants standing in the way. As if on cue, Link's stomach rumbled, reminding him that he had not eaten much since yesterday afternoon due to not having an appetite after a late lunch. At the same time, however, he felt guilty for having eaten that meal when he still had his crew restricted to certain things (although, by now, he suspected that Lilly's cooking did not adhere to the same contents as rations). So when one of the attendants placed a cart next to his bed and removed the lid to reveal his plate, Link just heaved a sigh.

"Where is Captain North?" the king asked.

"I think he already took off, Your Majesty," Luke said. "I know he was awake earlier, so he probably snuck out. I just… kinda slept in."

"Hmm," the king hummed to himself. Then he told Luke, "It is only mid-morning."

"Yeah, I think that makes him cranky, Your Majesty," Luke said as he turned to sit at the cart brought to his bedside. "That's probably why he left early." He had just picked up a fork when he noticed that Link was not eating. "You okay, Link?"

"Well…" Link groaned as he examined the food on his plate. It was probably the most he had ever seen on a plate, with a few items he could not even name. He put on a hesitant look and told Luke, "My crew and I haven't had a lot of money. We've been eating dry rations this whole time."

"Really?" Luke asked. He looked down at his own plate and gave it a disappointed look. "Aw, hell. I feel kinda bad now."

"Would it be appropriate for me to send food to your ship?" the king asked.

"Actually, Your Majesty," Link said, "I was hoping for a quick breakfast before we start for the Undying Storm."

"I was told that you should rest for another day," King Lauris said.

"Your Majesty, I… I'm really anxious to reach the princess," Link said. "She visited me last night, and… I've just realized what she told me has me a little worried for her."

"What did she say?"

"I think the _Smiling Gunner_ is up to something. She said she was hearing sounds that she didn't recognize."

"This is cause for concern?"

"It is if she doesn't recognize _cannonfire_, Your Majesty," Luke spoke up. He pushed his cart aside. "I don't know who these guys are, but if they're _anything_ like that glass psycho-bitch yesterday, we might want to get moving."

"If you believe it to be prudent," the king relented with a nod. "However, I have one request before you leave, Captain Link." He signaled the fifth servant to approach. Link was about to rise from the bed when he realized that, in an effort to get comfortable last night, he was completely naked. He quickly tucked the bedsheet around his waist and under his bottom to help cover the fact that he was not wearing trousers.

The servant placed a large, wooden case decorated with gold leaf on the bed next to him. Link found himself interested in the fact that the case, although somewhat oblong, was in the shape of the Crest of Hyrule. The servant opened the latches on the front and pulled the case open on a hinge at the top of the wing-like structure, leaving the triangle-within-triangle shape unaffected as the lid flipped over it. Inside, placed so that its own shape fit within the bottom piece of the crest, appeared to be some type of gold cane with a wooden handle in its midsection where the central ray should be. The servant pulled the item out by this handle, and Link realized that it was a rather hefty-looking bow, its shape apparent now that he could see the thick string mounted between both ends.

"This is the Bow of Light," the king explained as the servant offered it to Link. "No one really knows how it works; any arrow it fires never seems to be anything more than an arrow. However, I understand that this was used in the surface kingdom in times of need. My hope is that the kidnapping of my daughter is enough of a need that it would lend us its power. I would like you to take this when you leave to find her."

"Why him?" Luke asked through a cheek filled with baked apple, pointing a finger at Link. King Lauris crossed his arms and stared at Luke for a moment. Luke swallowed and added, "Your Majesty."

King Lauris stepped over to the footlocker holding Link's gear and opened it. He pulled out the Lokomo Sword and held it with the sheathed blade pointed in the air. "This sword looks to have been a gift to the Hylian people by the Spirits of Good," he explained as he indicated the hilt. "The bow is of the same origin. It is fitting that the one holding the sword should have the bow at his dispense as well."

"Wow…" Link whispered as he took the bow into his hands. It startled him how heavy the bow was at first, but he found it to be about as light as the Lokomo Sword. He used his opposite hand to strum the string a couple of times. "Are you sure?"

"When you present this bow to me once more," the king told him with a deep scowl on his face, "I expect my daughter to be at your side."

Link gulped.

…

It was not until almost noon that Link finally returned to the _Island Symphony_ on account of meeting with Captain North, Luke, and Lieutenant Blair to discuss tactics once they arrived at the Undying Storm. Captain North quickly settled it: as the two battle-ready (and originally armed) vessels, the _Grand Sails_ and the _Moon's Shadow_ would lead the unarmed _Island Symphony_ and the inexperienced _Summer Breeze_ and take the _Smiling Gunner_ so that the princess could be retrieved. From there, they would sink the _Smiling Gunner_. It was such a simple plan that Link and Luke had felt a little stupid for having dragged both of them back to the castle to discuss the situation. The rest of the time it took him to return was the long, unfamiliar walk from the castle to the northern docks, where the _Island Symphony_ had moved in preparation for departure. By the time he had arrived, the _Moon's Shadow_, the _Grand Sails_, and the _Summer Breeze_ were already waiting in the air above.

Link could vaguely remember how long it had taken when he and Line had figured out their trip in the _Island Sonata_. However, traveling in a convoy would cause them to take longer. It was nearly two hours before they reached Turtle Island, where they had to switch Sky Lines. Link's anxiety rose as they continued west toward the Undying Storm. His attempt to settle down long enough to write out a journal entry resulted in him walking circles around his desk until Irleen told him to stop because it was making her dizzy. So he escaped into the boat deck and inspected the _Conductor_'s hull. The inspection ended when, after finding access to the area underneath the deck, he snapped his fingers between a metal section of the engine and a plank that did not seem to have any significance. After that, he just decided to visit the galley to see what Lilly had been feeding the crew. He found himself wolfing down two full plates of grilled fish and fried potatoes, never once wondering to himself where the dishes, the utensils, or the dining tables had come from. He decided against joining Sello in a drink, but he did partake of a bit of grog to complete the meal.

After the meal, he joined Leynne and Line on the forecastle. Looking at the _Moon's Shadow_'s transom left him a little annoyed, so he paced the deck.

"Ah you suh you won't retuhn to youh cabin?" Leynne asked him after what felt like hours to all three of them. "It isn't as if Dholit won't delight in infohming you of ouh ahrival."

"I tried relaxing in my cabin," Link said, coming to a stop in the middle of the deck. "I just drove Irleen nuts."

"Then get something to eat," Line suggested.

"Did that," Link replied.

"Okay, we'll try it _this_ way," Line told Leynne. Then he said to Link, "Stop pacing, or we're gonna nail your feet to the deck."

"I _can't_!" Link said as he started pacing port and starboard again. "There're too many things that can go wrong! What if we lose one of the other ships? We aren't _armed_!"

"I thought that was _youh_ puhpose," Leynne joked with a straight face. Line snorted and ducked his head to hide his smile.

"Not funny, Leynne," Link said. "And what happens if they start shooting up the _Smiling Gunner_ and hit the brig? What are we supposed to say to _that_? 'Sorry, Your Majesty, but we _killed_ your daughter while we were trying to _save_ her'?"

"It's nice to have a _plan_," Line commented to himself.

"If what you've told me about Captain Nohth is true," Leynne said, "I find solace in defehring to his judgment regahding tactics. Suhly he has a plan of attack that does not requih aimlessly firing into the hull."

"Yeah, Link," Line said. "He's been doing this a _lot_ longer than us. I bet he knows right where to strike to take out a ship's mobility."

"The bridge, ostensibly," Leynne told him.

Line bared his teeth in a show of hesitation. "Eh, probably not. If you hit the control panel of a ship, it could kill the ballast and send you straight down."

"You're not helping!" Link snapped at him.

There was a moment of silence before Line complained aloud, "Great Goddesses. How long have we been in this Sky Line?"

Leynne removed a watch from his pocket and opened it. "Just a little oveh two houhs," he answered.

Line peered over to examine the pocketwatch. "Nice watch."

Leynne slapped the cover shut. "I made it myself. The mainspring has an additional mechanism which winds it as I move. It isn't pehfect, but it keeps the watch wound if I happen to fohget to do so manually."

"Cool! Can you make me one?"

"If you have the money to buy the pahts I need."

Line thought for a moment. "Let me get back to you in about five years."

"Will you guys _focus_!" Link snapped at them.

"Hey!" Line snapped back. "_We_'re focused! _You_'re the one turning into a nutcase!"

"We could be minutes away from a fight, and you guys are taking about a _watch_!" Link continued. "What is _wrong_ with you!?"

"Link, we're here," Line said with a haunted voice.

"No, don't go dis—" Link started.

"No, Link," Leynne interrupted in a stern voice. "You should turn around."

Link realized that both of them were staring past him with astonishment all over their faces. This caused his stomach to churn, and he turned to look beyond the bow.

Above the horizon, just barely visible on the _Moon's Shadow_'s port side, was an island sporting the largest tree anyone had ever seen. Link could understand why they were surprised just after immediately realizing that there was an island in their path.

"Oh, no," Link uttered to himself. "Where's the storm?"


	111. Nobody's Home

Chapter 111: Nobody's Home

…

Link burst into his cabin, startling Irleen. "Yikes!" she hollered. "Link, what's—"

"You need to come outside," Link told her as he grabbed his weapon belt off his desk and put it on. "Something's wrong here."

"What are you talking about?" Irleen asked as she moved from her bed to hover above Link's desk. "What's going on?"

"The storm's gone."

"_What!?_"

Link grabbed the Lokomo Sword off his footlocker and slung it over his head. "We just dropped out of the Sky Line to Forelight Island." He next grabbed his new shield and slung it on. "The storm is completely gone. I told you Zelda talked to me last night, right?"

"No, I've been here all morning."

Link fit his cap over his head. "She said there were some strange sounds coming from the ship."

"Oh, no. You think Cunimincus attacked my home?"

"We're gonna dock and look around." Link paused to try to remember what he did with the Bow of Light. Then he dismissed it when he remembered that he did not have any arrows. "C'mon."

"Wait, wait," she told Link just before he stepped out the door. "Put my translator gem down for a moment." Link pulled the gem out of his pocket as he moved to the map table and set it down. "Kakòrōl?"

Link picked up the gem. "You spoke Sorian; I didn't understand it."

"Oooh, that's not good," she said just before zipping into Link's hat. "Let's go."

Link rushed back out onto the weather deck and rounded onto the stairs. He met Leynne just as he stepped onto the quarterdeck. "Captain Nohth wants to know wheh the stohm is," Leynne told him.

"He's not the only one," Link replied. He scratched the back of his head as he thought. "Tell him we're going to the island. We'll look for answers there."

"If there are answers there," Irleen added.

Link did not wait to watch Leynne cup his hands over his mouth to holler at the airman on the _Moon's Shadow_. Instead, he hustled back down the stairs. "Dholit!" he shouted as he crossed the main deck.

"Yes, My Captain?" Dholit asked.

Link stopped and turned to talk to her. "Have Biluf replace Flower on watch. Tell her to keep an eye out for any ship she doesn't recognize. If she finds another ship, we need to know _immediately_."

"What shall I have Layna do?" Dholit asked as Link made to walk away.

"Whatever the hell she wants!" Link hollered, spinning in place with his arms wide open. "Just tell her she can kill anything that isn't human."

"Sorians aren't human," Irleen pointed out.

"Tell her not to kill any Sorians, either!" Link snapped. Dholit's only response was a confused tilt of the head as he walked away. Link marched across the main deck and up the stairs onto the forecastle, startling Line with his footsteps. "Line, you know where to dock. Take us there."

Line stared at Link for a moment. "Yeah, sure, boss," he replied.

Link sighed. "Please, Line."

"He—_you_'re the captain," Line told him as he turned and started forcing the engine to engage.

"Irleen?" Link asked.

Irleen emerged from Link's hat and looked ahead at the island. "Oh, wow…" she uttered. "It looks so different. It's so… _bright_."

"That's…" Line paused to shove the engine lever hard. "Uragh!" _Cunk!_ "That's nice, Irleen, but what about the _storm_?"

"I… I honestly don't know this time," she admitted. "I skipped class the day they discussed what would happen if the Storm of Purgatory went _missing_."

"Bite me!" Line snapped at her.

"Wha—then don't ask me stupid questions!" she shouted back.

"Guys!" Link snapped at them. Line gave Irleen a scowl (which Link assumed Irleen returned) before busying himself with the ship's controls. "Irleen, is it possible that the storm fell while we were away?"

"Not a chance," Irleen immediately replied. "Like I said, that storm was meant to last until the world _itself_ ended. There's no reason it should be gone."

Link glanced around. "Could the storm simply be _gone_, but Cunimincus still here?"

"I suppose, but it's pointless without the storm; it was the only thing keeping the _Smiling Gunner_ from shooting at the island all the time."

"At least we don't have to worry about the _Smiling Gunner_ sneaking up on us," Line said as he looked around.

"Link," Irleen said. Then she called, "Link! Hat!" Link realized that, with the engine running, Irleen was starting to drift away. He quickly cupped his hands around her and brought her to his forehead. Irleen tugged on his hair until she was safe under Link's hat. "Sorry. I just don't know what happened here."

"That's okay, Irleen," Link said to his brow. "Once we dock, I'm sure we'll find some answers."

Line glanced out at the bow. Then he made a nervous sound. "I don't know about that, Link," he said. He quickly pointed with one hand. "That tree doesn't look too promising."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Irleen asked while Link turned to look out at Forelight Island.

Now that the ship was closer, Link could see that the tree did not have any leaves. It was simply a mass of tangled branches towering over the island. Link expected to see Sorian airships docked all over those branches. Instead, he found himself reminded of the dead trees of Whittleton when he had first awoken. He found just a little comfort in the fact that, despite the lack of green growth, this large tree was not as far gone as those he had seen in Whittleton. He stepped closer to the beakhead so that he had a clearer view of the surface of the island. From this height, he could make out the smaller house-trees that dotted Forelight Island's landscape. But they were framed by a field of brownish yellow, not the bright green of fresh grass.

"Irleen…" Link started.

"What? What is it?" Irleen asked.

"This doesn't look good. That big tree on the island looks like it's dying. And the ground doesn't look any better."

Irleen took a moment before saying, "Let me know when we dock."

Link could feel Irleen's dread as she seemed to simply withdraw further into his hat. Although he was not on the same level as her, he had his own fears regarding the current state of Forelight Island. He had never seen an island devoid of airships like this; not even Skyrider Port had been so abandoned. Of course, now that he had remembered what Skyrider Port looked like, it gave him the hope that, even if Cunimincus had managed to attack the island, the Sorians would be all right.

He waited for Line to bring the _Island Symphony_ next to an appropriate docking branch before he started issuing orders to his crew. While the Gelto stowed the sails, he sent Leynne to put up a signal to indicate that Link would be away from the ship. Link found Flower standing at the top of the port steps to the poop deck and asked him to find a rope so that he could lasso the branch just as he had done on the _Island Sonata_. Even as the crew bustled about, Link was keenly aware of one thing which no one had commented on: no Sorian had come to investigate the _Island Symphony_. He initially wrote it off as just the Sorians being cautious, the same as they had been before. But after watching Flower lasso the tree, for which he would have at least expected a Sorian docker to assist with, the thought that the Sorians were being cautious turned into the concern that they might actually be waiting to ambush Link's crew.

So as he watched Leynne, Biluf, and Flower pull the _Island Symphony_ closer to the tree, Link decided to consult Dholit and Layna. He approached them while they watched from the main deck. "Dholit, I need to talk to Layna," he immediately said.

"Oh…" Dholit moaned in disappointment.

"What?" Link asked.

"Sometimes, I feel that I am but a mouthpiece between you and my sistahs," she said. She touched a wrist to her forehead and leaned to one side like she was about to run in that direction. "But if it is to bettah the relationship between the two, I find that I can only follow ohdahs whilst secretly plotting to fully avenge my spuhned feelings on My Captain."

Link gave her a flat look. "You done yet?"

She straightened up and put a finger on her chin as if she was thinking. "Pehhaps the false swoon was not fitting?" she asked. "Would you have prefahred teahs? I can do teahs."

"I'd prefer if you'd just _translate_ for me."

"But of _couhse_, My Captain," she replied with a deep bow. Layna, unsure as to what was happening, gave a slight bow herself.

"Since Layna is… what she is," Link asked, "does she know how to tell if someone is watching her? Or, well… us?"

"I would very much expect that, My Captain," Dholit said as she stood up.

"Can she tell if anyone is watching us _now_?"

Dholit turned to Layna and asked, "Layna, xiban soynwaditak 'inon max?"

Layna gave Dholit a brief look of confusion. Then, her face becoming emotionless, she gazed out at the tree. It was strange for Link to watch because she appeared to have simply spaced out. But then, after just a minute of staring, her head tilted. "Na', Giltiyn Dholit," she said. "'Inan nadgoylwanitak soynwadtya."

Dholit's eyebrows rose. "My," she said, sounding surprised. "How curious."

"There's… no one watching us?" Link asked, already gleaning Layna's words based on the fact that she hardly showed any defensive reaction.

"It cehtainly appeahs that way," Dholit replied with a nod. "The fact that Layna has not gone into covah hehself seems to indicate a lack of immediate concehn."

"We're good to go, Captain!" Flower hollered down from the quarterdeck. Link glanced up in response, but he paused as he contemplated what he had just learned.

"Shall I have Layna accompany you regahdless?" Dholit asked, her voice now carrying a tone of genuine concern.

Link gave it a moment of thought before he answered, "Yeah. The Sorians don't have any problems with us, but, if Layna's wandering around, she might find something no one else will notice. Give her the word."

"Yes, My Captain," Dholit replied before Link spun around.

As Link stepped onto the quarterdeck, Flower asked, "What's the plan, Captain?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Link replied, giving the docking branch a dubious look. "Something doesn't feel right. And, with a place as large as this, I'd prefer not to have half of the crew wandering around. Irleen, Layna, and I will go ashore. We'll signal if anything happens."

"We shall do the same," Leynne told him. "But I question why _you_ should be the ones to go."

"Irleen and I know the area," Link explained. He gave Flower a nod. "So do Line and Flower. If we get into trouble, it'd be better if they were here in case a party needs to be sent to find us."

"The captain also knows one of the elders," Flower spoke up. "If he gets into trouble, the elder should recognize him." Link gave him a nod of gratitude, knowing that this would have been a good point for the older airman to refute what he had said.

"Undehstood," Leynne said. "Watch youhselves."

"Thanks," Link said. He looked up at his brow and said, "Here we go, Irleen."

Irleen slipped out from under Link's hat. Link was just about to step down onto the docking branch when she said, "This is wrong. This is _all_ wrong."

"I admit it has an unnatural feeling about it," Leynne told her, "but it's a bit much to assume that any soht of devastating event has occuhed."

"Is the tree still alive?" Link asked. The question caused Leynne and Flower to give him confused looks.

"I-I don't know," Irleen answered. "What I'm seeing… it doesn't look right."

Link took in a deep breath and stepped down onto the branch. "If things are looking bad," he said over his shoulder, "get away and signal me."

"Be careful, Captain," Flower told him.

Walking down the branch felt like a completely different experience from the first time Link had set foot on the island. Being in daylight cast beams of sun through the tree, mingling with some mysterious dust floating about the air. The branches groaned and occasionally clicked when the easy breeze smacked two together. As he moved further in, he lost the ability to hear anything other than the odd flitter of Irleen's wings. At one point, Link's hand grasped the Lokomo Sword, looking for an excuse to pull it. He could not bear the quiet; he was almost begging for something to attack him by the time they found the trunk. While Irleen carefully floated in, Link glanced back over his shoulder as he realized something. He remembered that they had encountered something which resembled a signpost before. But as he looked back, he realized that nothing of the sort had been set up along this walkway.

The inside of the trunk only served to unnerve him more. His eyes, perhaps affected by how dim the surrounding light had become once he had gotten closer to the trunk, barely had to adjust to the dark interior. The light in the banister was gone, leaving only Irleen's soft glow the only light source Link could see with. He stepped over to the banister and discovered after brushing it with a hand that the carvings were no longer decorating its surface. A glance over the edge only showed Link a black pit with a small pinpoint of light at the bottom.

Link moved back over to the doorway so he could see his flare gun after drawing it. "What are you doing?" Irleen asked as he pulled a shell from his belt.

"Giving us a little more light," he replied.

"Not with one of those flares!" Irleen cried out.

Link cringed and dropped the shell out of surprise for how loud her voice sounded. "_Yikes_, Irleen," he replied.

"Link, we're inside a dry tree," Irleen continued. "If you fire that thing, it could hit the side and send this whole place up in flames. Look, _you_ may not be able to see, but I _can_. Just follow me." Link was about to argue. Then he realized that she was probably using the same magic that allowed her to see life and using it as a light. So he replaced the gun and retrieved the shell.

He followed her down, his boots clapping against the dry wood of the stairs. She placed herself nearer to the banister, which caused the wall to be very dimly lit. Her faint glow caused the shadows to dance around the wall's carved surface, and Link felt at a few points that he had seen a face watching them from the corner of his eye. Neither one of them spoke. Link felt stifled by the atmosphere around him, as if talking could be the worst thing to do while wandering this place. He considered that Irleen was not speaking because of the mounting dread she was feeling. If Cunimincus had attacked the Sorians… what were they about to walk into?

When they set foot on the floor at the very bottom, Link felt at least a decade older. The first thing he did was look over at the stone desk where Ackaar was supposed to be. Through the narrow beam of light reflecting into the trunk, however, he saw that the desk was vacant. It caused Link to grasp his sword harder as they stepped into the archway and finished the descent into Kuruuk Nehai.

The sunlight was back to its full strength as Link stepped out of the tree. He had to blink and buy time for his eyes to adjust. When he had his sight again, what he saw sent him into shock.

Nothing. Absolutely nothing at _all_.

That is to say, of course, that the landscape was still the same despite being completely different. The surrounding trees were just as bare as the large one behind him, which included not having any of the exterior carvings or other indications of what they were; Link could not even find a sign. The ground was covered in dead grass and wild-looking weeds that were just beginning to grow. None of the exotic aromas filled the air. Instead, the air was so barren that Link wondered if he could even smell anymore. Other than the wind whistling through the tree branches far above (which was haunting enough, given the circumstances), not one sound gave Link the same impression of Kuruuk Nehai as it once had. All of the tables and all of the stalls were gone with barely an indication that they were ever there in the first place. It was fitting enough for the scene.

Because the only Sorian to be seen was slowly dropping out of the air next to him.

"N-no…" Irleen uttered so softly that Link, through his own shock, barely heard it. "No no no, please, no…"

Link took a moment to bring himself out of his stupor. "Irleen…" he started before his words failed him. When he finally found something to say, it was, "What… what happened here?"

"I… They're all… They're all gone…" Link reached out and gently caught her in one hand. "This… this can't be… can't be _happening_…" She suddenly jumped out of Link's hand. "Link, I have to go somewhere," she told him with sudden urgency in her voice. "Just… just stay around here." Before Link could get a word out, Irleen zipped down the road ahead until she was out of sight.

Link wandered over to the nearest tree with a platform and jumped up. With his newfound ability, he landed much easier on the platform and stepped further into the tree's gourd-like body to look around. Not that there was much to look at after all. Whoever had used this tree had left it completely empty. No furniture in the room he looked through, no sort of decoration or personal items which might have indicated who had lived here. Or if this tree was either a home or a business. Everything had been taken. This led Link to reconsider his thoughts about Cunimincus attacking the Sorians, namely the part where Cunimincus had attacked the island. As he stepped back out to look over the landscape of abandoned trees, he found that, had Cunimincus actually attacked, there was a chance that Kuruuk Nehai would not have survived this well. He may have not known Cunimincus that well, but he was certain that his crew, being a mash-up of insane creatures, would have likely burned the whole island out of the sky. For everything to be gone like this, Link concluded that the Sorians must have abandoned the island. It must have been in relation to the fact that the Undying Storm was gone, but he was unsure of what kind of connection that would be. The efficiency with which the Sorians had removed their belongings was staggering, and Link wondered if they might have even had planned for this sort of situation.

Carefully, Link dropped back down to the ground. He leaned in closer to one of the weeds to look it over. It had green, healthy-looking leaves, if a little sinister in appearance due to how much they resembled a Keese's wings. If Link had learned anything about these islands, it was that, as long as there was healthy growth, it meant that the Technoworks were still in working order. Although, he could not say the same for all the trees since none but the largest had ever been seen with leaves before.

He found his mood dropping as he stood back up to survey the landscape again. Irleen must have been devastated by now, wherever she had gone. He feared that she would not find was she had gone to look for. Once he had considered what might be important to her now that they were on the island again, Link remembered that the library was nearby. With luck, maybe the Sorians had left it behind for other people to use. Thinking that, he wandered his way around the large tree to where he remembered the entrance of the library should have been. However, when Link found the recess in the tree that was the library's entrance, he found himself worried by the lack of doors. Carefully, since he was descending into another dark space on his own, he kept one hand on the wall to help guide himself down the stairs.

The spiral staircase did not allow much light into the library, so Link decided not to venture much further beyond the stairs without Irleen. The atmosphere inside was thick and musty, a feeling he had come to expect from _other_ libraries. He could barely make out the clock in the ceiling, frozen in place like a dead watch.

Much to his dismay, Link saw that the nearby bookshelves were empty. He stepped over to the librarians' counter and wiped a hand across its surface. He had to change his angle to see that his bare fingertips were not covered in dust as he had expected. Had this happened recently? Why had this happened at _all_?

Thinking that she would be coming here next, Link took a seat at the bottom of the steps. His mind flooded with questions as he tried to ponder what had happened here. Had the storm fallen? What if the Sorians made it disappear so that they could flee? Could that have caused Cunimincus to leave the island alone, because they were already gone? Why would they suddenly do something like that? Had they found out about the _Horizon's Eye_? Had they known that some of Cunimincus' crew had escaped into Hyrule? That was impossible, right? The Sorians and the Hylians had always been isolated from each other. How would news have gotten back?

It must have been at least an hour before Link heard voices from the entrance. At first, he was alarmed because he had been sitting in the quiet for so long that he was getting used to it. He jumped to his feet and prepared to draw his sword. Then he saw Irleen's light wander into the stairs, and he relaxed. But as he watched her slowly descend, he knew immediately that she had not found what she had been looking for. "You okay, Irleen?" he asked.

Irleen sniffled. Then, towards the bottom of the stairs, she suddenly dropped out of the air, and Link lunged forward and caught her in his hands. As he brought her closer, she broke into sobbing. Link turned and carefully sat back down on the stairs. Instead of trying to interrupt her, he waited for the crying to pass. It was a long wait because her sobbing then turned into a loud scream of anguish that made him wish he knew what to say to make her stop.

She managed to gain control of herself after a while. "I'm sorry, Link," she said in a voice much smaller than usual.

"It's okay," Link replied.

"It's just… They _left_ me, Link. My parents are gone. They took everything, even… even… my things. My home… it's just an empty tree."

Link sighed. "I'm… I'm sorry, Irleen. I wish I'd known. I would've found a way to bring you back sooner."

"No, Link," she told him. "That would've just put the rest of the ship in danger. Sad as I am now, it would've been worse if the crew had been killed because of me."

"Still… I can't believe the whole island's empty. How could they've done this so fast?"

Irleen sighed. "Magic, Link," she said, her tone treating as an obvious answer.

"Has this ever been done before?"

"No. What's worse, I have no clue where they would've gone. All Sorian land was once the islands you Hylians now live on. They would have no place to go." She sniffed a couple times. "Oh, Link! Don't they realize I'm _missing_?"

"I'm sure they do," Link replied in a gentle voice. "But just because they're gone doesn't mean we can't find them. They _must_ be somewhere nearby; you said before that Sorians can't travel the Sky Lines without ships."

She sniffed again. "Right."

"I promised to take you home," he continued. "And I meant with the other Sorians no matter _where_ they went. It might take a long time, but we'll _definitely_ find them."

"Thank you, Link," she said. "I'm counting on you."

Link nodded. "It doesn't look like they've been gone too long. Do you think that clock up there can tell us anything?"

Irleen lifted away from Link's hands. "Yeah," she said. "Yeah, it just might. Link… do you know how long it's been since the _Island Sonata_ was shot down?"

"A little over three months, I think," Link answered.

"_Days_, Link. How many _days_?"

Link took a moment to think back to his journal. He knew that the count was somewhere in the nineties, but he was not exactly certain. So he guessed, "I-I think maybe… ninety-_three_ days?"

Irleen fluttered a little higher and closer to the rail ahead of them. It amazed him that she could see the clock at all in the darkness around them. When she returned, she told him, "Link, this clock died ninety days almost _exactly_ from the time we left. Are you sure about that count?"

Link offered a shrug. "I don't really know, Irleen. It would help if I had my journal with me; that was how I'd been keeping track of the days since then. I might be off by a couple of days."

"So we could have been at either Autumn Island or Skyrider Port, right?"

"Probably. Why?"

"Well… remember when Lutock disappeared?"

"Yeah."

"Well, this is _amazingly_ close to about the same time he disappeared. That was about… how long ago?"

"Uh… well, that was while we were at Autumn Island, right? So…" Link scratched at the back of his head as he thought. "See, we got back the day after that, and then we were putting the plan together for the next three days… one day since we fought the fake princess…"

"Then… five days, right?"

Link shrugged. "I guess."

"Okay. Link, I don't know how, but I think Lutock must have felt what was going on here. Sort of like instinct was forced on him. He knew the rest of the Sorians were leaving, and he went to join them."

Link carefully nodded. "Okay. Okay, so… if _Lutock_ knew, how come you didn't respond to it either?"

She gave an annoyed growl. "It must be this stupid _fairy_ form. If I was back to my old self, I might've gone with him. But…" She trailed off as she looked around the library. "All the books are gone. I guess… the only way for me to change back… would be to find them."

"Then that's what we'll do."

"May Kyabtin!"

Both Link and Irleen cried out when Layna, having silently stalked down the stairs, spoke up with an urgent tone. Being directly behind Link had caused him to jump aside at the sound of her voice. He put a hand over his heart and took in a deep breath. "Geez, Layna, I wish you would warn someone," he told her, a weak smile crossing his face.

"May Kyabtin, falwif thukwfya'ak," she said, indicating the top of the stairs. "Sariyk 'an 'ilthan'afi'il ziyn."

"What's going on?" Irleen asked as Layna grabbed Link's hand.

"I guess something's happening," Link got out before Layna yanked him up the steps.

Link fell into step to keep from tripping, and the three of them were outside again. Layna pointed, and Link could see a line of blue smoke standing out from the sky above. He was not as alarmed by the sight of this, knowing that blue meant that something, while not particularly drastic, had just happened to the ship. Considering there was no sign of a threat, Link began wondering what was happening as he started for the main entrance to the tree.


	112. Rush to Aid

Chapter 112: Rush to Aid

…

Link was only about halfway up the tree when he ran out of breath. It was about the same time that he realized that he did not know which branch the _Island Symphony_ was docked on.

Fortunately, someone had thought ahead. While Link thought he was coming close to the right doorway, Line was already standing in the doorway as he continued to ascend. Link was not sure what to make of Line's expression. He stood with his back leaning on the doorframe, arms crossed and a blank look on his face as if he himself was not sure how to react. "What's going on?" Link asked between heavy breaths.

"We got a mailman onboard," Line replied as he uncrossed his arms. "He says he's got a delivery for you."

Link gave a small frown. Mail was usually received by the main office and sent out to branch offices when it was convenient. But then, he reminded himself that the Skyriders' offices were probably still shut down. And while the kingdom's mail service was known to go almost anywhere (and he knew how true it was, having once watched a mailman deliver a letter in the middle of a bar brawl), it was, needless to say, really strange that a mailman would have dared venture into the Undying Storm. He must have been relieved when he had seen the storm gone.

Then there was the fact that mailmen only ever delivered directly to a person when someone had placed a priority on the mail.

Now concerned, Link asked, "What is it?"

Line shrugged. "A letter, I guess, but he won't give it to any of us. He's waiting for you."

"You couldn't take it yourself?" Irleen asked. "You know. Fake it? Say _you_ were Link?"

"Link's blond," Line said, pointing to his hair. "I'm not. He already knows who he's looking for."

"I wonder who it's from," Link said as he and Line began walking down the branch toward the ship.

"He wouldn't tell us," Line said, picking up his pace so that Link would move faster. "Think it could be the king?"

"Could be," Link replied. "He knows where we're at. How long have we been looking around?"

"Whoa," Line said, tugging Link's sleeve. "This way, Link."

"Oh," Link uttered as he moved to jog behind Line.

"Almost an hour and a half," Line replied. Link expected more comments about being gone for an hour and a half, but Line fell silent instead.

Link was glad Line had come to take him back. Twice, Link was confused as to which branch to choose, having not paid attention to directions as he had been walking down to the island. Within moments, Link and Line set foot on the quarterdeck. Immediately, he saw that a small cutter had been moored on the port side, and the few deck crew were circled around someone wearing red. Line hollered "Captain on-deck" while Link hustled down the stairs with Irleen trailing. He jogged across the main deck, and his crew parted so that he had clear sight of a man in his late twenties standing with his back to the cutter, his red uniform a certain indication that he was a mailman. He started at the sight of Link, eyes immediately falling on the sword hilt hovering behind his head.

"I'm Captain Link of the _Island Symphony_," Link immediately told him.

The mailman blinked at him. "Oh, you are?" he asked. "I-I'm sorry. I expected someone… taller…"

Someone behind Link snorted. Link crossed his arms and asked, "I understand you have a letter for me."

The mailman glanced around at the crew as he dug into a messenger bag slung across one shoulder. "Uh, yes, Captain," he said as he removed an envelope. Offering it to Link, he continued, "Sorry it took so long to find you. I was told you'd be at Skyrider Port, so I went there." He went on as Link looked over the envelope. "Well, I couldn't find you, but then someone told me you would likely be on Castle Island. I was directed to the Governor's office since the lady on Skyrider Port told me you would be heading there. I got to meet the Governor. And then _she_ explained that, after you recovered at the castle, you had gone to… well, here. Me and my partner—" He turned to indicate another mailman at the helm of the cutter. "—were a little nervous coming here, but we figured, you know, no mailman's ever backed down from a delivery. Right?"

"Right…" Link said, his attention on the fact that Captain Alfonzo's name decorated the front of the letter.

"Why would someone ventuh this fah knowing that the Undying Stohm is heh?" Leynne asked him while Link opened the letter.

"Well, it was a priority," the mailman said. "The man who sent it paid an extra twenty rupees to make sure I delivered it personally. I got pride working this job."

"And you didn't think for one _second_ that flying toward the storm was a bad idea?" Flower asked him. "What would you've done if the storm was here?"

"Well, if someone _else_ was out this way," the mailman explained, "we thought that it couldn't be _that_ dangerous. Right?"

"What could be such a priority to chance sending a mailman in this direction?" Leynne asked.

"It prob—"

"Leynne, Line," Link spoke up, cutting the mailman's words off. "I need the other captains in my cabin. _Now_."

"What?" both Leynne and Line asked at the same time.

"Thank you for the delivery," Link told the mailman. "I… wish we had the money to spare…"

The mailman held up a hand. "No, it's no trouble," he said, his face molded into a worried look.

"Do yourself a favor and don't go back to Autumn Island."

"What!?" Flower and Dholit asked, having stepped closer since Leynne and Line had disappeared.

The mailman closed his eyes and gave a solemn nod. "We weren't planning to," he replied. "If anything, we'll pass by and then head to Turtle Island."

"Follow us in so you might make it," Link said as he started walking toward his cabin. Then he ordered, "Dholit, stand by the sails. Flower, on the moorings. As soon as the captains have been informed, we're leaving!"

Irleen, still hovering in Link's wake, rushed forward and asked, "What's going on?"

Link held up the letter. "We know where the storm went."

…

"'—Link.

"'—By the time you read this, it's likely that the Undying Storm will be on top of Autumn Island. We noticed it on the horizon the next evening after you departed. At first we thought that there was something on the island causing all the lightning and smoke we thought we were seeing. Then, the next morning, we could faintly see it in the distance. It's been two more days since, and we've realized that it's coming straight for us. I've talked to the Skyriders out this way, and we've come to an agreement that I will turn myself in to the navy in exchange for them to agree to organize all the vessels out here to evacuate the population to Skyrider Port or any other island capable of holding us. I hope you're at least done with your task by the time this gets to you.

"'—If at all possible, it would help us if you could inform the main office (if it's still open) to make arrangements to receive refugees from Autumn Island. Do _not_ come to Autumn Island! There won't be anything here.

"Signed 'Alfonzo'." Link then set the letter down on the desk and looked around his cabin. Captain North, leaning his back against the corner post of his bed, had a dark look on his face. Link could imagine why, figuring that North was upset to hear that the Undying Storm might have become a threat to the kingdom. Both Captain Luke and Chief Mallard appeared shocked and speechless. Lieutenant Blair, standing against the bulkhead next to the door, had hidden his face behind a hand. Leynne, who had been eying the maps on the table next to him until Link had first mentioned the storm, released an exhausted sigh after having held his breath for the duration of Link's reading.

Irleen, hovering above Link's head, was the first to break the silence. "This… this has _got_ to be a dream."

"I'd agree with you there, Miss," Mallard said, "but the captain doesn't joke around like that." Luke nodded at him in agreement.

"But _what_ is the storm doing _there_?" Blair snapped, finally showing an angry scowl on his face as he looked around at the rest.

"Any thoughts, Ihleen?" Leynne asked.

"Sorry, Leynne," she replied. "I'm… I'm just _clueless_. Nothing like this has ever _happened_ before."

"What kind of effect would that storm have on an island?" Luke asked.

"It's hard to say," Irleen said. "The storm could just push the island out of the way, or it could swallow the island. From there, I suppose the lighting might strike the surface, maybe even knock it out of the sky."

"Oh, pehhaps, not do anything at all," Leynne spoke up.

"That's true," Link pointed out. "I mean, the storm _had_ to pass across Forelight Island here. Other than the Sorians being gone, everything looks perfectly fine."

"Yeah, true…" Irleen said.

"Clearly," North spoke up, "we should make our next destination Autumn Island. Not only is it a lead on the Undying Storm and Her Highness Zelda, but as servants of the kingdom, we are obliged to render aid to anyone who may still be on the island. Captain Link, Lieutenant Blair, will your vessels carry injured should we find survivors?"

"We've got plenty of room," Blair said with a nod.

"So do we," Link said. "We don't have a surgeon, but we have first-aid kits on-board."

"Are we in agreement?" North asked the room.

"Oh, yeah," Luke said as he and Mallard stood.

"Agreed," Blair said, pushing away from the wall.

"We're there with you," Link told him.

"Then we'll follow the previous formation," North said. "If anything happens, it should be to us first."

"Great," Luke commented as Link's guests started filing toward the door. "Let's go hunt down a storm."

Link waited for them to leave before standing up. "Leynne," he said. "As soon as we're in the Sky Line, rouse the rest of the crew. If we're gonna lend a hand, we'll need all hands on-deck."

"Shall I make ahrangements foh a shoh pahty as well?" Leynne asked. "And shall I assume you'll be going ashoh?"

"I'll need people capable of handling themselves in a fight," Link said. "That'll be me, Layna, Flower, and Biluf. Helo will also come along just in case."

"I've recently pehfected the musket I'd been examining," he pointed out. "I should go as well."

Link shook his head. "You and Twali will be staying here and defending the ship in case Cunimincus' men show up."

"So why Biluf then?"

"She's our explosives girl. I'd like both her and Twali preparing for a fight. If possible, have Twali make enough arrows for both her _and_ me."

Leynne nodded. "I'll pass the wohd along." He turned and left the cabin.

"This is _crazy_," Irleen said after the door was shut. "Are we just _that_ unlucky today? First we find out that my people are gone, then we just _happen_ to find out that the storm went to Autumn Island? Is that even _possible_ in the real world?"

Link scratched his head with a slight air of irritation. "I don't know," he said. "North's right, though. We need to get there as soon as possible. I just hope no one was hurt or… killed."

"I'm sure Captain Alfonzo got everyone off in time," she said as Link stood up.

"I hope you're right," Link said as he stepped over to the window. He started through the frosted glass for a moment. Then he marched across the cabin to the door. "I'll be right back; I've got a ship to command."

…

~~Day 95 (Command, Day 58)

~~We found out that Forelight Island was abandoned about five days ago, and that the Undying Storm is now running loose in the kingdom. We don't know where the Sorians have gone or whether we can find them anymore. If they aren't here, then maybe there's another island beyond the kingdom they decided to move to. Still, since Lutock disappeared on his own (as far as we know), it's possible that they may have even gone to the surface.

~~Unfortunately, returning Irleen to her people has to be put on hold. I received a letter from my father saying that the storm is nearing Autumn Island, and that was two or three days ago. As I write this, the Island Symphony, the Moon's Shadow, the Summer Breeze, and the Grand Sails are heading for Autumn Island to see if we can render aid and find out where the storm might have gone. For all we know, we could be sailing right into it. It'll be the early evening by the time we get there, so we're looking at probably having to search into the sunset. I just hope Cunimincus decided to move on from the island instead of trying to take it. Who knows what his crew might've done.

…

_Kon kon kon_.

The sound roused Link from his catnap, and he sat up on the edge of the bed. "Come in," he called to the door as he rubbed the rest of the sleep from his eyes.

"Cap'n," Gold said as he stuck his head through the door. "We're 'ere at Autumn. You… You go'a see this, sir."

The grim tone in Gold's voice served to jar Link back into full alertness. "Thank you, Mister Gold," Link said. "I'll be out there in a moment."

"Aye, sir," Gold said before shutting the door.

"That couldn't have been more ominous," Irleen said as she rose from Link's desk.

Link moved over to his footlocker and started putting on his gear. "I don't think it means we've found the storm," he said. "Otherwise he'd probably just say so."

"The man was _spooked_. I'm sure what's here can't be much better."

"We'll see," Link said as he slung his shield over his back. After making sure the Lokomo Sword was secure, he picked up the Bow of Light, which he had left to rest in between the footlocker and the wardrobe. "I'll be right back."

Once outside, Link hustled across the deck until he was standing on the forecastle next to Leynne. He took in a deep breath to steel himself against the sight before him.

Autumn Island was covered in a rolling mass of black and red smoke which seemed to pour over the edge of the island before disappearing into the air below. The smoke's color was caused by the setting sun, but Link could also see a jagged line of orange and yellow fading in and out with the thickness of the smoke. He had never seen an island be taken over by a wildfire before, nor had anyone else for a few decades. The sight horrified him. Did the storm start it? Or was it Cunimincus?

"Link," Line said. Link glanced over at him, and he indicated ahead with his chin. "North wants us to heave-to."

Link gave the island another glance before he told Line, "Drop us out of the Sky Line and pull us to starboard."

"You got it."

"Leynne, go see what he wants. He'll probably have an airman holler at you from the main deck or the quarterdeck."

"Right," Leynne said with a nod before turning and disappearing behind Link.

Line lowered the ship until they were out of the Sky Line and turned to starboard before the ship drifted to a stop. The _Moon's Shadow_ dropped from the Sky Line just after the _Island Symphony_ and immediately turned about. The black ship sidled up to the _Island Symphony_'s port side, and Link watched as Leynne, standing halfway down the main deck, was hailed by one of North's airmen. Both men had to cup their hands over their mouths to shout over the Sky Line's background sound. While they spoke, Link watched the _Grand Sails_ pull to the opposite side of the _Moon's Shadow_. The _Summer Breeze_, being a smaller vessel, had moved further down the Sky Line before it could drop out and was doubling back by the time Leynne's conversation with North's man finished.

"So," Line said as Leynne started back toward the forecastle. "Question."

"What?" Link replied.

"How come this guy's your second-in-command?" Line asked, jerking a thumb in Leynne's direction. "He's kinda grouchy. And he talks funny."

"That's just the way some of the surface people speak," Link replied. "And, yeah, I know he gets a little cranky. But he's a good man, and he gave me quite a bit of help while I was on the surface. _And_. He's good at taking a punch if Dubbl gets violent."

"Which one's Dubbl?" Line asked. "Is she the killer one?"

"No, that's Layna. Dubbl's the one who speaks with that really _weird_ accent. The one you almost _can't_ understand."

"Oh, _that_ one," Line said with a nod.

Leynne, having just stepped up behind Link in time to catch what Line had said, gave him a confused look before he addressed Link. "Nohth wants to go to the opposite side of the island and dock, if possible. The _Summeh Breeze_ will hold above the island while the rest of us conduct a seahch. Although…" Leynne took in a deep breath. "He feels that, given the presence of fihes across the suhface, anyone left behind may already be dead."

Link shook his head. "We can't think like that," he said. "We'll proceed from here. Line, as we approach, I want to dock the cargo bay so we can take any survivors right to the berthing deck."

Line hissed from the back of his mouth. "As if that wasn't annoying the _first_ time…" he groaned.

"At least you'll have moh light," Leynne commented with a slight grin.

"Leynne, did anyone find those first-aid kits?" Link asked.

"Lawrence and Hahley did. _Sello_ was hoahding them."

Link was taken aback. "Sello?"

"The drunk?" Line asked. "Why?"

Leynne sighed and looked down at the deck. "He… discovehed that the kits contained small jahs of rubbing alcohol," he explained.

Link placed a hand over his eyes. Then he brought the hand down across his face. "Naturally," he groaned. He glanced out at the island. "We have a few minutes before we dock at the island. Ask around and see if anyone knows first aid. If they do, have them ready in the cargo hold."

"Undehstood," Leynne replied, turning to return to the main deck.

Link glanced back toward the _Moon's Shadow_ to see the _Grand Sails_ pulling away. "Line, engine full ahead," he said.

"Full ahead," Line said with a sigh. He turned to engage the engine. The lever began fighting his push, prompting him to growl, "Get in there, you miserable piece of shit…"

After resetting the masts (and Line won his fight with the engine controls), the _Island Symphony_ fell into the same course as the _Grand Sails_. Halfway to the island, they were overtaken by the _Moon's Shadow_ and the _Summer Breeze_. As they rounded the southern edge of the island, Link felt his despair lift when he saw that the fires were mostly consuming the forested area on the western shore. Only a few small fires spouted smoke from the town area. The _Moon's Shadow_ was docked by the time the _Island Symphony_ and the _Grand Sails_ caught up; the _Summer Breeze_ was hovering over the port area while covered lanterns were directed ashore by Luke's men. From the scant light of the setting sun trying to push through the billowing smoke opposite the island and the _Summer Breeze_'s spots of illumination, both crews could see that the town and the port of Autumn Island had been thoroughly trashed. Many of the wooden buildings that comprised the town had fallen, as had a few of the stone-built warehouses. Part of the southern docks had collapsed. There was not an intact barrel or crate to be seen in the port area. Debris covered much of the docks and the streets for as much was visible from the port.

The _Grand Sails_ docked behind the _Moon's Shadow_, and part of its crew disembarked to join North's airmen. The _Island Symphony_ took a little more time due to Line complaining about having to dock the ship in a place he couldn't see. Once the ship was moored, Link, Irleen, Flower, Biluf, and Helo stepped off while, presumably, Layna took her usual position hidden somewhere close by. They were immediately hailed by one of North's men, who was a little cowed by Helo's enormous presence. From there, they were taken to North, who was standing over a pile of broken crates.

At the same time, Chief Mallard and two of his own airmen approached. North turned to face them, one piece of broken wood in his hand. "Gentlemen," he said. "I believe we may be dealing with little more than wanton destruction here."

"Is that so?" Flower said as he looked down at the pile.

"These crates had rations inside them," North said as he turned and tossed the piece of wood back onto the pile. "They're empty now. My men have reported similar findings among the port's remaining supplies. It would appear that your Captain Alfonzo made good on his word to organize an evacuation; the number of supplies that could be stored in a port like this would conceivably be enough to feed the population of the entire island on a short journey."

"So why are the crates busted up?" one of Mallard's airmen asked. "You'd think that it'd be faster to just pop off the lid and overturn the whole thing."

"Well…" Link spoke up. He had to pause to think a moment while eyes turned to him. "The Undying Storm is full of lightning and wind. _It_ could've caused this kind of destruction."

North turned and picked up another piece of wood. "Is the Undying Storm also capable of wielding weapons?" he asked as he held the piece up.

Most eyes widened upon the sight of the piece, but Link was a little slow on the uptake. He realized that this piece of wood had been split clean by some type of blade, evidenced by a diagonal cut on the end of the piece which was not plumb to the length of the otherwise intact board.

"Cunimincus…" Irleen whispered.

"It would appear that they've been through here as well," North said as he nodded. He tossed the board back onto the pile. "However, I wonder if he might have any interest in remaining, Miss."

"I-I don't know," Irleen replied.

"I don't think there's a reason to," Link said. "Autumn Island isn't a big island, so the technoworks here won't have direct control of the Sky Lines. They'd be better off going to one of the major islands further south."

"'Technoworks'?" one of Mallard's airmen asked.

"The underlying structure of each island," Irleen explained. "The larger islands are capable of creating and maintaining the Sky Lines. There wouldn't be any such control here."

"Noted," North said, "but we should still keep an eye out just in case. That's why the _Summer Breeze_ is sailing overhead."

"If Cunimincus _was_ here," Flower spoke up, "shouldn't we assume that any survivors still on this island might already be _dead_? I mean… it's not like he's short on prisoners. He's got our princess."

"As hopeless as this seems," North said, "I would rather not chance that we could be leaving behind innocent people. We won't be making a thorough pass over the island, just a quick sweep. Until the night, when both sailing and searching will become too hazardous for us. Do you think this is acceptable, Captain Link?"

Link nodded. "It sounds fine, but we should get moving further into the town."

"Of course."

"Captain, I'd like to send a few men further ahead," Mallard said. "Our captain was last known hiding at a clinic further in."

"Airman Drew," North addressed the airman standing across the pile from them. "Find two more airmen and escort the chief's men to this clinic. If you find anything there, report back at once."

Airman Drew shot him a salute. "Aye aye, Captain," he said.

"Airman Geoff!" North then snapped at an airman that was just about to pass behind him unnoticed. Airman Geoff, wearing one arm in a sling, immediately stopped in place and turned to meet his captain's gaze. "Start herding the men toward the main street; we're starting our search there."

"Aye aye, sir," Geoff replied, saluting with his uninjured arm.

"Captain North," Mallard said as North ushered them along. "Do you mind if I ask a question?"

"I will if you don't walk while you do it," North replied. "Go ahead, Chief."

"I noticed a bunch of your men seem to have broken their arms," Mallard mentioned. Helo snorted while Link covered his face with his free hand. Mallard had not caught their reactions before he asked, "What happened to them?"

Link groaned, prompting North to give him a quick glance. "Engagement with a vengeful enemy over a month ago," North replied, allowing himself a half-grin at Link's expense. "We were only lucky those involved in the assault only had broken limbs. Most of my men are still recovering, but they're still able-bodied." Mallard gave an impressed whistle.

"Is _that_ what the Gelto did to his crew?" Irleen whispered into Link's ear.

"Yeah…" Link groaned.

The sights of the town as the combined search party moved down the main road told more of the pillaging that Cunimincus' men had done. Entire stores had had their goods dragged out into the streets. The one item of delight seemed to be meat, as every other kind of food had merely been thrown or trampled. Some neighboring buildings sported large holes that seemed to go through three or four whole buildings. Flower pointed out to Link that these were likely the results of cannon fire. Further from the port, they found more buildings had been merely set ablaze, leaving only smoldering remains as they walked past. Link barely recognized the spot where the Skyriders' branch office had been built, the building having been utterly demolished until the only indication of what it had been was the remains of an airman's tunic protruding from under the rubble. In spite of damage that easily outshone the level of vandalism Link had seen in the middle of Might Island, he was at ease as it became clear just how thoroughly the island had been evacuated. The only bones in sight came from the looted meat, and he was hardly disturbed by the blood. No Hylians had been harmed.

At least, that was his feeling until the search party that had gone ahead returned. Link was flanking North with Biluf and Helo nearby, so he heard part of a report that the smaller search party had found survivors hiding in the remains of the clinic Alfonzo had been receiving care from. The news caused Link's heart to skip a beat. Was it possible that Alfonzo had stayed behind?

North directed the search party to follow Mallard's group to the clinic. What they found was a building with its walls collapsed inward, as if internal support was completely gone. This left the walls, large slabs of mortared stone, broken in large chunks over a pile. There was a narrow slit from which someone's arm was reaching out to them.

"Get them out of there!" North barked at his men. Immediately, while one of Mallard's airmen spoke to the owner of the arm, North's men surrounded the remains.

They ran into the problem of being unable to move the heavy slabs of rock, most of which were larger than two men put together and difficult for five men to simply shove aside. So Link turned to Helo and asked, "Would you give them some help?"

"Of course, Captain," Helo replied as he stepped forward. North's men backed away as Helo approached one slab. It took a bit of doing on Helo's part, but he managed to find a place to hold the slab and pulled backwards.

"Help him," North ordered. Two of his airmen climbed onto the pile and fit themselves into the gap Helo was opening. With a shove, they pulled the wall vertical, and Helo stepped aside so that the wall could crash back to the ground without landing on top of him. "Be careful you don't collapse it on top of them. Find some ropes if you need it."

"Captain!" one of Mallard's men called as he approached Link, North, and Mallard. "The guy here says they've got a whole family down here, along with three women and a man with both his legs broken."

"They'll be taken directly to the _Grand Sails_ then," North said. "Do they know of any other survivors?"

"I-I didn't ask," the airman replied.

"Go ask then," Mallard told him. The airman saluted and returned to the pile.

"I don't like this," North said as he turned to survey the landscape. "If the rest of the island was evacuated, where did _these_ people come from? And why are they under this building?"

"Maybe they didn't wanna give up their home," Mallard suggested.

"Maybe," North agreed, "but my gut's acting up."

Mallard's man returned and said, "They don't know if there's anyone else on the island. They think they might be the only ones left behind."

"Okay," Mallard told him. "Go give North's men a hand pulling them out."

"Right."

"Hey!" Mallard snapped when the airman spun around. The airman turned back. "Where's my salute, Mark?"

"Oh," the airman replied. He immediately snapped Mallard a salute. "Sorry, Captain."

Mallard had not even gotten in his return salute before Mark turned back around. He turned to North and asked, "Did he just call me 'Captain'?"

"I thought that was a little unusual," North commented, his tone a little relaxed.

However, Irleen's tone was on-edge when she spoke up. "Unusual, nothing. He called you 'Captain' _twice_. That man completely forgot who you are.

"That's a sign of mind control through magic." All three pairs of eyes turned to Irleen, who was hovering over Link's head.

Then a loud crack sounded in the distance, echoing throughout the ruined surface of the island. Some of North's men had stopped walking among the rubble of other buildings and looked in the same direction, somewhere further down the main road.

North's face steeled. "That sounded like a gunshot," he told them.

The sight of a sudden glint in the direction of the sound caused a number of North's crew, including North himself, to flinch. Link was clueless as to what had just happen, having seen nothing at all.

Biluf, still standing behind him, tapped him on the shoulder. "Kyabtin," she said. Link turned and found her hand thrust in his face. In her hand was a short bolt, completely black save for a bare metal tip that capped the point. "Layna," Biluf said. He looked up at her face to discover a concerned look. He quickly worked out the relation in his head.

The bolt was from Layna. She was in trouble. "Oh, no…" he uttered.

North heard his voice and jerked his head to see what Link was worried about. Then he looked up above the horizon toward the _Summer Breeze_. From where they stood, the cutter was hovering to the south. Still cast in the fading light of the setting sun, North immediately realized that an airman on the deck was waving two red flags in his hands. He pulled his flintlock from his belt and cocked it. "Get away from the pile!" he ordered as his eyes passed over their surroundings.

"But si—" one airman attempted to protest.

_BAM!_ Some of North's airmen were flung from atop the pile while the rest, including Helo, jumped away as an explosion blew open the pile. Rock and dust was sent high into the air.

North did not wait to see the group of armored skeletons emerge from the dust to bellow out, "AMBUSH!"

Link, upon seeing the Stalarmors, dropped the Bow of Light to the ground. Already deciding on which part of the ambush he was going to attack, he ripped the Lokomo Sword from its scabbard and pulled his shield off his back. Gunfire sounded as North's men, surprised by the sight of the metal skeletons, pulled their own pistols and fired. Barely any of the shots hit their mark, and the pistols were abandoned as the airmen backed away further. Helo grabbed one airman and lifted him out of the way. Then he picked up a smaller fragment of stone slab and swung it, bashing the nearest Stalarmor in the head and sending it reeling.

Link charged forward at the same time a Stalarmor decided to charge for Captain North. The Stalarmor, a shorter, rounder specimen compared to those Link had encountered on Sagacity Island, changed its mind and huddled behind its shield. This did not help it much since Link's charge activated his boots. He rammed his own shield into the Stalarmor, and the Stalarmor stood to its full height and flailed to keep from falling over. Link then thrust his sword forward, knocking the Stalarmor's head off with a powerful jab. He did not get a chance to press his attack as a second Stalarmor sidestepped his falling companion and attempted to take off Link's outstretched arm with a double-bitted battleaxe easily larger than Link. Link withdrew his arm and jumped backwards. He could feel the swing create a soft breeze, and the bit intended for Link's arm embedded itself into the ground before him. Because it left itself exposed, Link could see the Stalarmor's life stone forming its left elbow. He raised the Lokomo Sword above his head and brought it down on the elbow as hard as possible. What he hit was actually the Stalarmor's radius, but the force behind the hit caused its elbow to collapse. The life stone struck the rocky ground hard, shattering it. The light disappeared from the Stalarmor's eye sockets, and it collapsed in place.

Link looked up just in time to see the stout Stalarmor rearing back to get him with a stab. Then a rock the size of a footlocker sailed directly over Link's head and smashed into the Stalarmor's face and chest. The rock flattened the Stalarmor against the ground, leaving it flailing helplessly as it tried to wriggle its way free. Link looked over his shoulder to find Helo standing almost directly behind him, a friendly grin on his face.

Then Link, his puzzlement drawing him from the battle for a moment, realized that the surroundings had broken out into a large swordfight with the occasional crack of a gunshot nearby. He hunched low and moved back to where he had dropped the Bow of Light. He placed his sword and shield on the ground, and then he tugged from his belt the quiver he had traded Twali for the use of his stolen bow and quiver. He pulled an arrow and nocked it. Then he located a Lizalfos spewing flames at two of North's retreating airmen. They were across the wide street, so Link decided to draw the arrow and take aim. He had no particular target in mind when he loosed it, only hoping that the arrow would at least get the Lizalfos' attention. The arrow pierced the Lizalfos' throat, and it immediately choked back on its own flames. It lifted its head in a panic and snapped the arrow in half to remove it. But, before it could focus itself back on its targets, one of the airmen lunged forward and sliced its throat open with a cutlass. Link quickly nocked another arrow and searched for another target he could easily hit.

_Whumph!_ A sudden pillar of fire and smoke blew into the sky further down the road. Link first thought it was Biluf until he spotted her dragging an injured airman to cover in between some of the building remains.

Then a high-pitched laugh pierced the air, echoing off the buildings in between gunshots and the clanging of swords. "Swaixghe!" the voice cawed in the distance. "Swaixghe tahvi! Aswuk vaxghse ivexhqe!"

"Irleen!" Link shouted.

"Right here, Link!" Irleen replied from behind Link.

"What is that shouting?"

"It's a Wizzrobe! Just our luck! That's what was controlling that airman!"

"What's he going after?" Link asked as he prepared to fire at a Geozard pinning an airman to the ground with its greater girth. The airman had its enormous mouth just seconds from biting into his face, his hands holding the creature's toothy maw open.

"I can't tell; it's gotten too dark." She paused, and Link loosed his arrow. The arrow struck the creature in the side, and it no longer had the strength to eat the airman's face. The airman rolled it off, grasped at a broken board, and delivered a bone-breaking smash to the Geozard's head. "Wait!" Irleen called over their surroundings. "I think I see it! It's chasing…"

"Layna!" Biluf suddenly cried out. Link had spotted her at the same time. Another pillar of fire had revealed Layna's dark, agile form dashing between walls and over rubble to get away from the source of the fire. The creature following her looked like a gigantic bird. Illuminated by its own fire, Link saw black wings waving about in a manner that could not possibly support the flight it was achieving. The creature wore a red cloak with a hood over most of its head. What was visible was a large, colorful beak the likes of which Link had never seen on a bird before. Something in its right hand shimmered before another pillar of fire burst from a pile of ash not too far behind Layna.

Link then saw Biluf run across his vision and called out, "Biluf! Wait!" He nearly started after her before remembering the discarded items around him. He dropped the bow so that he could pick up and replace his sword and shield.

"This is bad, Link!" Irleen shouted. "They're both gonna get _fried_!"

"I know!" Link shouted back just as he hooked his quiver back to his belt. "Is that the only one?"

"Looks like it!"

Link dashed after Biluf, who had already crossed the street and was moving to intercept Layna on one of the adjoining roads. He had to pull to a stop to avoid a pair of Geozards that had stepped directly in his way. One attempted to club him, so he jumped backwards to avoid the hit. After he dropped the Bow of Light, his hand found his boomerang and drew it. He was too close to throw it, so he opened it and sidestepped the advancing Geozard's downward blow. This put the Geozard into perfect strike range, and Link bashed it in the face with the boomerang's metal center. It fell out of the way, and the other Geozard swung a board that barely missed Link's scalp. Link leaned backwards to avoid a subsequent backhand that would not have missed and switched his boomerang to his opposite hand. He deflected another swing with the boomerang just as he placed his hand on the Lokomo Sword. He drew it and twisted right away, aiming a swing at the board. The board was cleaved with a clean slice, which the Geozard then dropped in surprise at finding that his target had a better weapon.

_Ka-BAM!_ The gunshot sounded from behind Link. A hole opened in the wide space directly between the Geozard's eyes, and it simply slumped lifelessly to the ground.

Link spun around. "Keep moving!" North shouted at him as he holstered his pistol.

Link replaced the Lokomo Sword and retrieved the Bow of Light. Then, after jogging for a moment so that he could put his boomerang back in its pouch, he picked up his pace in an attempt to find Biluf and Layna.

_BOOM!_ He found them just further down the road, where there were considerably more Lizalfos and Geozards and less Hylians. The explosion that had just left Link's ears ringing, however, had succeeded in scattering Cunimincus' men about. It had come from the right side of the street, where Biluf stood with a pair of ball-shaped bombs cradled in her arm. Link was not sure how she was doing it, but she seemed to just give the fuse of one bomb a sharp tug to light it. Then she bowled it at a pair of Lizalfos charging at her from across the street. The sight of the bomb caused them to pull to a stop and quickly retreat, but they did not get far enough away before it blew up. _BOOOM!_ Both Lizalfos were tossed into a produce stand, collapsing the wooden structure on top of themselves after landing.

Link immediately nocked an arrow and loosed it at a Geozard approaching her from behind. The arrow found its shoulder, and it spun around in an awkward manner as it tried to find who had shot it.

_WHUMPH!_ Link had only caught a fleeting glimpse of Layna dash across the street before the Wizzrobe's pillar of fire burst to life in the middle of the street, incinerating the wounded Geozard. Its cackling followed as it sailed overhead, completely unaware of Biluf or Link.

Biluf was determined to change that as she reached into the messenger bag slung across her shoulder. She produced a smaller bomb than what she had been using and gave chase into an alleyway. Link could not follow because the Wizzrobe's fire had saturated the cobblestone road and would not die down. So he opted to leap onto one of the nearby buildings. From his vantage point, the Wizzrobe was clear as day. Layna, however, was out of sight. Biluf was just making her way out of the nearby alley, so Link tore across the roof and leapt onto the next building to keep up.

Then Link caught sight of Biluf's bomb sailing into the air. The sight of it surprised him, especially since it was lit. He slid to a stop and ducked down, covering his head with his arms.

_BOOM!_

"Yaaaaah!" the Wizzrobe hollered. It stopped in the air and spun around. Link looked up to see it spot Biluf running back towards the center of the fight. "Sahxghv mbeg njihjswuxgh, fix!?" it shouted at her as it swooped low to the ground.

_WHUMPH!_ The sudden rush of fire caused Link to fall backwards. When he recovered, he quickly moved to the edge of the roof and looked down. The Wizzrobe had sent Biluf sprawling into the middle of the road, her bag's contents spilled across the ground. Link quickly looked up and saw the Wizzrobe performing a turn high in the air, doubtless coming back to finish the job. His concentration faltered, and his hand fumbled around the quiver, seemingly unable to grasp an arrow. Biluf recovered from her fall and turned in time to see the Wizzrobe heading straight for her again.

Then, in a blink, Biluf had completely disappeared.

_WHA-BOOOOOOOM!_ Link was flung backwards again by the combined force of the Wizzrobe's magic igniting Biluf's bombs almost instantly. The largest cloud of smoke thus far encompassed the immediate area. Link rolled onto his stomach and looked up to find the Wizzrobe hovering just above the cloud, head swiveling as it looked for its prey.

Link then heard coughing and crawled across the roof. Layna was emerging from the neighboring buildings with Biluf slung over one shoulder. Biluf was an encumbrance; Layna could not run anymore.

The Wizzrobe started cackling. "Bvax njihjswuxgh, aswuk vaxgh?" it asked as it slowly hovered in their direction. Link immediately stood up and leapt onto the next building. It put Layna and Biluf out of sight, but it gave him a better angle from which to shoot. "Jahghshoxghen mbagh."

Link ripped an arrow out of his quiver and nocked it. His draw was strong. "Not _my_ crew," he growled to himself as he sighted the Wizzrobe along the arrow's shaft.

_SHIiiiiin!_ Link had not even realized that something had happened to the arrow until he saw it strike the Wizzrobe in the back. Instead of a simple arrow, a large shard of light pierced through the Wizzrobe's chest. The Wizzrobe gave a jerk and seemed to just freeze in place.

Then it turned around and gave Link a surprised look, as if just realizing he was there. It looked down at the light protruding from its chest. It touched a hand to it. Then it proceeded to flip out. "XGHEGEX PWAXGHVEXGH _SMEXH_!" it cried out as it bounced about in midair, arms flailing. "BWEVXH TWAXH IMBEX _DAGH_!? MOGH EXHANG _DAGH_ TWAXH!?"

Link pulled another arrow and had it aimed at the Wizzrobe in seconds. The shaft suddenly burst into another shard of light, which Link seemed to simply hold in the bow without feeling any sort of effect. He awed at it for a moment. Then he fired. The arrow showed none of the usual wavering or arcing that he had seen when he had fired arrows before. Its path was true, and it pierced the Wizzrobe in the head. The Wizzrobe ceased all movement and fell to the ground with a hard thump that Link barely heard. He stared at the bow, surprised at what he had just done with it.

Then he started and dashed across the roof to jump back down to the ground. He found Layna and Biluf huddled against the side of a building. They went unnoticed by Cunimincus' men since North's men had moved onto the street and engaged them. Link approached them and came to a stop just over Layna's shoulder. At first, he was concerned that Biluf had been seriously hurt.

And she had been. Sitting against the building, Link could clearly see that her face had been seared by flame, the skin on her right cheek and the outside of her right eye red and horribly blistered. Some of her hair had also been singed around her temple, but, amazingly, it only appeared that it was only that narrow band on the side of her face that had been touched. He looked down and saw that her right leg was bloody from a large wound on her shin. She was gritting her teeth, forcing herself to keep her screams in check.

"Biluf…" Layna whispered.

Biluf managed to smile. "'Inu nadcilixak, Layna," she said through her teeth. "'Inu masohak, 'itab 'inu salwobak."

"Biluf… wabin caddix…" Layna said as she carefully moved some of Biluf's singed hair away from the blisters.

"'Inu _xwicikak_, Layna," Biluf said.

Link gently placed a hand on Layna's shoulder. "Layna, she's all right," he said to her.

"Captain Link!" Link looked over his shoulder to see Flower and Helo jogging toward them. That was when Link realized that the fighting around them was dying down. Most of Cunimincus' men lay dead on the ground. North's airmen were also strewn about, but they were being tended to by their fellows. None of them in immediate sight appeared to be dead.

Link turned to them. "Helo, we'll need you to take Biluf back to the ship; she's hurt."

"Yes, Captain," Helo said with a nod.

"How's the fighting further down?" Link asked.

"Still bad," Flower reported as Helo stepped around Link. "These lizard things are a pain to kill. And there's still one of those skeleton things wandering around, too."

"Layna, we shou—" Link said as he turned to face the Gelto. However, he found that Layna had already disappeared. "Never mind."

"North is looking for you," Flower said.

"Helo, take care of her," Link said over his shoulder. Then he indicated the main road with his free hand. "Let's go."

Together, they returned to the main road and were almost immediately immersed in the continuing fray. Link used the Bow of Light to shoot two different Lizalfos while Flower, wielding one of the Lizalfos' machetes, repulsed a couple of Geozards looking to attack them. North was holding position in an alley with two of his airmen. Both airmen held their pistols aimed down the street in the direction of the forest while North was resting against the opposite wall, where he had a clear view of where they were aiming while he was reloading his pistol. He gave them a word of warning as Link and Flower approached.

"Any news of that thing causing the explosions?" North asked as Link and Flower placed their backs against the wall across from him.

"Dead," Link replied. "How are things here?"

"It looks like they may be falling back," North said. "But they're moving in the direction of the port. They're circling this position and using the backstreets."

"Could be thinking about commandeering a ship," one of North's airmen pointed out.

"Captain," the other one said. "Come have a look at this."

North slid down the wall and looked in the direction his airman indicated. "Captain Link, I think your ship is signaling," he said.

Link hunched low and peered around the corner. To his horror, a red flare hung in the air over the port. "Oh, no…" he uttered.

"What is that?" North asked.

Link gave a frustrated sigh. "A signal, all right," he said. "Our ships are under attack."

North swore under his breath and glanced down the other side of the road. "Okay," he said. "Boys, let's get moving."

"Go, go!" one of the airmen shouted. Both of them then charged out into the street.

"Stick with me," North told Link just before joining them. Link and Flower ran to catch up. North then bellowed, "All hands, fall back! The ships are under attack!"


	113. The Conclusion of Autumn Island

Chapter 113: The Conclusion of Autumn Island

…

The Hylian airmen in the port were being forced backwards onto the ships, and the _Island Symphony_, due to its large cargo door and small crew, was being overrun by Geozards and Lizalfos.

Then a torrent of gunfire sounded from behind the line formed by Cunimincus' crew. Those that did not fall spun around to find the rest of North's men charging at them from the main street. Link, by virtue of his boots, powered past the group and then performed a flying leap over Cunimincus' crew, arrow already nocked in the Bow of Light. He landed, spun, and immediately loosed a shard of light that pierced one of the Geozards through the heart and stabbed into the shoulder of the Dinolfos standing right behind it, completely ignoring the fact that the Dinolfos was wearing armor. Link then threw the bow to the ground and pulled his sword. He had an extra moment to grab his shield since his wild stunt had completely boggled the enemy line, causing them to scatter when North's men collided with them from behind.

Knowing the difficulty in attempting to kill what was already dead, Link immediately looked around for any nearby Stalarmors. His first encounter was with a Geozard wielding a spiked club which barely lasted a moment. Link used his shield to intercept the club. But before he had a chance to counterattack, one of the retreating airmen, invigorated by Link's idiotic cavalry charge, rushed up and shot the Geozard point-blank in between the eyes. At about the same time, the rest of the group that had remained around the docks surged forward to further disrupt Cunimincus' crew.

Link caught a glint in the corner of his eye and turned. A Stalarmor was holding off would-be attackers by swinging around a gigantic broadsword, giving itself a wide space to move. Link pushed through the charging airmen to the Stalarmor's location. Just outside the ring of airmen, Link took a fantastic leap into the air with the Lokomo Sword raised. The Stalarmor spotted Link at the last moment, and that was not enough to prevent Link from bashing its head to one side as he came back down. But then Link found that he was landing just a hair's breadth from impaling his face on the spikes decorating the Stalarmor's knees. He kept his head low as he backed up a couple steps, and this save him from losing his head to the Stalarmor's flailing. One of the nearby airmen, upon perceiving the spike-covered skull flying straight for him, smacked it into the air with his cutlass. Link rounded the Stalarmor and located its life jewel on the backside of its pelvis. He delivered a powerful swing and smashed the jewel to pieces. It probably was not the best of ideas, as the Stalarmor, still flailing about, wound up flinging its bones and parts into the crowd of surrounding airmen. Link in particular took a sharpened rib to the brow and fell backwards more out of surprise than the negligible force of the bone to his head. A cheer rose up as Link checked his head for wounds. He found a small cut that was openly bleeding, but he found it to be minor. One airman helped him back to his feet before he joined the rest of his comrades combating Cunimincus' men.

Link glanced toward his ship. Unfortunately, his vantage point did not allow him much of a view of what was happening on board. He wiped his brow with the back of his left sleeve and started jogging toward the _Island Symphony_, which was still a good distance down the docks. His pace picked up when a red flare shot into the air from the forecastle. He could only imagine what might be happening aboard without him.

A tail came out of nowhere and smack into the side of Link's head, sending him sprawling to the ground. His vision spun, but he still got to his feet. Unfortunately, as things cleared up, he found his way blocked by a trio of Lizalfos. He turned to find that two more plus an armored Geozard had cut off his means of retreat. He started spinning back and forth, the Lokomo Sword extended so that each turn resulted in a wild slash that kept them at bay.

"Līnca!" he heard Irleen shout from somewhere nearby. "Láħìna, kūl hūta!?"

"Captain Link!" someone shouted.

Link jabbed at one Lizalfos that was attempting to get too close to him. Unfortunately, the armored Geozard took this as a sign to strike. Link was not even aware that it had raised a battleaxe to embed into his skull until he whipped around.

_Tink._ Link felt something hit his blade. When his eyes settled on the Geozard, the Geozard stumbled backwards with a heavy rasp while its free hand clasped at its throat. It ripped out a blood-coated piece of metal and threw it to the ground. Link looked down to find that it was one of Layna's throwing blades. It did not occur to him how she had made that throw until he realized that she must have bounced the blade off his sword, hence the odd bump he had felt. Beginning to realize that his position was about to be overrun, Link spun and swung at the Lizalfos approaching him from behind. _Tink_. This time, Link spotted a flash of metal strike his blade and bounce off, embedding itself into a Lizalfos' eye. The Lizalfos screamed, and the sound caused the other Lizalfos to freeze in place as they tried to figure out where the blades were coming from.

Link then lunged forward. _Tink_. The impact came off the metal edge of his shield and hit the shoulder of a Lizalfos to the right of the Lizalfos who held up a machete to defend itself from Link's stabbing motion. Link's blow was deflected high. _Tink_. Layna skipped a blade off Link's sword and sliced open the Lizalfos' nostrils, forming a single slit in between the two. The Lizalfos screamed and backed away. Link spun around. _Tink_. While he was making a slicing motion intended to get any weapons at chest level, another throwing blade skipped off Link's shield, startled one Lizalfos when it missed its eye by a narrow margin, and actually found its way into the back of another Lizalfos' head when it turned to fight off the airmen trying to reach Link. Link's sword was intercepted midway by a Lizalfos wearing a thick, metal gauntlet that covered its entire forearm and hand. _Tink_. This turned out to be a mistake when Layna bounced a blade off the Lizalfos' own gauntlet and embedded it into the underside of the Lizalfos' jaw. Link pulled the sword out of its grasp and delivered a vertical strike that cleaved its unprotected skull.

The wall of Lizalfos was finally broken when Helo, tucked into a ball, suddenly barreled his way through. The Lizalfos, along with a pair of Geozards who had not even been near Link to begin with, were scattered across the ground. Helo unrolled himself and slid on his bare feet to a stop just short of flattening one of his Geozard tag-alongs. The Geozard was relieved until Helo swung one fist to help pull himself to his full height, which sent the Geozard flying into the side of the nearby _Grand Sails_. Link exchanged a nod with him before he tore across the docks toward the _Island Symphony_.

As he approached in a relatively open area near his ship, Link saw that a pair of Lizalfos were aiming muskets at the ship's main deck while another one, sporting a bleeding wound in its upper chest, struggled to reload. He glanced up just in time to see Leynne and Lawrence duck behind the bulwark before the Lizalfos fired. Link changed direction and slammed into the two that had just fired hard with his shield. The Lizalfos, taken completely by surprise, were flung an incredible distance with one landing on top of the other. The third finished reloading and attempted to aim at Link. Link, however, spun and deflected the musket into the air. The impact caused the weapon to fire, and then the Lizalfos dropped it. It immediately lashed out at Link with its claws, and Link felt his left sleeve tear. He twisted and bashed the edge of his shield against the Lizalfos' great maw. Then he twisted again and sliced open its throat, dropping it to the ground.

"Link!" Link turned back to his ship to see that Leynne and Lawrence were now using their muskets to fend off weapons being used by a pair of Geozards. At the same time, Dubbl and Lwamm were fighting against the Lizalfos and Geozards that had invaded the cargo hold.

Link waved his shield in the air. "Layna!" he hollered. Then he pointed the Lokomo Sword at the ship. "Hurry!"

Layna suddenly dashed past Link, dropping the Bow of Light at his feet. Link had to put down the sword to pick up the bow. He slung it onto his left shoulder and picked up the sword again. Then he ran after Layna. He saw Layna's arm sweep through the air, and then she performed a spectacular leap from the dock onto the deck, downing the Geozard that was on top of Leynne with a throwing blade. Link decided to dash straight into the cargo hold. His eyes perceived Dubbl on the deck, her attacker's free hand wrapped around her throat. The hand holding the cutlass, however, was cradled against its chest. Link hopped onto the door, alerting it to his presence. But then Link was already upon it and used his incredible speed to lop off its head with a single, horizontal slash. Then he spun to see how Lwamm was doing.

And she was doing just fine. The Dinolfos attacking her had also been distracted by his boarding in addition to having one of Layna's throwing blades embedded in its ribs. Lwamm, her hands wrapped with first-aid bandage strips, delivered a right hook to the Dinolfos' head that sent it sprawling. She closed the distance between them and spun, driving the heel of her right foot into the right side of its face. The Dinolfos stumbled into Link's direction, and he quickly bashed it away with his shield. The Dinolfos ran into a nearby crate and stumbled backwards towards Lwamm. She hooked one hand around the Dinolfos' ample jaw and took hold of a spine on the back of its head. Then she twisted hard, eliciting a disgusting crack from the Dinolfos' neck. The Dinolfos slumped to the deck, completely lifeless. Her chest heaving and her eyes wild, she looked up at Link. For a moment, he thought she might charge him next.

"Kyabtin," Dubbl said as she pushed herself up from the deck.

Link stepped over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"I fine," Dubbl said, her voice a little raspy. "Monste's. Ub. And down."

A scream sounded, and Link immediately looked down. "Lilly," he said.

"Zey chased down," Dubbl said, indicating the deck with a finger.

"Lwamm, let's go," Link said, gesturing at the stairs. But, when he started for the stairs, he realized that Lwamm was frozen in place. He turned and asked, "Lwamm?"

She looked up at him. Then she looked down at her balled fists. She took in a deep breath and let herself relax for a moment. "Ay'a, May Kyabtin," she said with a sharp nod.

"Let's go," he told her. And this time, she followed him down the starboard stairs.

Their footsteps alerted the Geozards that had wandered into the galley below. Link caught sight of a club just in time to duck underneath it and rolled out onto the deck. Because it was nothing more than wood roughly shaved to serve as a weapon, Lwamm caught it after the swing had lost power and ripped it from its user's hands. The Geozard rounded the stairwell, wondering where its club had gone. She promptly thrust the narrow end in its face, poking out one eye.

Link decided to get back to his feet and hustled past the barrels littering the port side of the deck. Two more Geozards were moving to meet him, abandoning using their small axes to bust apart the closet door toward the rear to cleave themselves some fresh meat. Link started the fight by knocking over a barrel of grog and kicking it at them. In the narrow space, one shoved itself against the hull, leaving his friend to take the barrel to the knees and fall face-first onto the deck. The Geozard reached Link and attempted a quick horizontal strike for Link's face. Link backed up a step to avoid the attack and then lunged forward with a jab that pierced the Geozard's tunic. The Geozard responded with a bubbly grunt and attempted to backhand Link. Link ducked and jabbed again, this time with an upward angle that caused his blade to penetrate the Geozard's bare throat. Then Link used the sword's position to pull the Geozard and toss it to the deck.

The second Geozard recovered only to stumble over its companion's body. It fell, its weight ripping Link's sword out of his hand before he could pull it from the dead Geozard's throat. Link kicked the Geozard in the face, putting out one of its eyes with the toe of his boot. The Geozard rolled, its axe forgotten as it covered its face. Link grabbed the Lokomo Sword and jerked it out of the dead Geozard's neck. But, before Link could get in a strike on the other, it found its feet and scrambled for… some location. Link was not sure where it was going since it was just knocking barrels out of its way trying to get away from him.

He looked over at Lwamm just in time to see her finish bashing the first Geozard's bloody and broken face against a vertical member of the hull's structure. She heard the last Geozard approaching her from behind, glanced over her shoulder, and shoved her unconscious (or dead; it was hard for Link to tell) Geozard into its path. The half-blind Geozard tripped over the body and fell face-first onto the deck again. She grabbed a small crate, raised it over her head, and smashed it on the final Geozard's head. The crate remained intact, and the Geozard's body convulsed before it finally rolled off its companion and lay still on the deck.

Link quickly stepped toward the closet and yanked the battered door open. On the opposite side, amid broken dinnerware and two sacks of potatoes, Lilly and Cale suddenly broke apart their makeout session upon seeing Link. "Captain!" Lilly cried out, surprised by Link's appearance. Cale could only gape in horror.

Link gave a relieved sigh. "Okay," he said. "You guys are fine. Stay here until someone comes to get you." With that, he closed the door on the confused couple. He turned to Lwamm and used a hooking gesture with his arm to indicate the door at the back of the galley. "Let's go check the engine room." Lwamm nodded and delivered one final kick to the first Geozard's battered face. Then she met Link at the back of the galley.

Upon entering the engine room, the first sound they perceived was a loud banging that accompanied the deck shaking underneath them. Link glanced over the side of the walkway to see what was causing it. He found that Harley was wielding a broken bottle against two, sword-wielding Lizalfos who had him backed against the water tanks on the port side. Sello was nowhere in sight. Lidago was the source of the pounding sound as he held the limp, mangled body of a Lizalfos by the tail and continually bashed it against the deck, leaving a bloody mess on the starboard side.

Link carefully placed the Lokomo Sword on the ground and slid the Bow of Light off his shoulder. He nocked an arrow and aimed downward at one of the Lizalfos. The arrow became a shard of light, and he fired it straight into the scalp of the Lizalfos on the right. The impaling caused the Lizalfos to seize before collapsing to the deck. The death caused the other Lizalfos to forget about Harley for a moment as it turned to check on its companion. Harley took the opportunity to switch his hold on the bottle and advanced toward the remaining Lizalfos. The Lizalfos only spotted Harley a split-second before Harley stabbed the broken glass into its pate. The bottle broke more, but the Lizalfos was stunned by the attack and backed away, trying to brush away the glass fragments that had been embedded into its thick skin. To Link's surprise, Lwamm hurled herself off the walkway and landed directly on the Lizalfos' head, rolling once she hit the deck to save herself from injury. She wheeled around and smashed her elbow into the side of the Lizalfos' head next, causing it to reel to one side due to all the damage it had taken. It stumbled directly into Lidago's mess and slipped on the blood coating the deck. In the next moment, it was pulverized by the body of its comrade.

"Oi, Lidago!" Harley shouted at him. "Lidago! Ya can stop now!"

Lidago left the Lizalfos' carcass on the deck and looked up, revealing to Link that he had been hiding his head throughout the pummeling. "Okay," he replied as he released the Lizalfos' tail.

Link slid the Bow of Light back on his shoulder and retrieved his sword. Then he stepped off the walkway and landed on the deck next to the ladder, although his landing was considerably stiffer than Lwamm's. Harley stepped toward him and indicated the Lizalfos bodies with a hand. "This wha' ya do when ya leave?" he asked.

Link grinned at him. "Jealous?" he asked.

Harley broke into a fit of chuckles. "_'Ell_ no!" he replied. "Ya can keep yar overgrown lizards! I'll take the drunk _any _day!"

Link glanced over to Sello's usual spot to find that Sello's couch was empty. "Where _is_ Sello?" he asked.

"Think 'e wen' tha' way," Harley said, pointing to a door leading to the orlop. Link nodded and motioned for them to follow. He opened the door and quickly moved inside.

He froze in the doorway between the aft compartment and the rest of the orlop. This was mostly because Link had located Sello along with a Geozard aggressor. Contrary to what Link was expecting, though, he found that the Geozard was chasing Sello around the storage cabinet in the middle of the deck. Sello did not seem to realize that there were two stairwells he could have escaped up at anytime while the Geozard could have clearly stopped and waited for Sello to round the cabinet in order to catch him.

"Huh," Harley commented. "I migh' be rethinkin' tha' las' commen', actually."

"Ugh…" Link groaned, placing a hand over his face. "Lwamm?"

Lwamm did not even rush to help Sello. She casually walked across the deck until it should have been obvious to both Sello and the Geozard that she was standing within arm's reach. Instead, they continued to circle the cabinet. Lwamm grabbed Sello's arm and yanked him aside, causing him to stumble and land against the deck. The Geozard continued to circle the cabinet until it finally stopped right in front of Lwamm. However, it reeled as it tried to focus on her. Then Lwamm grabbed it by its tunic and started bashing its head against the cabinet behind it.

Link pointed to Sello. "Take him back to the engine room and barricade yourselves in," he ordered Harley. "We'll come get you once everything's clear."

"Go' i', Cap'n," Harley replied.

"Let's go, Lwamm," Link said as he marched across the orlop to the starboard staircase. Lwamm, having killed the Geozard through blunt force trauma, threw its body aside and followed Link.

Link stopped at the galley to check that they had no more invaders there. When they reached the cargo hold, Link was surprised to find that two more Lizalfos and three Geozards had been added to the bodies lying on the deck. He crossed the cargo hold to see that the airmen outside had moved to defend their dock. He could still hear sounds on the deck above and motioned to Lwamm to go up while he took the port staircase to the main deck.

Upon emerging onto the deck, Link was taken aback by the sight of a Stalarmor and a Darknut on the deck, along with two Dinolfos breathing fire at someone retreating up to the poop deck. The Stalarmor was swinging a sword at the boom of the starboard main mast, and Link saw that Line had climbed onto the boom to escape. The Darknut was standing further aft, apparently looking for someone while dragging an unconscious Dubbl along by her hair. The darkness around them made it hard to get a clear picture, but Link did not see Layna anywhere in sight along with half of the deck crew. Not even the electric lights along the bulwark gave enough illumination to see much.

"Link!" Irleen shouted as she flew up next to Link's head. "What are we gonna do!? His men are _everywhere_!"

Link dropped his sword and shield. Then he slid the Bow of Light off his arm. "We do this," he said, reaching into his pocket. He pulled out Irleen's bomb gem and showed it to her. "And we do this fast."

Irleen bounced in the air as if using her whole body to nod. "You got it," she replied with an excited tone.

Link ran across the deck and up behind the Stalarmor. He quickly jumped onto its back and crammed the gem in between the vertebrae on its neck. Then he let go and backed away as the Stalarmor, now aware that something was messing with it, used a free hand to feel about the back of its neck. It turned around to find Link drawing his pin hammer from his belt. "This is _my_ ship," he told the confused Stalarmor, an angry glare making his words much clearer to the mute monster. It began to raise its sword to him. "IRLEEN!"

"And the world goes _boom_!" Irleen screamed while Link covered his face.

The Stalarmor's upper half blew apart, its heavier pieces like its head and cuirass/torso falling to the deck while its vertebrae fired in a direction over the starboard side. Link looked up to find a pair of legs stumbling in its place. One of its small ribs, embedded in the deck by the blast, sported its life jewel. Link grabbed the rib out of the deck, took it over to the mast, and smashed the jewel with the hammer while using the mast to brace it. The legs collapsed on the spot, and Link dropped the rib.

"What the hell _was_ that thing!?" Line hollered at him from the boom above, his voice attaining a high pitch. "Holy _shit_, Link!"

"I'll explain later," Link replied as he replaced Sello's hammer. He looked next to the Darknut.

And he realized that this Darknut was missing some of its armor, revealed by the fact that the arm holding its axe had been reduced to a mail sleeve while its other arm still had most of its plating. The reason appeared to be removing its faulds from behind by jamming a knife into the bolts holding them to the cuirass and breaking them with a twist. The Darknut attempted to kick Dholit away, but it only got her playful laugh as it turned around to catch her since she had already danced out of the way. Link was a little amazed to see that she had managed to take off its helmet at one point, leaving its mail coif exposed.

He cupped his hands around his mouth and hollered to her, "Dholit! Take its coif off!"

"Yes, oh My Captain," Dholit replied as she danced about the Darknut.

Link dashed straight at it as he pulled his boomerang. He opened it and, once he was in range, used it to bash the gauntlet still holding Dubbl's hair. The Darknut's grip faltered, having been taken by surprise from behind. Link dropped the boomerang to the deck and wrapped his arms around Dubbl chest. He hustled out of the way, finding her lighter than expected. The Darknut made to turn so that it could swing its large axe at him.

Dholit then leapt up and pulled the coif off its head, causing it to stumble when her weight fell on one of its shoulders. She immediately retreated. "I have it!" she called.

But when Link looked up to see, he found that the Darknut was merely headless now. It felt around the empty space where its head should have been, apparently confused by its missing coif. As Link hauled Dubbl behind the starboard mizzen-mast, he remembered that a source of light was necessary to kill it. He contemplated running back to get the Bow of Light.

Then he realized what was still holstered on his back and pulled his flare gun out. He pulled a shell out and loaded it in. Then he looked up to find that the Darknut, even without a head, had caught Dholit and was now holding her by her ponytail. Link immediately charged out of his cover, cocking the gun. He leapt up, a primal scream escaping his mouth. His hand grasped the collar of the Darknut's cuirass, and he held himself up by bracing his feet on the Darknut's shoulders. "LET HER GO!" he screamed as he jammed the flare gun into the cuirass.

He pulled the trigger, and the interior of the Darknut was flooded with green light. Its armor gave a jerk, and the entire suit collapsed under Link, dropping him to the deck. His head hit hard, and he dropped the pistol so that he could cradle the back of his head.

"My Captain!" Dholit hollered. Link opened his eyes to find Dholit hunched over him. And, for once, she seemed to have a look of sincere happiness on her face. "Oh, My Captain," she told him. "I'm glad you ah all right."

"You know," he grunted as he sat up, "that's probably the first thing you've ever told me that I _believe_."

Two heavy thuds sounded from the other side of the ship, and Link looked up to see that the two Dinolfos that had been chasing someone onto the poop deck had been flung all the way to the main deck, landing at the bottom of the port stairs. His eyes went further up to the quarterdeck, and he was amazed to see that Leynne, Lawrence, Twali, and Layna were standing at the top of the stairs, looking worn but unscathed.

He gave a breath of relief. "Good," he said to himself.

"Link!" Leynne hollered. He pointed over the port side. "Captain Nohth is calling foh you!"

Dholit helped Link to his feet, and Link crossed the deck to the port bulwark. North was standing on the dock, and, upon seeing Link, he hollered, "Captain! Is your ship secure?!"

Link leaned on the bulwark and took a moment to catch his breath. Then he called back, "Aye, Captain North! The ship is still ours!"

Link had not realized that some of his crew had joined him at his side, so he was surprised by the wail of victory that both Twali and Lwamm released. Lawrence and Line hollered out their own cheers, and even a half-dazed Dubbl, being supported by Leynne, managed to make a sound. On the dock, Helo, standing amidst a mixture of North's and Blair's men, raised his arms and let out a booming drone. This caused Biluf, being carried piggyback by Flower, to raise her own victory wail. Then the whole crowd of airmen broke out into cheers of huzzah, swords and guns alike being thrust into the air with each shout.

Link felt something tug at his belt, and he turned his head to find Dholit loading a flare gun. She pointed it into the air and fired, sending a green flare into the sky above.


End file.
